Baseball | 7/17/2016 8:00:00 AM

As the summer marches on and the season reaches its halfway point, the Dons baseball players scattered around the country are making their mark. Six Dons were named to All-Star teams in their respective leagues this summer.
 
Right-hander Mack Meyer and infielder Allen Smoot – teammates on the Bethesda Big Train – earned a spot on the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League All-Star team.
 
Meanwhile, infielder Dan James, who ranks fifth in the California Collegiate League with a .390 batting average, was an All-Star for the Healdsburg Prune Packers.
 
Out in the Hamptons League, three Dons earned All-Star appearances: infielders Ross Puskarich and Aaron Ping - both with the Westhampton Aviators - and outfielder Matt Sinatro of the Shelter Island Bucks.
 
Meyer and Smoot have helped lead the Big Train to the second-best record in the league and were two of the team's league-high 11 players selected to this year's All-Star game. Smoot has picked up where he left off for the Dons this spring as a run-producing machine by pacing the CRCBL in RBI (32), while Meyer has done the same as the team's leading reliever with 10 appearances, three saves and a 1.35 ERA that ranks second on the squad.
 
James has powered the Healdsburg offense by leading the league in doubles (15) and ranking second in RBI (34) at the midway point of the season.   
 
Puskarich and Ping have been on a tear this summer in Westhampton. Ping's power surge has helped him already tie the Hamptons League record with 12 long balls and establish a new Westhampton team record with 33 RBI. After being named league co-player of the week on July 4, Ping took home the distinction of league Home Run Derby champion with a derby-record 26 dingers in the event.
 
Meanwhile, Puskarich is not far behind, sitting at fourth in the league with six home runs while trailing Ping with the second-most RBI in the league with 28 so far.
 
Staying true to form as a threat on the bases, Sinatro leads the Hamptons League in walks (23) and ranks third in stolen bases (18-21).   
 
Here is a snapshot of the Dons summer ball stats halfway through the season:
 
HITTERS

Team	League	Player	GM	AB	BA	XBH	HR	RBI	SB	SBA	OB%	FLD%	Err
Neptune Beach	California	BATE	18	69	0.333	8	4	10	5	6	0.391	1.000
DC Grays	Cal Ripken	BRUCE
Wareham	Cape Cod	GIARRATANO	18	52	0.192			2	3	3	0.269	0.974	2
Corvallis	West Coast	HELLAND
Healdsburg	California	JAMES	30	125	0.360	16	4	34	1	1	0.368		2
Wareham	Cape Cod	MIROGLIO	2	5	0.000	0					0
Monarchs	Futures	NORMAN
Humboldt	Far West	PERRI	18	68	0.309	6	4	20	2	3	0.377	0.919	5
Westhampton	Hamptons	PING	29	111	0.333	5	12	34	3	4	0.432		3
Westhampton	Hamptons	PUSKARICH	27	100	0.280	6	5	26	2	3	0.440		6
Sag Harbor	Hamptons	RAMIREZ	25	79	0.266	2	5	14	0	1	0.456	1.000
Shelter Island	Hamptons	SINATRO	20	56	0.286	4		6	18	21	0.767
Big Train	Cal Ripken	SMOOT	30	119	0.311	3	3	32	3	3	0.470		6
Victoria	West Coast	WARKENTIN	7	24	0.208		1	4	1	1	0.375	0.983	1

 
 
PITCHERS

Team	League	Player	STs	App	Rec.	ERA	IP	H	K	BB	SV
Alemeda	Golden State	CARNEY
Corvallis	West Coast	GOODMAN	4	5		2.54	17.2	17	17	8
Victoria	West Coast	KANNENBERG	4	4	0-1	2.17	20.2	17	15	11
Big Train	Cal Ripken	MEYER		10	1-0	1.35	13.1	11	8	2	3
Woodchucks	Northwoods	PARKER	6	8	4-1	4.09	37.1	44	23	12
Falmouth	Cape Cod	PONTICELLI	4	4	0-3	4.76	17	18	7	4
Neptune Beach	California	POST
Woodchucks	Northwoods	STEELE	9	3	0-3	11.81	16.0	32	10	5
Victoria	West Coast	WARKENTIN