AT FIRST glance, it seemed too tidy. On Monday night, the best high school pitcher in the country took the mound within long-tossing distance of Citizens Bank Park, the home of the team that happens to be picking first in next month's MLB draft.
If Jason Groome had looked to the right before toeing the rubber, he would've seen the Philadelphia skyline peeking behind the second deck at Campbell's Field in Camden. As the sun set over the Delaware, the hulking southpaw was pitching in the shadow of the city he could call home. Literally.
"I'm just glad we drew a good crowd," Groome said after striking out 14 in front of the 6,000-plus who turned out to watch him square off against Florida State commitment Tyler Mondile in Barnegat High's 1-0 loss to Gloucester Catholic.