Newport Gulls to Hold Hall of Fame Induction this Saturday
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
The Newport Gulls will induct five current players – including two Major Leaguers – and one current staff member to the Third Class of the baseball club’s Hall of Fame on Saturday, Jan. 25 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Ballroom in Newport. The festivities will kick off with a cocktail reception at 6 p.m. The 2014 Hall of Fame Induction will include dinner, a silent auction, video presentations, special guests, and many players, coaches, host families, sponsors, volunteers and staff members both past and present.
Tickets for the event are $60 each and on sale at newportgulls.com or can be purchased via credit card by emailing [email protected]. A table of 10 is available for $600. For more information visit, click here.
Inductees
Don O’Hanley – Volunteer Public Address Announcer, 2002-Present – Considered the premier PA Announcer in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, Don has been the “Official Voice” and Public Address Announcer for the Newport Gulls since 2002. Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1934, his love for the game of baseball started with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Over the next 50 years he accomplished many of his personal achievements both in business working on Wall Street for 36 years and in his passion for baseball research, writing and reporting.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTMitchell Boggs – 2004 Newport Gull – He played his college baseball at the University of Georgia. Mitchell was a reliever at Georgia and became a starting pitcher when he arrived in Newport in 2004. Upon arrival, he immediately became the ace of the Gulls' staff, going 4-0 in the regular season with a miniscule 0.91 ERA while striking out 45 batters in 29.2 innings of work, and opposing batters hit .178. Mitchell was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2005, and pitched for the Colorado Rockies in 2013.
Danny Otero – 2005 Newport Gull – Danny played his college baseball at Duke University and finished at the University of South Florida. In 2005, Dan put together one of the most impressive seasons as a starter in NECBL history. As the ace of the staff, Dan led the Gulls with a 5-1 record, 1.87 ERA, and in 57.2 innings he struck out 49 batters with only three walks. In the NECBL championship game, he pitched a complete game, giving up one earned run with 11 strikeouts and no walks, bringing home the Fay Vincent Sr. Cup for the Newport Gulls. In 2007, Danny was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 21st Round of the draft. Dan made his Major League debut for the Giants on April 7, 2012 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2013, he pitched for the Oakland Athletics, making three appearances in the ALDS.
Vito Chiaravalloti – 2002 Newport Gull – Vito played his college baseball at the University of Richmond, finishing his career as the all-time home run and RBI leader for the Spiders. As soon as Vito arrived in Newport he became as instant hero, hitting many prolific home runs. For the season, Vito hit .257, scoring 19 runs on 26 hits, hitting 8 doubles, while leading the Gulls with 4 homers and 28 RBI. In 2002, Vito was selected to participate in the NECBL All-Star Game. However, it was in the 2002 playoffs when Vito literally carried his team on his shoulders to the NECBL Championship, hitting .345 with 4 homers and 11 RBI in just seven games. In 2003 he was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 15th Round. Vito played eight seasons in the minors and advanced as high as AA for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Richie Lentz – 2004 and 2006 Newport Gull – Richie played his college baseball at the University of Washington. In his first season with the Gulls, Richie was 2-0 with a 1.66 ERA with 9 saves in 17 appearances. He pitched 21.2 innings, giving up only nine hits while walking 13 and striking out 32, allowing opposing batters a miniscule .123 batting average against him. In the playoffs, he was equally as impressive, going 1-1 with a 2.35 ERA, pitching 7.2 innings while walking three and striking out 12 with three saves. Richie was selected to the NECBL All-Star Game and was named 2004 Co- Top Relief Pitcher of the Year. He suffered an injury in 2005 but returned to the Gulls in 2006. Although he had limited action, he was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 19th Round. He played three seasons in the Boston Red Sox minor league system, making it as high as the AA Portland Sea Dogs.
Pat McAnaney – 2006 Newport Gulls – Pat, a left handed pitcher, played his college baseball at the University of Virginia. After a solid year at the University of Virginia in 2006, posting a 5-1 record with a 2.79 ERA, he came to the Gulls. Pat put together one of the most impressive seasons ever as a Gull, posting a league-leading perfect 7-0 regular-season record with a 1.74 ERA. He pitched 51.2 innings giving up only 33 hits with nine walks and 55 strikeouts while allowing a .189 OBA. In the playoffs, Pat had two no-decision appearances, pitching seven innings walking three and striking out 11. Pat was drafted in the 28th Round by the Pittsburg Pirates in 2004 and again by the Pirates in the 38th Round in 2007, but did not sign. He was drafted for the third time in 2008 in the 8th Round by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He went on to pitch for three minor league seasons, making it to AA with the Mobile Bay Bears.
Newport Gulls
Founded in Cranston in 1998, the Newport Gulls are a summer collegiate baseball team based in Newport. The Gulls are a member of both the New England Collegiate Baseball League and the NECBL's East Division. The Gulls have played at Cardines Field from 2001 to the present. The Gulls have won five league championships (2001, 2002, 2005, 2009, 2012).
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