As a sophomore in 2017, Bianchi emerged as a reliable starter on the mound for the Caseys and came back as a junior limited on the mound by a sore arm but more than capable of playing a standout shortstop and swinging a potent bat near the top of the lineup. As a senior, Bianchi put it all together, giving RBC 46 dominant innings on the mound and putting up numbers at the plate that put him squarely in the conversation for Player of the Year in the Shore Conference.
While opponents monitored RBC’s schedule to keep tabs on Bianchi’s pitching availability, his offense as a plus defender at shortstop alone was First-Team worthy. The St. John’s commit finished No. 14 in the conference with a .427 average and backed it up with plenty of production. His 37 RBI were second behind only Melfi for the lead in the entire conference, he was one of nine players in the Shore with at least 10 doubles and his 14 extra-base hits were tied for seventh.
On the mound, Bianchi served as co-ace of the Caseys along with sophomore Shane Panzini. He threw 5 2/3 innings in a combined no-hitter with junior John Nimeth against Jackson Memorial in the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinal round, then beat Manasquan in the next round to send the Caseys to the championship game. Bianchi’s only loss of the year came against Delbarton and ace Jack Leiter, who is headed to Vanderbilt and was selected by the New York Yankees in the 20th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft despite assuring teams that he would be going to college. In that game and several others throughout the year, Bianchi flashed a fastball that hit 93 miles-per-hour and caught the eye of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, who drafted him in the 35th round of the First-Year Player Draft.
AB H BB 2B 3B HR R RBI AVG OBP SLUG SB
89 38 14 10 1 3 25 37 .427 .500 .663 11
W L IP H ER BB SO ERA WHIP
5 2 46 22 6 21 55 0.91 0.93
VIN BIANCHI NAMED TO 2019 SHORE SPORTS NETWORK ALL-SHORE FIRST TEAM
