By Michael L. Damon
New York, N.Y.— Former John Jay baseball player, pitcher
John Dobkowski (Brooklyn, NY, Grover Cleveland), one of the most successful pitcher in the history of the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC), has signed a professional baseball contract to play in Holland.
The four year right handed hurler is a member of the Storks NL and is a member of its Baseball 1 team, its highest level of 20 teams which consist baseball and softball teams for men, women and children. Dobkowski will also serve as coach for one of the youth teams.
“I’m very excited about playing in Holland, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to live in another country and experience their culture while playing baseball,” said Dobkowski, a 2003 graduate of Grover Cleveland High School in Ridgewood, Queens. “To me this is a privilege to go there and get a chance to play and also teach the game to children.”
It is the second professional contract Dobkowski has signed. He signed his first professional baseball contract to play for the Midwest Sliders, an independent semiprofessional team, in 2008.
While a student-athlete at John Jay, Dobkowski compiled a 30-17 record. He pitched 313.2 innings and registered 258 strikeouts. He was voted the conference Pitcher of the Year in 2006 after going 12-3 with 85 strikeouts in 102.2 innings pitched.
He was a member of two John Jay teams that earned trips to the CUNYAC championship round, including his senior year in 2007 when the Bloodhounds won the championship.
Dobkowski was also a member of CUNYAC’s 2007 Goodwill Tour team which consisted of two All-Star players from each CUNYAC institution that sponsors baseball, where the team played exhibition games against Italian league teams, conducted clinics for children and toured the country.