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08/12/2016 12:00 AMEvery baseball team needs a spark plug and Michael Martorelli brings that type of energy and much more to the Shoreline Cougars. Michael’s never-quit, always-work-your-hardest attitude is what first got him on the field and why he hasn’t come off it ever since.
“I try to go out every day and be what the coaches want. My goal was always to be in the top nine, so I would be on the field, be a starter, and give my all every play,” says Michael, a Deep River resident. “If I hit a ground-out, I still ran as hard as I could because he could drop the ball.”
Michael is hitting .293 with eight runs scored and five stolen bases for the Cougars, who are an 18-U AAU squad that features players from several local towns. However, Michael’s numbers don’t tell the entire story. Baseball is a game of sacrifice and Michael has no problem doing the little things that help his clubs win, whether it’s with the Cougars or for the team at Valley Regional High School, from which Michael recently graduated.
“Playing on the Shoreline team, you are asked to do different things because you have more bunting and strategy involved. I just did what the team and coach needed me to do,” Michael says. “[AAU] was an easy transition for me from high school this year because I had played with most of the guys in [American] Legion ball the summer before. It’s great because I got to meet a lot of new people that have become good friends.”
Michael’s team-first attitude makes it virtually impossible for Cougars’ Head Coach Dennis Annicelli to exclude his name from the lineup card. Annicelli also appreciates how Michael is a versatile ballplayer who’s constantly looking for ways to get better.
“Michael is primarily an outfielder, but can catch, as well. He has nice versatility, aggressive on the base paths, and hits to contact. He’s a scrappy player and great to have on your team,” says Annicelli, whose team enters the playoffs after going 17-7-1 during the regular season. “He’s always receptive to coaching and interested in improving his game. I think when you coach, you get to see both sides at one time and Michael always does the right things. He takes extra swings in batting practice, works on bunting, takes extra ground balls, pop flies, and is always working hard, which gets rewarded with playing time.”
Michael was an outfielder for Valley Regional and helped the Warriors have a great year this spring as they reached the Shoreline Conference Tournament final. On the season, Michael posted a .285 batting average and scored 13 runs for Head Coach Gary Marineau’s club.
Michael plays his heart out every day and he is always the last one to leave the field,” says Marineau. “He keeps his teammates pumped up for the games and he has one speed—hustle.”
One of the reasons Michael always goes 100 percent is because he’s a competitive person who doesn’t like to lose. Michael also brings some toughness to the diamond and nothing personifies that better than a play that happened last year, when he was competing for the Shoreline Junior Legion team that was also coached by Annicelli.
“Last summer, we were playing Middletown and he hits the ball to the fence and comes barreling around the bases, sliding into third headfirst for a triple, and separates his shoulder. Michael is there, with his shoulder hanging from his side, and he’s telling me and his dad that he’s fine and wants to stay in the game,” says Annicelli. “He just plays with a tremendous passion for the game that you don’t see in every player.”
Michael will bring that same demeanor to Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, North Carolina for the next two years. After that, he plans to transfer to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and major in physical therapy. As he gets ready to embark on the next chapter of his life, Michael extends gratitude to some of the people who’ve helped him grow both as an athlete and a person through the past several years.
“I’m going to try out for the team because I’d love to keep playing,” Michael says. “This past season, [Valley] had a goal to win the Shoreline Conference championship for the first time since 1986. We lost in the championship game, but I’m proud of that performance. I have to thank all the people who helped me over the years, but especially my coach Gary Marineau, Coach Annicelli, my dad [Michael Martorelli, Sr.], who supported me and always helped me keep my head up, and my mom Deborah.”