Scholastic Roundup: Remembering Al ‘The Bull’ Ferrara

November 22, 2024 Andy Furman

Los Angeles Dodgers Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax, right, smiles with former Dodgers teammate Al Ferrara, left, as they stand on the field as a part of a Dodgers' Old Timers Game on May 16, 2015, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Danny Moloshok

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Al Ferrara attended Lafayette High School, where he was a classmate of Bob Aspromonte. He played baseball with Joe Torre (St. Francis Prep) and Joe Pepitone (Manual Training High School, now John Jay).

Nicknamed “The Bull,” he made his major league debut at age 23 on July 23, 1963, in a 5-1 Dodgers’ loss to the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. His first hit was in his third game, off Dick Ellsworth. His first homer the next day, off Bob Buhl, was one of three hits by the Dodgers in the fifth inning of a 5-4 loss to the Cubs.

In 1966, he had one of his best seasons. He played in 63 games with 129 plate appearances, hitting .270 and playing in the 1966 World Series, in which he had one hit in one at-bat — a pinch-hit single in the ninth inning of Game 4 off Dave McNally. In 1967 he had his most productive season. In 384 plate appearances, he hit 16 home runs, a career-high — with 50 runs batted in and a .277 average. He was voted Dodger of the Year.

Bob Hertzel covered the Cincinnati Reds when The Bull played for them. He recalled a routine fly ball to left field that Ferrara circled under, staggering all the way, saving face with a diving catch almost where he started. Post-game, when Hertzel approached him and asked where he had learned that move, he replied: “What did you expect for Angel Bravo? Willie Mays?”

That was The Bull, who passed at 84 last week. He won two World Series titles with the Los Angeles Dodgers, played two different villains on Batman, and played classical piano at Carnegie Hall as a teenager. Ferrara was an alumni ambassador for the Dodgers since 2009.

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Transit Tech kept their PSAL 1-A record spotless (9-0) with a 32-6 win over George Washington last week. The team meets Jamaica High on Sunday, Nov. 24, at noon. Eagle Academy for Young Men III shut-out Beach Channel, 25-0 last week and will meet Springfield Gardens, Sunday. They remain atop PSAL 2-A. Fort Hamilton and Brooklyn Tech are deadlocked in 3-A; the Tigers topped John Jay, 35-0; and meet Harry S. Truman, Saturday, Nov. 23. Brooklyn Tech beat Bryant, 37-8, and will tangle with A. Phillip Randolph Campus on Saturday.

In PSAL 4-A, Curtis High and South Shore share the top spot. Last week South Shore took care of Lincoln 33-12, and will meet Curtis Saturday at noon. Erasmus is a close second in 4-A. The Flying Dutchmen over-took Eagle Academy for Men II, 34-12 last week and entertain Tottenville at Sid Luckman Field, Saturday.

In Fort Hamilton’s whitewashing of John Jay — 35-0 — junior quarterback Aiden Farley was eight for 13 for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman running back Harold Marshall III had 11 carries for 94 yards and a score.

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The Hersh Basketball Classic is set for this weekend at Thomas Jefferson High School. The tournament will feature Banneker High vs. Brooklyn Law; Bedford vs. John Jay and Broome Street vs. Summit Academy on Friday (Nov. 22nd) night. On Sunday, BCAM meets Fannie Lou; BCA vs. August Martin; MSIT vs. Murry Bergtraum; Far Rockaway meets Brandeis, and Wagner tangles with Achievement First. The two-day tournament is named after long-time New York City basketball scout Arnie Hershkowitz and hosted by Jefferson basketball coach and former West Virginia performer Larry Pollard.

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Brooklyn’s Brian Baldwin (Xavier High School), a co-captain on Iona College’s men’s swim team, took the 50-back in 25.25 for the Gaels as the men picked up their fifth win of the season last week at St. Peter’s University’s Hynes Pool. Both the Iona men and women return to action Dec. 6-8 for the ECAC Mid-Winter Invitational at the Nassau County Aquatic Complex in East Meadow, N.Y.

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Medgar Evers’ female runners Kenia Irish-Bramble and Nana Samake earned All-Star status following their top 15 finishes in the CUNYAC championships, and men’s cross-country runner Joshua Felix earned the Sportsmanship Award announced by the City University of New York Athletic Conference. Irish-Bramble set a new school record in the 4K at the Lincoln University, Pa. Championship Tune-Up Meet, finishing sixth in 17:58.2. She finished second in the women’s 6K race overall (27:58.9). At the CUNYAC championship, she placed second among the senior college runners and third overall with a personal best (27:26.3).

At the Medgar Evers Legacy Invitational, Samake was the Cougars’ second finisher (31:08.4) – a week later, at the CUNYAC championship, she placed 14th (30:37.7).

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Shelly Quezada posted game highs of 22 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks, but the Medgar Evers basketball women fell to the Lions of Bryn Athyn, 56-41, on Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania. The Cougars (0-3) have their home opener Saturday against the Roadrunners of Ramapo College at 12:30 pm in the Cougars Cave.

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The St. Joseph’s University, Brooklyn women’s basketball team swept the first set of Skyline Conference weekly honors. Sophomore Mercedes Perez was named Player of the Week, joined by newcomer Nikki Greech, who was tabbed Rookie of the Week. Perez posted 26 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists, as well as a steal in the 92-35 opening win over CCNY. In her college debut, Greech scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds against the Beavers.

The Bears of Brooklyn’s St. Joseph’s University were represented by Taylor Knight on the First Team and by Martina Urgo on the All-Sportsmanship Team, announced by the Skyline Conference, All-Conference women’s volleyball selections.

In her first season at Clinton Hill, Knight led the navy-and-gray with 359 kills and ranked second on the team with 267 digs. The junior also topped Division III with 14.21 attacks-per-set, while ranking eighth in kills-per-set (4.49) and points-per-set (5.19). She recorded 14 double-doubles, including a standout 31-kill, 25-dig performance in a five-set win over Purchase. This marks the program’s first All-Conference recognition since Christina Morales was named to the Second Team in 2018. Knight is also the first First-Team selection since Lauren GaNun in 2015, the Bears’ inaugural season in the Skyline Conference.

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Justin Carver scored 20 points, but the Pratt Institute men’s basketball team fell to the United States Merchant Marine Academy in their home opener at the Activity Resource Center last Saturday afternoon, 73-69.
Pratt’s women’s soccer team had its three captains receive All-Conference accolades as Kat Thomsen was named to the First Team and Siena Sujitno and Anna Wilson were named to the Second Team, as announced by the Atlantic East Conference.

Thomsen scored nine goals this season that placed her fifth in the league and currently ranks in the top 100 in the nation in goals-per-game (.64, 87th) and points-per-game (.1.50, 100th). The junior netted the game-winning goals in both of Pratt’s conference wins over Immaculata University and Centenary University. She finished with a quarter of braces, scoring twice against St. Joseph’s University, Brooklyn; City College of New York; SUNY Delhi, and Immaculata. It is her second All-Conference selection after being named to the All-Cioast-to-Coast Conference Second Team in her rookie season.

Sujitno closed out her senior campaign with six goals and two assists, ranked tied for 14th in the conference. She earns All-Conference recognition for the second-straight year after receiving All-C2C Second team last year.

Wilson earned her first-year All-Conference award after anchoring the Cannoneer back line. She started all 15 games — 1,337 minutes — as the team center back.

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Senior Day for the LIU football Sharks ended on a sour note as they fell to Saint Francis (Pa.) 34-27. Luca Stanzani rushed for two Sharks touchdowns and Michael Love had a 96-yard kickoff return for a score. LIU has their season finale Saturday with Wagner.

Andy Furman is a Fox Sports Radio national talk show host. Previously, he was a scholastic sports columnist for the Brooklyn Eagle. He may be reached at: [email protected] ; Twitter: @AndyFurmanFSR