Staff Report

November is the early signing period for colleges, and the signings have been coming in waves throughout South Jersey. Baseball Performance Center, an elite baseball training facility in Pleasantville — run by former Holy Spirit star and current Philadelphia Phillies minor-league pitcher Mike Adams, along with co-owner Ed Charlton, a former standout at St. Augustine Prep — announced Monday that nearly a dozen of its members have signed college scholarships to continue their baseball playing careers next fall.

Headlining the class is a group of Cape-Atlantic League players who have been dominating the league the past couple of years, most notably Duke McCarron of Ocean City and Egg Harbor Township standout pitchers Justin Sweeney and Cam Flukey.

McCarron led the Red Raiders to the first state championship in program history as a sophomore, and last year he had a 1.96 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 50 innings. He also was one of the team’s leading hitters, batting .356 with a team-high five home runs and 32 RBIs. He’s committed to the University of Maryland as a pitcher.

Flukey and Sweeney are no strangers to battles with McCarron and Ocean City, as the pair has been dominant for coach Bryan Carmichael’s Eagles. They led EHT to 21 wins last spring, as Flukey struck out 63 in 38 innings while Sweeney had a 2.40 ERA and allowed just 17 earned runs in a team-high 49 2/3 innings. Flukey is headed to former College World Series champion Coastal Carolina, while Sweeney has signed to play alongside older brother Jordan at Rutgers.

Baseball Performance Center’s impressive list also includes a couple of St. Augustine Prep standout pitchers (Marco Levari/Old Dominion, C.J. Furey/Villanova, Bruce Wadiak/Iona) as well as star pitcher Johnathan Adelmann of Lenape, who is committed to Bucknell.

The list also includes McCarron’s Ocean City teammate Dante Edwardi (SS/Fairleigh Dickenson), Landon Edwards (LHP/Kingsway/Coastal Carolina), Alex Kranzler (RHP/Old Tappan/Vanderbilt) and Ryan Polansky (LHP/Indian Hills High/Stephen F. Austin).  

Kranzler was the New Jersey state player of the year in 2022 according to nj.com. He helped Old Tappan go 26-5 and win the Bergen County Tournament. He had 36 hits and 26 RBIs for the Knights, and as a pitcher went 11-0 with 115 strikeouts in 73 1/3 innings. He allowed just seven earned runs all season.