Late bloomer

By Joe Mason
For the Times

Kevin Roche never panics when he’s facing a challenge.
Last year, Roche, a junior at Frankford High School, was working at a job and ended up missing tryouts for the baseball team. But after a conversation with head coach Bob Peffle, Roche became a member of the team.
He was given a uniform, but he didn’t get a lot of playing time. In fact, he made only one trip to the plate — and walked. In the stat column, Roche didn’t get an official varsity at-bat during the entire season.
"I didn’t mind, I just wanted to play," the Juniata resident said. "I played baseball my whole life, and I couldn’t play because I was working. But when I got the chance, I was just happy to be out there, practicing and learning."
Roche wasn’t just going through the motions during daily drills. He was a sponge, absorbing every bit of information relayed by Peffle and assistant coach Juan Namnun.
It might not have paid off last year, but it certainly paid off this year.
Roche was the Pioneers’ starting first baseman this season. He was responsible for playing strong defense, and on offense he started off hitting near the bottom of the order.
He gradually moved up to the fifth spot.
And after Jose Burgos suffered an injury to his shoulder in the semifinals, Roche was moved to the cleanup spot.
Again, no problem.
Roche went 3-for-4 and had four RBIs in Frankford’s 7-5 victory over Central in the Public League championship game on May 29, held at Campbell’s Field near the Rutgers-Camden campus.
"It was unbelievable," Roche said. "It was great, everything about the day was great. We wanted to win and we knew we were playing a really good team. But everything worked out perfectly."
"Kevin has been very important to our season," said Peffle, who coached Frankford to its fifth title in eight years. "Last year he didn’t get much playing time, but he worked hard and improved a lot, even last year."
By virtue of their Public League championship victory, the Pioneers went on to meet West Chester East in the first round of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association’s Class AAAA state tournament.
Frankford’s good fortune, however, ended with the June 4 game at La Salle University. The Pioneers were whipped, 14-0.
That loss was a disappointment, but when the season started in April, this squad’s main focus was claiming another Public League title, something it fell short of accomplishing in 2006.
The league championship meant a lot to the Pioneers, for many reasons. In particular they wanted to win for Peffle, who is retiring from teaching and coaching.
But the coach wanted to win for other reasons.
"When we went to Florida for spring training, I knew we had some great players," Peffle said. "But this year, with all due respect to every team in the Public League, there were four teams that had a great shot at winning the championship.
"Other teams played well this year, but of the four teams that made the semifinals (Northeast, GAMP, Central and Frankford), I think each team had a great shot," the coach continued. "So of course I’m happy that our guys went out and did it. Every year the goal is to win the league, and we did that this year."
Peffle and Roche have exactly one week off before they’ll be on a field together once more. They’ll be among the Public League representatives in the annual Carpenter Cup.
The Public League will meet Chester County on June 11 at the University of Pennsylvania. The first pitch is scheduled for 12:30 p.m., after the Catholic League plays Olympic-Colonial (N.J.) in Game 1 of the tournament.
Coaching the Carpenter Cup squad is routine for Peffle, but making the team is special for Roche.
After all, he never had a hit until his senior year, and now he’s getting a chance to play before college scouts.
Roche, though, already has a plan for his post-Frankford days.
"I’m going to Temple, as of right now," he said. "And I’m going to definitely try to play for them. But I like the education department at Temple and I want to be a teacher. If I could (coach) that would be great, but I know I want to be a teacher."
Peffle will get into uniform for the Carpenter Cup, but his days as the Frankford skipper are over. He’ll still be the head coach for the La Salle High School soccer team in the fall.
"It was a tough day, but I’ll still be around," Peffle said after his team’s loss to West Chester East. "We played a good team today, they hit the ball, there’s not an easy out in their lineup and they made good plays.
"It’s hard leaving, but you know that day will come," he said. "We had a great year and I’m looking forward to getting out there and coaching in the Carpenter Cup. This has been a great time; I’ve been able to coach some great young men. I’m really a lucky guy." ••
Joe Mason can be reached at joemason70@hotmail.com