This time last year, James Norwood was virtually unknown in the CHSAA.
“I was just trying to get on the radar back then,” he said.
Now, the 6-foot-1 senior right-hander is widely considered the top pitcher in the league, maybe the city. The All Hallows ace has locked up a scholarship to St. Louis University and could find himself drafted come June.
“What I’ve noticed most about him over the last year is that he has such a big presence on the mound,” All Hallows coach Ed Gutierrez said. “His mechanics are so good, he’s so fundamentally sound, he spots the ball well, he works in and out and up and down. He really thinks out there on the mound.”
Norwood had a solid junior year, establishing himself as the Gaels ace. But then he had a monster summer and the calls from major Division I colleges started flying into his Bronx home.
“There were a bunch, it was hard to keep track,” he said. “It was pretty crazy. I was surprised. They all came around the same time and I wasn’t expecting it.”
There was an offer from Marshall and Costal Carolina, Lamar, Tulane and Miami all expressed interest. But Norwood did his homework and felt St. Louis would be the right fit, signing a National Letter of Intent in November.
“They saw me play a few times over the summer,” said Norwood, who was selected to the Rawlings/Perfect Game Preseason Northeast Region first team. “I heard the coach [Darin Hendrickson] was very good with pitching. That was a big part and it’s also very good academically.”
With a 92-mph fastball to go along with a knuckle-change, a changeup and a recently-added slider, Major League scouts are starting to check out the soft-spoken Norwood.
“When you have a fastball like that and then you see the kid with his size, his mechanics and his age, he’s just a senior in high school, you could sort of take a glimpse into the future with him,” Gutierrez said. “He’s just going to get bigger and better.”
But will the Gaels be better. Sure Norwood, who at times last year was the squad’s best hitter, too, will give them a chance to win whenever he’s on the mound, but does All Hallows have enough to win the other days of the week?
Alexis Torres, who transferred to PSAL powerhouse George Washington, is a big loss and the Gaels don’t have a lot of depth, but Gutierrez said his starters are improved this year.
“The expectations are definitely higher and I wouldn’t have it any other way this year,” he said.
One player who is already on scouts’ radar is sophomore Stephen Alemas, who Gutierrez already touts as “probably the best shortstop in the CHSAA.”
“He can run, has great hands, a great arm and he hits in the three-hole for me,” he said. “The kid can play, but sometimes he loses concentration and that comes from being so young. But he’s a kid we didn’t have last year and he makes a tremendous difference in our lineup.”
Lance Montano is a power-hitting junior who can play first, third, the outfield and can also give the Gaels an additional arm, sophomore Jason Reyes was the top pitcher on the junior varsity a year ago and should see significant time as long as senior Gilbert Gonzalez, who would be the No. 2 pitcher, remains out while he gets “some classroom issues cleared up,” Gutierrez said.
“He throws a great breaking pitch and can play every position in the infield,” Gutierrez said of Reyes.
Senior Luigi Batista, who caught last year, will primarily be used as a pitcher while senior Roger Ramos will be the everyday catcher.
“He worked all summer long and he’s been doing a great job for us behind the plate,” Gutierrez said of Ramos. “He’s a senior who will be hitting somewhere in the middle of the lineup.”
With the emergence of Alemas, Jeremy Tejada, who Gutierrez calls one of the biggest surprises of the preseason, moves from short to the outfield, senior second baseman Juliane Mateo has improved defensively and will bat in the six-hole, while speedy sophomore Phoenix Deshamps will start in center.
“We hit the ball better this year,” Gutierrez said. “The thing about our team this year is that we have six guys in the lineup who can flat out run so we need to utilize our speed. Walks need to turn into doubles, we need to put pressure on the defense.”