By Bill Doyle, Staff Writer
April 8, 2015
Worcester, MA --- Dirk Baker has averaged 23 victories in his 19 seasons as head coach of the Worcester State baseball team and his Lancers won a school-record 33 in 2002, one of the five years they have reached the NCAA Tournament.
But Baker believes this year's Lancers could be his best team. The Lancers returned every starting position player and the bulk of their pitching staff from last year's 25-17 team which overcame a slow start to its season to capture the MASCAC regular-season and tournament championships.
"That's why I'm totally not pleased now," Baker said. "When you're the defending champ, and you're the preseason No. 1 and you have your best team ever on paper, why are we 8-9 or whatever our record is?"
The Lancers were 8-9 before sweeping a doubleheader from Nichols on Monday. They lost at Brandeis, 7-2, on Tuesday when Pete Varney earned his 700th victory as coach of the Judges. Worcester State takes a 10-10 record into its home game against Fisher at 3:30 p.m. today at Kevin Lyons Field.
Baker admits he didn't expect to win the MASCAC last season and the Lancers didn't appear to be heading toward a championship after Westfield State swept them and Fitchburg State blanked them, 3-0, in the first game of a doubleheader on April 14 to drop them to 12-13 overall and 4-3 in the MASCAC.
But in the nightcap, Cody Osburn slapped a bloop single to drive in a run, and Jeff Bolio followed with a three-run homer to ignite a 7-3 victory. The Lancers won 13 of 15 to earn a share of the MASCAC regular-season title with Salem State and the conference tournament title. They hope to post another hot streak this season.
"There are more expectations this year," sophomore right fielder Adam Barry said. "Hopefully, we live up to them. So far, we're not really there yet, but there's still a lot of season left. We won it last year so everyone wants to beat the best."
"Did we sneak up on people last year?" Baker asked. "We're not going to sneak up on people now."
Neither is Barry. As a freshman last year, Barry hit .309 and led the team with three home runs and 28 RBIs in to earn second-team All-MASCAC honors. This year, even though he's in a 2-for-25 slump, he's still hitting .348 with one homer and he leads the team in RBIs again, with 18 in 20 games. He doubled in a run against Brandeis.
"The guys in front of me are always on base so I have a lot of chances to drive them in," he said.
Barry thrives in pressure situations.
"He is so relaxed," Baker said. "You almost have to poke him. Low maintenance, loves to play, loves to be around the field."
Barry, who bats left and throws right, has stuck out only once in 66 at-bats. In the offseason, the 6-foot-1, 185-pound Barry gained about 10 pounds by lifting weights four times a week at Boost Fitness in Auburn.
"He's really paid the price in the weight room this year," Baker said, "and he's just a great kid to have around the team."
With a knowing smile on his face, Baker also pointed out that Barry comes from Auburn, which has produced more than its share of baseball players through the years. Baker grew up in Auburn and starred at Auburn High. Junior outfielder Steve Wallace, senior left-handed pitcher Ben Libuda and sophomore right-handed pitcher Zach Zona are also from Auburn.
Barry played two years of junior varsity at St. John's High and two years of varsity at Holy Name. He went to Holy Name as a catcher, but switched to the outfield because of a sore arm. The summer after Barry's junior year at Holy Name, he played for Baker in the Bay State Games. Then as a senior he led the Central Mass. Conference with a .492 batting average.
Last year, Barry produced one of the most important hits of the season — the tying home run in the sixth inning of Worcester State's 5-3 victory over Salem State in the MASCAC Tournament championship game. The home run cleared the scoreboard in right-center and landed on the adjacent softball field, but Barry doesn't recall that.
"All I know is that it went over the fence," he said. "I haven't hit too many home runs in my life."
The home run helped Barry win his first baseball championship since his Auburn Little League All-Star team captured the District 5 championship.
Asked what he thought of Barry's swing, Baker replied, "I don't mess with it because it's pretty darned good. He was born to hit."
The Lancers returned from Florida with a 5-6 record, but after losing at Endicott and beating WPI at the New England Baseball Complex in Northboro on March 25, the Lancers waited a week for the snow to melt so they could play again.
To stay sharp, the Lancers hit the weight room and took fielding practice on Worcester State's artificial turf football field and had batting practice at the Hit Quarters indoor facility in Shrewsbury. The Lancers finally played their first game at Kevin Lyons Field last Thursday, losing, 9-2, to UMass-Dartmouth.
Baker credited Shrewsbury Landscapes with enabling Worcester State to become one of the first colleges in the region to play on campus. The field was cleared of snow, but the dirt area along the fences in foul territory was still wet so it was ruled out of play.
Despite playing in cold weather, Barry believes he and the Lancers can get on a hot streak.
"I don't really mind it," he said, "as long as the sun is out, the cold doesn't really bother you. You stay warm in the dugout."
The Lancers have 12 seniors.
"These guys came in as freshmen, I think seven or eight of them" Baker said, "and they stuck around for four years. That's huge. They all live together, they all hang out together."
Senior shortstop-designated hitter David Ruggiero leads the team with a .437 average. Baker said the strength of the team is its pitching.
Seniors Kris Doyle of Millbury and Libuda have each thrown three complete games. Doyle is 1-2 with a team-best 2.55 earned run average and Libuda is 3-1 with a 2.82 ERA. Zona is 2-2 with a 4.35 ERA and one complete game.
Jake Ryan of Whitinsville shares the catching duties with fellow sophomores Dan McGuill and Brian Bonacquisti. Osburn (.333) plays first base and fellow seniors Nick Gikas and Zach George (.361) rotate at second base. Dennis Duplessis and Worcester Tech graduate John Boyd, both juniors, share third.
Barry, Wallace and Bolio, a senior from Oxford, usually start in the outfield where Ryan and George have seen time as well.
"A great bunch of kids," Baker said. "A great attitude. We're healthy. We just want to get our timing and our rhythm back because when you're out a week, you lose your timing. So just want to get going and play as many games as possible."
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