Baseball

High school teams are constantly evolving, yet this year’s varsity baseball lineup looks eerily similar to the one that fought to the CCS Division III championship last year. The loss of four-year varsity outfielder Lou Martineau alongside key top-of-the-order hitters in Ryan Kall, Dexter Quisol, and Charlie Dohemann, will certainly hurt. But the players arriving in their place all seem to possess the same qualities that Burlingame baseball has built sustained success on, behind tenured and proven head coach Shawn Scott. 

The departure of Lou Martineau to Occidental College’s Division III baseball program has opened a new opportunity for current senior Aidan Alfers to make his impact known after an injury kept him out of the everyday lineup in 2022. With a combination of speed and smooth play, Alfers is a spitting image of the former Burlingame star outfielder and, coincidentally, is also an Occidental College baseball commit.

First baseman junior Dylan Kall will look to work his way into the lineup after his brother, Ryan Kall, graduated out of the position last year. Dylan will likely play alongside experienced senior Chase Johnson, who is also talented at the position.

Senior Lukas Habelt will look to be a key contributor for the Panthers as well. In the Panthers’ season opener against San Mateo on Wednesday, Feb. 22, Habelt tallied two hits, proving his ability to fill the offensive hole Dexter Quisol left at third base. Quisol was among the leaders of the team in batting average and on base percentage (OBP) in a strong 2022 campaign.

While several new faces are joining the lineup this year, Burlingame returns just as many familiar ones.

Following a stellar 2022 season — earning the PAL Bay’s Pitcher of the Year honor as a junior — ace starter Holden Glavin will make a return to the mound this spring. The left hander sported a 1.61 ERA in 10 starts and will be looking to improve on those numbers this year. Additionally, senior outfielder Noah Greenblatt has his eyes set on breaking the school record for stolen bases, which he tied at 20 as last year’s leadoff hitter. Behind home plate, standout senior catcher Charlie Happ will continue in his starting role after posting an outstanding 1.000 fielding percentage as a junior.

Regroup and reload is the name of the game for Burlingame’s perennially successful baseball program, and that shouldn’t be a problem for this experienced, yet youthful and talented squad. The Panthers are already off to a strong 1-0 start after junior Luca Scatena pitched a shut-out win in their first game against San Mateo High School on Wednesday, Feb. 22.