Some of the teams in the semipro baseball Greater Pittsburgh Federation League have rosters filled with players in their 30s and/or who have affiliated minor-league baseball experience.

Allegheny Valley is generally the exception to that, but being young hasn't meant the team hasn't been successful. Allegheny Valley was 17-5 and in second place heading into this week.

By being the only player on the team who has been on the roster each of the past four seasons, Steve Long has found himself in the job of unlikely young team leader.

Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Steve Long, sliding under the tag of Clairton's Mike McCarthy during a game last season, has taken on a leadership role Click photo for larger image.

"There are a couple leaders on the team, but being one of the veteran guys and having played the longest there, I've kind of taken on the leadership role," said Long, a 2003 North Hills High School graduate who lives in Ross. "It's kind of funny that I'm 22 years old and I'm one of the oldest on the team. That's how young the team is."

Long, who plays center field and pitches for Allegheny Valley, finished his last season playing at Seton Hill University in the spring and carried over his natural leadership role he had there as a senior to the Fed League. He hit .292 with 28 RBIs and 24 runs scored and went 5-2 with a 4.08 ERA for Seton Hill this past season.

It is somewhat rare in college for players to pitch and play in the field during days they are not on the mound. Long, a right-hander, posted a 0.93 ERA in five games last season for Allegheny Valley.

"He is a great all-around athlete and great all-around kid," Allegheny Valley manager Kevin Giza said. "When you build a franchise, when you try to build a team, those are the guys you want. Those are the guys who compete.

"They're not worried about selfish interests, it's more about the team and to help everyone else out to get better. That's it."

Giza calls Long "a captain out there on the field" when roaming center, understanding positioning and studying the hitter's tendencies.

But while he is fast enough to play standout defense in the outfield, he also serves as Allegheny Valley's cleanup hitter and led the team in home runs heading into the week.

"He's a great player," Giza said. "He's the type of kid who will just be able to do well at anything he does. He has a great sense of pride in everything he does.

"He is not your typical center fielder. He's definitely unique. He'll hit for power, and he is a great contact hitter. Different coaches may use different players in different positions; I always like to have my best hitter in terms of power and contact in the four hole. He's it right now. He's constantly putting the ball in play."

On the mound, Long throws in the mid-80-mph range with a solid changeup and a good curveball.

"I think his best pitch is his 12-6 curveball," Giza said. "It gets batters; a lot of batters, they don't even try to swing at it. They think it's going to be a ball but it breaks right over the plate."

Long, who is finishing up on getting his teaching certificate, is just one of the primary reasons why Allegheny Valley was on the cusp of challenging perennial power St. Johns Lambros for the Fed League's regular-season championship.

A two-game losing streak late last week likely ended the team's chances at catching St. Johns during the season, but earning one of the league's four playoff berths appears to be safe.

"I've played for AVB for four years now, and I think this year definitely has been the most successful season thus far," Long said. "We've just been pitching well and playing good fundamental baseball, doing the small things right.

"We're getting great pitching, we have been playing good defense and we've been putting some hits together and winning some games."