As the Bishop Fenwick baseball team gears up for its upcoming season, the excitement seems ever-growing for new head coach Matt Antonelli.
After winning back-to-back Division 3 North titles in 2019 and 2021 under former head coach Russ Steeves, Antonelli has some pretty big shoes to fill. However, the Peabody native and St. John’s Prep alum is no stranger to primetime.
Antonelli has seen every angle of the baseball diamond that there possibly is to see — from little league to the big leagues. Both as a player and a coach, Antonelli brings a lot of experience to this team.
While it is every coach’s goal to win a title for their program, Antonelli has a different goal in mind. He wants to make baseball a special and important experience for all of the kids on the team this season.
“There is something special about high-school baseball that I just love,” said Antonelli, who was a three-sport athlete at the Prep before playing college baseball at Wake Forest. “When I got back into coaching, I realized how important it was to me as a player, and I’m really excited to be here at Fenwick.”
Now, Antonelli isn’t just going to come in and shake things up in this program. He’s going to apply his coaching style to what is already a successful baseball program and whatever changes come, roll with them.
“I’m not trying to come in and change anything drastically. I’m just going to coach the way I’ve always coached,” said Antonelli, a first-round pick of the San Diego Padres in 2006. “I’m not going to try and change anything for the sake of changing it. The program has been really solid for many years.”
One big thing that Antonelli looks forward to this Crusaders season is helping his kids develop into better ballplayers and people off the field to the same extent.
“From freshmen that are young kids who are just transitioning to the big diamond — and even when you get to the seniors — whether it’s on or off the field, they’re still learning a lot,” said Antonelli. “I enjoy being able to help those players both on and off the field. There is something about that age group I just click with as a coach.”
For most kids, picking up a baseball bat for the first time and getting your first hit is one of the greatest feelings in sports and tends to spark the imagination of those kids. Stepping out of the dugout onto the big-league diamond and getting into the batter’s box is something just about every baseball player has dreamed of.
Antonelli is no different, having gotten to experience this when he made his MLB debut in Dodgers Stadium, and he hopes to see his kids reach these same heights.
Fenwick is set to face off against Tyngsboro for their first game of the season on April 4.
