DALTON — Avery Mosseau has never been to Pittsfield. But the Pittsfield Suns pitcher has heard plenty about the city, Wahconah Park and the baseball fans.
“I was assigned here by my coach. He played here. He recommended this place. He recommended [manager Matt] Gedman,” Mosseau said. “I’m very excited to be here.”
Suns Practice at Rip City Academy
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Former Taconic player Austin Rachiele in the batting cage during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Former Taconic player Jack Cooney in the batting cage during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Former Taconic player Jack Cooney in the batting cage during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Cole Palis in the batting cage during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Former Taconic player Christian Womble watches teammates in the batting cage during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
CAROLINE BONNIVIER SNYDER — BERKSHIRE EAGLE Izaiya Mestre pitches during Pittsfield Suns practice at Rip City Academy on Monday.
Mosseau, a sophomore left-handed pitcher from St. Anselm College in New Hampshire plays for Jerod Edmondson, who was one of the top hitters in the Can-Am League during the two years Edmondson played for the Pittsfield Colonials.
Mosseau and a number of his 2021 Pittsfield Suns teammates gathered at Rip City Academy on the Pittsfield-Dalton line on Monday, where the hitters took rounds of batting practice with Gedman pitching. The pitchers threw to catchers under the eye of pitching coach Brandon Sheilikis.
The players worked out indoors because work was ongoing in getting the Wahconah Park diamond ready for Thursday night’s home opener. The Suns will practice again on Tuesday before hitting the road for Wednesday night’s opener at Brockton.
Pittsfield will open at home Thursday night at 6:35 against the New Britain Bees. The Suns will play three of their first five games at home, with a Friday night contest against the Vermont Lake Monsters and a Sunday afternoon game against the Westfield Starfires.
Mosseau, who is on the Pittsfield roster with teammate Matt Collins, an infielder, was asked what kind of scouting report Edmondson gave him on Pittsfield.
“He said [Pittsfield] has a very big fan base, very passionate fan base and it seems that,” Mousseau said. “I’ve definitely met a couple of fans already, who said to expect good support from the people here.”
The players will be arriving in Pittsfield between now and Wednesday’s opener. Some players will be late because their teams are still playing. Three players from Franklin Pierce: catcher Jake Miller, outfielder Joel Lara and pitcher Kyle Roche, will be participating in an NCAA Division II regional this weekend. Northeastern shortstop Mike Sirota and first baseman Jack Thorbahn are gearing up to begin the Colonial Athletic Association tournament. Catcher Matt Maloney, a Dayton commit, is still playing at Central Catholic High School in Lawrence. Outfielder Brendan Jones and lefty pitchers Brett Wozniak and Grant Nicholson are on their way to the Big 12 Tournament with Kansas State.
Of the players gathered for the first workout of the Futures League season, several players with local resumes were swinging bats and throwing pitches. University of New Haven pitcher Izaiya Mestre and Springfield College outfielder Jack Cooney, both of whom were key players when Taconic beat Wellesley in the MIAA state Division I baseball title game in 2017 are back for their second seasons with the Suns. Also back is Nate Cormier of Nichols College, who played at Monument Mountain.
“Some of these kids are younger, but it’ll be a fun summer. I’m looking forward to it,” said Cooney, who was asked what he felt like being a veteran. “This is my second year. It’s Corm’s second year and Mestre’s second year as well. We have a couple of veterans that we all, if need be, can step into that leadership role.”
Other county players working out in preparation for the start of the season included former Monument player Mike Goretti from St. Lawrence, Wahconah alumnus Joe Woronick who plays at the University of Hartford with pitcher Ryan LaPierre from Pittsfield who was also at the workout, along with another couple of former Taconic players, outfielder Austin Rachiele from MCLA and Christian Womble, who played this past summer at Cloud City Community College in Concordia, Kansas.
“I’m really excited to be back here in front of the home crowd. It’s always a pleasure,” said Womble, after taking a series of cuts in the cage. “It’s always been a dream. I used to go out and watch the Dukes and always wanted this. I think it probably started to be a reality in my senior year of high school.”
As the crack of the bat and the thump of a ball hitting a catcher’s mitt echoed through the facility, different players had different experiences in the spring. Players like Woronick and LaPierre did get a chance to play for a conference title, as did Mosseau. Some, like University of Pennsylvania infielder Cole Palis did not.
He had heard about Pittsfield and the Suns from Penn teammate Kyle Cronk, who played for the Suns in 2018 and 2019.
The Ivy League did not have a season, but Palis and his teammates did get to play a Philadelphia-based campaign of 14 games.
“I just feel fresh and excited,” he said. “I’m happy to be here and ready to play baseball.”
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