D3baseball.com Daily Dose

By Richard Gomez (CCNY)Â

Today we left Rome and went straight to Florence. When we got to Florence we met the two gentlemen who were responsible for our trip here. We then got warmed up on the baseball field and had another children’s clinic and the clinic was great. After the clinic we took batting practice, then we started our game against the Florence Lions. It was a great game and we won once again to improve to 3-0 on the trip. I had a good game. I went 4-for-4 with four doubles, four runs batted in, and two runs scored. After the game we checked into the hotel then met for a team dinner. While at dinner we met Dr. Susan Larkin, who is the athletic director at John Jay College. She really impressed me with how much she knows about Italy. Overall it was a great day because I got to meet some great people and I had a chance to practice my Italian, since the bus ride from Rome to Florence was a few hours.

By Jose Lopez (CCNY)

Today we had the morning off which was needed after playing our first game the night before, and all the walking we have been doing. At 12 p.m. we left the hotel to visit the Neuttono War Cemetery, which was a place where American soldiers burried their fallen brothers during World War II.

The cemetery was very touching, as I walked around I could not believe what so many young Americans sacrificed for this country. These men are real heroes to me. The complex was immaculate as these 7,235 fallen soldiers bodies deserve.

After the visit to the cemetery we did a clinic for some children. The clinic was great, but my only regret was I didn’t have more to give them. The game was interesting to say the least. We were losing 4-0 in the 6th inning and we got to see and we got to see some Italian baseball customs. They were a little bush league but in the end we pulled the victory out 7-4. We got a great pitching performance by William Marte. After the game the people of the town had us stay for dinner. The food tasted great, especially after the win.