It’s 70 degrees and sunny as you sit in the grass of the third base side hill at the baseball double header at Dick Rockwell field. The first game of the double header has just ended and the Le Moyne players file out of the dugout to grab food. After they grab their food, you see the players eating and talking to their family members. Family is always a big part of any sports team, but this season it seems to be a bigger deal considering the team has three sets of brothers. Yes you read that correctly…three sets of brothers on the team. This is something very rare to occur on any sports team.  

“I am not positive but I do not think there has been a team in the past that has this many sets of brothers here at Le Moyne,” said head coach Scott Cassidy of Le Moyne.  

These brothers are David and Donato Dinorcio from Naples, Florida, Nick and Zach Place from, Towanda, Pennsylvania, and Sam and Ben Walsh from Syracuse, New York. David, Nick, and Sam are freshmen, while Donato is a junior, Ben a redshirt freshmen, and Zach a graduate student.

It was definitely a surprise for all of the older brothers when they found out that their younger brothers would be following them to Le Moyne.

“In high school I thought we were going to be done playing together,” said older brother Donato Dinorcio. “Then when I found out I was like “wow I got two more years with him up here at school.””   

For the Place brothers, it’s an interesting situation because Zach and Nick are five years apart. Originally, it would have been impossible for Zach and Nick to play with one another in college due to being five years apart. But since Zach gained an extra year of eligibility due to an injury, the impossible became possible.

“In high school I never thought about it,” said older brother Zach Place. “I just thought I would be the one following him around in high school since I would be done. I got hurt and had an extra year and it just worked out.”

The brothers all agreed that having their sibling on the team is definitely fun because who wouldn’t want to have their brother or sister on the same team as them. But mainly the younger brothers all agreed that having their older brother on the team has helped them adjust easier to college life both on and off the field.

“Coming in I didn’t know what to expect but with the help of him (Zach) he has been able to guide me through it and really teach me and tell me how to be successful,” stated Nick Place.

Some of the brothers get to see each other more than others because they play the same position, which means that they do drills together in practice. Since Donato and David Dinorcio are both outfielders, they get to work together a lot in practice.

“There will be drills that we do where we have to communicate and we know which one of us has got what ball and it’s kind of like built in trust between each other,” stated older brother Donato.

The Walsh brothers are both pitchers, so they get to work together a lot in practice as well and even used to throw the same pitches until Ben got injured.

“I throw a splitter but he doesn’t throw that anymore,” stated younger brother Sam Walsh.

Nick however has mostly been a designated hitter and first baseman while Zach is a pitcher.

“I barely see him in practice, we are completely separated,” said younger brother Nick Place.

Even though some brothers play the same position, doesn’t mean that they are similar in their personalities.

“One is outgoing and one is quiet, one is a jokester and one is more serious, it almost seems like they’re opposites even,” said senior catcher Trey West.

However, different personalities are what can truly bring a team together to become successful, and that is what has happened for the Le Moyne baseball team this season.

“The younger brothers have all come into the program and have contributed right away,” says Head Baseball Coach Scott Cassidy. “They are great kids that work extremely hard. It makes it easier to bring in a younger brother when you know how the older sibling carries himself. You kind of know what your getting character and work ethic wise.”

All of the brothers have compiled solid stats so far this season. Nick Place has a .330 batting average, which is the second highest batting average on the team. He is currently leading the team in homeruns with five and in RBIs with 28. Sam Walsh has a record of 5-1, a 2.89 era and 32 strikeouts this season.  He has also been honored as Northeast-10 Conference Rookie of the week twice this season. David Dinorcio has a .276 batting average this season.

The older brothers have been performing well this season too. Zach Place currently has the third best team era with a 2.51, 71 strikeouts and an overall record of 4-4. He has been honored as Northeast-10 Conference Pitcher of the Week once so far this season. Donato Dinorcio currently has a .244 batting average and Ben Walsh currently has a 4.15 era but just recently has returned from being injured.    

The Dolphins currently are 21-14 this season, which is better than their record from last season of 14-22.

“We have really become much more of a team this year and we are in a good place right now and I’m sure that bringing in these high character kids is a big reason why,” said Coach Cassidy.  

The rest of the team agrees that the brothers have been a great addition to the team as well both with their baseball skills and character.

“I’ve never really played with sets of brothers in my career, but the brothers on this team have definitely helped our team become closer because it has created a true brotherhood for us,” said junior pitcher Damian Powers.