American Legion baseball: Kingston-Saugerties team hopes to make history at regional tourney – Daily Freeman

SAUGERTIES, N.Y. — Kingston-Saugerties American Legion right-handed pitcher Jaylen Mclean knew he had to make a pitch when he fell behind 3-1 with the bases loaded and only one out against Cottreall-Warner Post No. 942’s Tyler Estelle in the bottom of the eighth inning in last week’s New York State American Legion Championship game at Penfield High.

The former SUNY Ulster relief pitcher, who graduated from Rondout Valley High in 2025, knew the Kingston-Saugerties Senior baseball team would be going home if he wasn’t able to retire Estelle in the elimination game that was tied at 4-4 in extra innings.

“I stepped off the mound and stepped back and thought, ‘I gotta throw a strike here,’” Mclean said before the local American Legion team went through its paces in a practice at Cantine Field on Sunday, Aug. 2. “I took a deep breath and just trusted myself.”

Mclean, who will transfer to pitch at Dutchess Community College for his sophomore season, retired Estelle on a pop-up and got out of the jam when Sam Roselli grounded into a forceout for the third and final out.

Kingston-Saugerties American Legion pitcher Jaylen Mclean is photographed on Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, at Cantine Field at Saugerties, N.Y. (Rick Remsnyder/Daily Freeman)

Kingston-Saugerties went on to score five runs in the top of the 10th inning to post a 9-6 victory and claim the first state championship for the squad since the teams from Kingston Post No. 150 and Lamouree-Hackett Post No. 72 of Saugerties merged in 2020.

Kingston-Saugerties will next play at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament against Connecticut’s Waterford at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, at Tivnan Field in Worcester, Massachusetts. Waterford advanced to the Mid-Atlantic Regional despite losing to South Windsor in the Connecticut state final. South Windsor’s postseason ended with the state title due to potential eligibility concerns later in the season.

The double-elimination Mid-Atlantic Regional tournament, which runs through Sunday, Aug. 9, includes American Legion state champions from four other states besides New York and Connecticut. They are Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Eight regional champions will advance to the 99th American Legion World Series from Thursday, Aug. 13, through Tuesday, Aug. 18, at Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, North Carolina.

Kingston-Saugerties (24-9-1) is seeking to become the first local American Legion baseball squad to advance to the World Series since Kingston American Legion Post No. 150 accomplished the feat in 1988.

Kingston-Saugerties manager Michael Koegel said he feels comfortable using any of his 15 players. The roles often vary depending on the situation.

For instance, Mclean was the squad’s closer and hadn’t pitched more than two innings in an outing all year. But in the title-clinching state title game, Mclean ended up throwing 96 pitches and allowed just five hits and two runs (one earned) in eight innings. He struck out two and walked three.

Mclean said veteran Kingston-Saugerties pitching coach Tom Whitaker had worked wonders with his control since he began pitching for the American Legion squad.

“Whit (Whitaker) has brought me such a long way,” Mclean said. “I was a little wild at Ulster. I couldn’t get my control down. A couple bullpens in, Whit just changed me as a pitcher.”

Koegel said his club’s American Legion state baseball championship was filled with a lot of exciting moments.

“It was a great run,” Koegel said. “A wild run. You couldn’t really script it. There were come-from-behind wins and walk-offs. And the last game, our backs were up against the wall. The guys never quit. Each game, it was somebody different stepping up. We played all 15 guys by the second day of the state tournament, which speaks volumes to the depth of this team. We still have several infielders fighting for the same position. We have one too many outfielders. It’s a fun thing to make out the lineup card. But it’s also tough with this team. Competition is always a good thing to have on a team. But with this team, they know the next guy is right there waiting to pick them up and potentially to take their job.”

Koegel said it wasn’t easy even getting to the states.

“Just getting out of our district was a very challenging thing,” he said. “We have three very, very good teams just in our district (District 9) alone. I would say we knew we were capable of it (winning a state title) because the talent was here from day one. But it’s something that hasn’t been done in a long time because it’s hard to do.”

Koegel said the goal at the Mid-Atlantic Regionals is a simple one.

“The job’s not done,” he said. “We want to keep playing as long as we’re able to. The goal is to get to the World Series. If we don’t, it’s still been a great run.”

Koegel said the fan support from the local community has been great, particularly with a lot of backing on social media.

He also said he’s been proud of the way his players have handled themselves during the run.

“One of my favorite things that’s come about on this whole run was that the Cottreall-Warner coach Gary McNeil made a compliment on our Facebook page that it was the most respectful Legion team that they faced in their two years in Legion,” Koegel said. “That to me means a lot because that’s how we ask these guys to act and that’s how they’ve handled themselves.”

Catskill High graduate John McKenna, a lefty outfielder who also plans to attend Dutchess Community College in the fall, said there’s a lot more to this year’s team than talented players.

“We work together, respect each other and we have a family,” McKenna said. “The goal is to get to the (American Legion) World Series.”

Kingston High graduate Preston Provenzano, who pitched for SUNY Oneonta’s baseball team this past season, picked up a win in the second game of the state tournament for Kingston-Saugerties. He pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing five hits and two runs in a 3-2 victory over Hillcrest Post No. 1194.

He said it’s nice to be a part of a strong pitching staff.

“We have so much pitching this year,” Provenzano said. “The depth is unreal. Me, Dylan MacDonald (Red Hook) and Jake Young (Cairo-Durham) are our three starters, and we’ve been doing our job all season and we have a great defense behind us. Always picking us up and that’s what it’s all about.”

Provenzano also thinks this year’s club could become the first to get to the American Legion World Series since the Kingston Post No. 150 team in 1988. That featured a bevy of Kingston High stars, including former Kingston High baseball coach Mike Groppuso.

“The World Series is still in our view,” Provenzano said. “We know we can get there, so we’re going to go out there and prove it.”

Red Hook High catcher Jackson Huber agreed that the pitching staff is strong.

“They just get better after every outing,” he said. “I trust them more and more after every outing.”

Huber said it was an adjustment initially learning to play together with stars from other high schools and colleges. The roster includes players from Ulster, Dutchess and Greene counties.

“It was different at first, not knowing a lot of guys on the team,” Huber said. “But we came together, became a family and all bought into the same idea of wanting to win.”

Kingston High graduate Kaden Deibert, who has become one of the club’s most consistent hitters and made a critical diving catch in left field during the state tournament championship game, said he’s had a lot of fun being part of the first state title for the merged Kingston-Saugerties team.

“It’s a big thing for us since it’s the first one in the team’s history,” Deibert said. “We had a blast at states and we want to keep our momentum going. Our goal is to go to the World Series, but we have to take it one step at a time, game by game and end up where we end up.”