OLEAN, N.Y. — To 2021 Otto-Eldred graduate Cole Sebastian, playing for the Olean Oilers — a summer wood bat developmental baseball team playing in the New York Collegiate Baseball League (NYCBL) — could have felt like a step-down.
Just a week before the Oilers’ season opener on June 6, Cole was finishing his first season playing Division I collegiate baseball at Canisius College. Cole and the Golden Griffins won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title and earned a game against the University of Miami in the NCAA Regional tournament.
As a freshman, Sebastian became acquainted with the highest level of collegiate baseball.
“It was really exciting. Most people don’t get to experience all that I got to in the four years at college, and I got to experience in my first year,” Sebastian said. “Miami’s field was pristine. From the dirt to the grass to the batting cages, there were no mess-ups; it was just an unbelievable facility.”
But in spite of spring success, Sebastian and his brother, Chase, needed nothing more than the pitch of playing for their hometown team to get onto the Oilers’ roster.
“It’s a team in (New York Baseball Collegiate League). It is a really good League,” Cole Sebastian said. “And I am getting to play in front of my friends and family, which has been a big part of my decision.”
Cole attended games during his formative years and fantasized about playing for the Oilers.
“Growing up and being from Eldred, we always went to the games at Bradner Stadium when I was younger and it made me think that I always wanted to play there,” Cole Sebastian said. “And the one thing I noticed was all the guys always played hard.”
Cole took just 11 at-bats in his first season with the Golden Griffins. During his time with the Oilers, he wants to find comfort and consistency at the plate.
“I’m looking to improve my at-bats and just be more competitive and be more consistent in the batter’s box,” Cole Sebastian said. “I want to find more consistent results and be consistent with my swing on every pitch.”
Cole has picked up two hits in 10 at-bats and two RBI in four games to start the summer season.
Chase Sebastian, a 2018 Otto-Eldred graduate, finished his third season at Wells College in the spring. He pitched 58 innings the last two seasons and struck out 46.
A lefty, Chase has found a way to be a mismatch for hitters using a combination of a fastball and curveball. But with the Oilers, the elder Sebastian borther wants to achieve greater drop and consistency when using his changeup, even if it means allowing traffic on the bases.
“I’m looking to make my changeup better, be more consistent with it. I am doing this mostly to improve on my game. There is a lot of good competition in this league, including facing a lot of Division I and Division II guys,” Chase Sebastian said. “And the games will just make me better even if I do get hit around a little bit.”
Chase heads a 14-player pitching staff that contains just four lefties. The rarity of lefties makes Sebastian believe he can carve out a vital role in the bullpen. He has surrendered one earned run in 1.2 innings pitched thus far.
“Our pitching staff is going to be really good this year and I am a part of a good group of lefties,” Chase said. “I think we have a really good chance to match up well, and I can do some stuff among us that will be useful.”
To Chase, it has been really important the Oilers’ roster — upon returning after a two-year hiatus — be filled with local players.
“It means a lot for the community to see a bunch of local guys coming out and playing,” he said. “I know we get a lot of fans, and the community was really glad that the Oilers came back this year.”
The Sebastian brothers will be joined by three others who either played high school baseball in Pennsylvania or grew up in the Keystone State — Dylan Vincent, Carson Whiteman and Jake Meeker.
Vincent, from Eldred and an Olean graduate, completed his senior season in the spring at Canisius as Cole Sebastian’s teammate.
As an outfielder and first baseman hybrid for Canisius, Vincent hit .311 with 52 hits and 16 RBI in 42 starts and 45 total appearances. The lefty hitter brings an abundance of confidence and experience to an untested roster.
Vincent went 3-for-5 and scored three times in the MAAC semifinal victory over Rider and 2-for-3 with two RBI in the championship game.
The Oilers did not get a chance to play in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID-19, making Vincent the only remaining player from the pre-pandemic Oilers. His one season of NYBCL experience in 2019 and four years of Division I baseball put him directly in a leadership role.
In five starts for the Oilers in 2022, Vincent has six hits in 21 at-bats and four RBI.
Whiteman, a 2020 graduate from Kane, completed his first year at Gannon University this past year. The 2022 summer will be his first with the Oilers.
Standing at a sizable six-feet-four-inches tall, Whiteman overpowered hitters his first season playing Division II collegiate baseball. The right-hander threw 24.2 innings in six starts and nine appearances this spring and posted a 5.11 ERA and 22 strikeouts.
Six games into the NYCBL season, Whiteman has struck out five and surrendered four earned runs in 4.2 innings pitched.
Finally, Meeker, a 2018 St. Marys graduate, finished his second year at and his first year playing catcher for St. John Fisher college in the spring. After not getting any playing time as a freshman, Meeker hit .320 and drove in five runs in 13 starts.
Meeker started the Oilers’ season-opening victory, 13-5, over the Hornell Steamers. Meeker went 2-for-4 and drove in one run. Six games into the season, Meeker has hit .545.
With the most collegiate experience of any of the team’s catchers, Meeker could play a crucial role in catching a pitching rotation that has equally young players —10 sophomores, three juniors and one senior.
The Oilers have started the season 5-1, first in the Western Division, behind an explosive offense averaging eight runs and 11.8 hits per game.
