This section will give you a little background on myself and a history lesson of Modified (or Medium pitch as it was originally called).
My name is Sal Guerriero. I starting pitching on Staten Island NY in the New York City Park League as a teenager back in the 60’s. Yes, I have now been pitching for over 40 years. I have played on many teams in New York, New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania. I still have a passion for the game and as of this writing I am still competing in several Eastern Pa. leagues and participating in State and National tournaments.
Back when I started pitching, the only style that was allowed was the 10 Man Modified style (it was not called that then – it was called Medium Pitch). I grew up watching my older brother Ray (who still plays on Staten Island) play the game. The pitchers for his team were Nick Amodeo (the father of the figure 8 style) and Jim Fallucca (unbelievable knuckle ball). Paul Minucci ran the team and put together the best players from the area. Their team DePompo’s and Trio Licastri won three of the first 4 national titles in Modified. Teams from Staten Island won the first 5 National titles. On any given Sunday more than 90 Modified games were played on Staten Island. I grew up watching Nick Amodeo and emulated his figure 8 style.
I have seen most styles of pitching in my many years and can tell you that the 10 Man Modified style of pitching is probably the hardest to become proficient at. In order to throw strikes with any type of velocity or movement requires years of practice.
