Connor Crowley became part of the Lawrence High pitching rotation as a sophomore in 2023. It’s no coincidence that the Cardinals’ program was resurrected that year, as Crowley has been one of the driving forces in the renaissance.
“Oh God, absolutely,” coach Jim Maher said. “We got what we thought we would from him on the mound, but as a position player, he’s hitting nearly .400 this year. He runs the bases well, handles the bat well. He’s only made one error at second base.”
Entering this season’s Colonial Valley Conference Tournament semifinals on May 16, Crowley was batting .378 with three doubles, two triples, five stolen bases and 14 runs scored. On the mound, he was 5-1 with a 1.21 ERA and 47 strikeouts. He allowed just five walks in 40-1/3 innings, had one save and one complete game.
The save came for his brother Aiden, a junior who was 3-1 with a 1.95 ERA through Lawrence’s 15-6-1 start.
“It’s weird — you got a brother coming in for another brother,” catcher Drew Dobkin said. “Very different body shapes, and Aiden is more of a finesse pitcher and Connor is more of a ‘brings it down and is gonna get you there’ pitcher.”
It has been a heck of a ride for the older Crowley. As a freshman, he had just six at-bats and pitched six innings on a team that went 5-15.
When Maher arrived in 2023, he immediately saw the hurler’s potential. Crowley responded by going 5-2 with two saves, a 3.40 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 35 innings. In 13 appearances, he made five starts and was mainly a pitcher, with just 11 at-bats that year. But he helped the Cardinals to a 21-7 record, a CVC Valley Division title and a trip to the Central Jersey Group III final.
“The difference between my freshman year and sophomore year was such a big change,” Crowley said. “The atmosphere has been awesome with a great group of guys. I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else. And the winning atmosphere that Maher’s brought to our team has just been great.”
The coach had enough faith in Crowley to start him in the CJ III title game against Middletown North in 2023. The sophomore had a rough go of it but learned from the experience.
“At the end of the year I started having back issues during the playoffs,” he said. “I just went out there, tried to get the adrenaline going. It was hot that day and they were a pretty good team, so unfortunately they got us.”
As a junior, arm fatigue limited Crowley’s appearances. He made just eight appearances (three starts) and went 1-0 with a 2.63 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 21-2/3 innings. He still helped the Cards to a 22-6 record and another division title.
“He’s got a great change-up, good fastball, good breaking ball,” Maher said. “He throws three pitches for strikes and he doesn’t walk guys.”
But in five at-bats last year, he had one hit, and it appeared his future was strictly on the mound.
Due to circumstances, however, he found himself in the starting lineup four games into this season. His bat started hot and never cooled down.
“I didn’t think I was gonna hit at all this year, to be honest,” Crowley said. “During the Hopewell game they threw me in for an at-bat. First pitch I saw was a fastball. I hit a one-hopper off the wall. Ever since that at-bat, I don’t know what happened, but I’ve been seeing the ball well and hitting it well.”
It has been a pleasant surprise to Maher, who spent the early part of the season searching for offense.
“I didn’t think he would give us what he has as an everyday player,” the coach said. “When we started the year, he wasn’t in the lineup. But we had some guys struggle and I had to put him in there.
“He can bunt, he can handle the bat, he puts the ball in play. He’s not a power hitter. We gotta get him to cut down on strikeouts a little bit, but he’s really solidified our two-hole spot with being able to bunt, hit and run. He may be our fastest guy. He gives us a lot at the top of the lineup (batting second).”
Crowley doesn’t try to be a slugger; he just takes what’s offered and has confidence in his bat control when down in the count.
“I’m an up-the-middle guy,” he said. “I’m not trying to hit for power or anything. I stay short and compact. I’ll swing at the first pitch, I’ll go down 0-2 and just try to put the ball in play.”
His solid hitting has hardly detracted from the right-hander’s stellar pitching.
“He’s had a quality outing every time out there,” Maher said. “Our top four guys (both Crowleys, Aiden Poot, Deacon Moore), when they’re healthy, they are as good as anybody.”
Crowley’s contributions have not been lost on his younger battery mate.
“He’s been great,” Dobkin said. “He’s been stepping up. He’s been a great help. He’s more of a silent leader, he’s not really vocal. But when he brings it, we’re behind him, we’re gonna play for him.”
Crowley began playing at age 6 for Lawrence Little League and moved on to play travel ball for the Mercer Makos (with Steinert’s Joey Ditta) and with the Trenton Thunder Academy for one season.
“I had an arm injury, though, so that was cut short,” he said. “In high school I didn’t play much travel.”
But he got into some high-level high school games, including a sectional final.
“That helped make things easier, especially for county and state games last year and this year,” Crowley said. “It built up my confidence, and as a team it helped us win close games.”
Also helping Crowley was the arrival of his brother on varsity during his sophomore year.
“It’s awesome,” Connor said. “I’m always playing catch with him, whether it’s in the backyard or on the field.”
Maher feels the entire team is close-knit due to the fact many of them have played together for years under Dobkin’s dad. While some will be moving on to college ball, this is the end for Crowley. He is able to get free tuition at Rutgers because his dad works there and is opting for academics over the diamond.
“I tried to talk him into playing at TCNJ, but he wants to go to Rutgers and doesn’t want to play,” Maher said. “So I told him to go out there and give it everything he has. He’s done a good job all along for us, and this year he’s been really good on the mound, at the plate and in the field (three errors).”
Crowley made sure he’d be ready for his swan song.
“I put in a lot of work in the offseason,” he said. “Baseball is fun, but I’m not crazy into it. It’s just enjoyable. Since this is my last year playing baseball, I’m just going out there, having fun, not trying to overthink too much.”
He thinks a lot in the classroom, as evidenced by a 4.0 grade-point average, and plans to major in exercise science at Rutgers.
“I want to do physical therapy, or something like that,” Crowley said. “My sophomore year I went to a PT guy who really helped me out. I liked what he was doing, and that kind of inspired me.”
And as May turned to June, Crowley hoped to inspire the Cardinals to another deep state run to cap a tremendous three years.
Connor Crowley is in his final season for the Cardinals baseball team.,
