LYNN — With a new face leading the English baseball program and an experienced group of returners, the message is simple for the Bulldogs this preseason.
“With 11 seniors, we have an older team,” first-year Bulldogs coach Doug Mullins said. “Aside from whatever happened last season, we feel the time is now. We want to win now and be competitive now.”
English finished 6-14 last season but the Bulldogs record wasn’t indicative of how the team played throughout the season. The Bulldogs hung tight with some of the better teams in the Northeastern Conference, often dropping games due to a late costly mistake that would seal the win for the opponent.
“We had just two or three seniors (last season),” Mullins said. “We weren’t a young team because we had a lot of juniors but we were inexperienced for sure. We had a lot of talent but we caught a lot of bad breaks. We had a lot of games we were in but we weren’t able to capitalize. We’ve had a great program for the past 14 years with (former) coach Joe Caponigro. He left the program in good shape despite a down year last season.”
Mullins, who served as an assistant under Caponigro for two seasons prior to being named the head coach of the program in October, has used the preseason to adjust to the new role and familiarize himself with the differences. Although he knows what English returns this season, the expectations are different now that he’s the head coach.
“I was there last season but the my role changes from assistant to head coach,” Mullins said. “The expectations change. It’s definitely a learning process as far as that goes. I have 11 seniors returning. It’s a change for them. It takes some time but I think it’s going well. I think everyone’s ready for a big year.”
Key returners for the Bulldogs on the mound are senior right-handers Dax Billingsley, Devin Curley and Geraldo Rojas. All three have enough varsity experience to make Mullins feel confident in handing them the ball.
“We have three seniors that have been there,” Mullins said. “That’s always good to have. Devin’s bouncing back from a broken left collarbone. He should be ready to start the season. We’re going to rely on those guys heavily. I know they’ll be ready. I’m confident in them.”
At catcher, seniors Alex Rodriguez and Billy Allen are currently competing for the starting role. Other returners include senior infielders Briston Maynard and Wilbur Rosario, junior infielder Jomar Moreta and senior outfielder Anderson Figueroa.
“The thing about our team is that we’re deep,” Mullins said. “I have a lot of guys that can do different things. I think we’ll be solid in all three phases: hitting, pitching and defense.”
With a roster heavy on juniors and seniors, Mullins believes experience will play in English’s favor as a team strength. Although the Bulldogs didn’t win as many games as they’d hoped last spring, the varsity experience players gained should pay dividends this season.
“We’ve had a couple guys that have been in the varsity program since they were freshmen,” Mullins said. “The majority of these guys got plenty of playing time last season. The experience we got last year was huge for us. They’re ready for a turnaround. They’re all competitive kids and they expect big things this year.”
The early challenge for Mullins and the Bulldogs has been getting creative with indoor practices. English was able to make it outside for the first time on Tuesday night, mainly for the outfielders to work on fielding fly balls.
“When you go inside, you just go station to station and work on the fundamentals,” Mullins said. “Indoors, we’re limited in movement. You want to get into the fundamentals with footwork. We got into the cage and tried to simplify things there. Everyone’s on the same boat. We’re not thrilled with it but sometimes you have to get creative with it.”
Mullins expects the NEC to bring a slate of top-notch opponents throughout the season. In order to compete in the conference, English has to bring its best effort on a consistent basis.
“Our conference is tough,” Mullins said. “I look at our schedule and we really don’t have any gimmes. You know what you’ll get from Danvers. Classical went 19-1 last season. Swampscott’s always a good team. You have to be on your A game, fully prepared and ready for everybody’s best.”
English opens the season Monday, April 9 against Malden at Fraser Field.
