As the home field thaws and dries from cold spring weather, the Boothbay Region High School baseball team has its eyes on the upcoming season. Head coach Ed Crocker said his team looks competitive this year with a roster full of returning players and fresh faces who promise strong performances on the mound and at bat. Their first game is at home against Telstar Wednesday, April 17.

“Our strengths coming into the season are our strong pitching and our pitching depth,” Crocker said. “We also have several players that handle the bat really well, and we should be able to score a lot of runs this year.”

The 15-player team consists of 13 students from BRHS and two from Wiscasset Middle High School. Finn Harkins, Dominick Dow, Aidric Canada, Liam Jacobs, Maddox Cusumano, Sam Markowitz and Henry Putnam return to the field. Crocker also said several freshmen, Shawn Gamage, Casey Phelps and Aiden Locke, will have a big impact on the team and should spend a considerable amount of time on the field. Filling out the roster are Sophie White, Jaden Orne, Paul Lambert, David Frazel and Cale Rogers. Crocker will coach alongside Bill Mansfield and Jesse Peters.

Harkins, a senior with a strong 2023 performance, will lead the pitching lineup this year. However, Crocker said Jacobs is their hardest throwing pitcher, and he has high expectations for him. Crocker also praised Canada as a strong right hander who throws many strikes with few walks and Gamage, who is coming off a confident season with Boothbay Region Elementary School. For relief pitchers, Crocker highlighted Markowitz, who is healing well from an injury, and Cusumano, “a hard throwing right hander that can use corners and change speeds to keep hitters off balance.”

At bat, Crocker said Canada will be the leadoff hitter and Putnam will supply power and clutch hitting. He also highlighted Harkins for his reliable performance, Cusumono and Markowitz for their power and average, and Jacobs for natural talent and consistent improvement.

However, the Seahawks will be working on their defense. “As a team, we will be concentrating on improving our defense that has hurt us over the past couple seasons,” Crocker said. “We need to play smart baseball and do the little things right.”

Many of the returning players will lead defensive efforts this year, joined by Gamage. Crocker expects strong performances in centerfield, infield and first and second base. He highlighted Cusumano, the starting catcher, who he said could be one of the top catchers in the conference.

Crocker said his team has its work cut out for it but he expects the team to be competitive. One of the smallest teams in Class C, he said the Seahawks have a challenging schedule and will be competing twice against some of the toughest teams. Although they are playing in Class C over the regular season, they will compete in the Class D playoffs.

The team returns from the 2023 season with a 6-9 record. The Seahawks beat Telstar in last year’s playoff games but lost the first round of the tournament 2-1 to Lisbon who scored both runs on a home run.