By Sean Duncan

JOLIET – Mike Foltynewicz is the No. 1-ranked senior in the state and a probable high-round draft pick because of his power arm. But so far this season, he’s been creating quite a buzz with his bat as well.

On Thursday against No. 24 Joliet Catholic Academy, Foltynewicz gave a gaggle of scouts plenty to see, as the Texas recruit blasted two three-run homers and finished with eight RBI to propel No. 26 Minooka to an easy 11-0 six-inning victory in the first round of the WJOL Tournament.

Foltynewicz launched a moonshot three-run homer in the first inning to provide all the support he would need. His second three-run shot made it 9-0 in the fourth and his two-run single put the finishing touches on Joliet Catholic (2-2). Thursday marked the second multi-homer game this week for Foltynewicz, who has tallied five long balls in his last three games. He has six homers this season.

 

 “I’m seeing the ball really well right now,” he said. “I pitched OK I thought, but I’m really happy with my hitting.”

 

Foltynewicz’s hitting rampage, however, wasn’t the most impressive part of his performance. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound right-hander lit up the radar guns in the early innings. In the first inning, his fastball sat at 94-96 – that’s right - and ranged between 90-96 mph in the second. When he needed it in the third and fourth, Foltynewicz dialed it up to 93.

 

“The first inning I felt pretty good,” said Foltynewicz, who also showed a sharp breaking ball and an 81-82 mph slider on occasion.

 

His pitch repertoire didn’t give the Hilltoppers much of a chance at the plate. Foltynewicz limited the JCA to three hits in five innings and struck out seven with four walks to improve to 3-0.

 

“He’s unbelievable,” said Minooka coach Jeff Petrovic. “It’s really something to watch. I’ve run out of things to say about him; he’s just on a different level.”

 

Sophomore left-hander Josh Jimenez (82-83 mph) pitched a scoreless sixth as Minooka improved to 6-1 on the season.

 

Junior third baseman Dakota Brown went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI, and Adam Ladzinski (two runs) and Jeremy Perez (three runs) each added two hits as well for Minooka, which has scored double digits in all but one game this season. Dan Vogrin also scored three runs.

 

As for Joliet Catholic, the Hilltoppers have drawn some tough pitching matchups early on. They’ve faced St. Rita junior left-hander Joey Filomeno, Lemont junior right-hander Josh Ferry and Foltynewicz in four games. JCA beat No. 2 St. Rita and No. 27 Lemont.

 

“We’ve seen arguably the No. 1 junior left-hander in the state, one of the top junior right-handers and the No. 1 senior in the state. I’d be surprised if anybody’s seen better pitching than us. Hopefully it helps us down the road.”

 

Junior Kyle Cunningham had two of JCA’s three hits.