PEABODY – You know him as a baseball-capped kid from Peabody, and you know him from his high school years at St. Mary’s. Now, John Mulready is catching balls, and memories, as an Endicott Gull.
Mulready, a junior, has 68 hits in 58 career games. And something that’s not a surprise to St. Mary’s fans – he’s been superb behind the plate.
“[I’m] definitely having a lot of fun,” Mulready said. “I love this team.”
Speaking of that team, the Gulls were ranked No. 7 in Tuesday’s D3baseball.com Poll – the highest national ranking in program history.
Bats and balls aside, if you ask Mulready, Endicott’s success also comes from its tight-knit culture.
“That’s another reason why we have so much success over here,” Mulready said. “Just because of the chemistry we have, and how that translates from off the field to on the field.”
Mulready’s 45 RBI and 13 home runs are just the latest pages in a long book – one he’s worked very hard on.
“It was the first sport I’ve ever tried,” Mulready, who worked his way through AAU and St. Mary’s, said. “Baseball always seemed to be my strong suit. I, kind of, took that and ran with it.”
He certainly did, but not just on the diamond. Mulready has juggled life as a student-athlete by getting ahead, not getting overwhelmed, and staying focused.
“It’s a little difficult,” Mulready said. “It’s a really tough balance at times, but we make it work because we care so much about both academics and athletics.”
Mulready is a business management major, and says classes are going “really well.”
“[I’m] challenging myself in the classroom the best I can,” Mulready said.
In his free time, well, let’s just say he could “hang out with the guys” forever.
“Going out to eat with the guys is, honestly, one of the best things about it,” Mulready said. “The friendships I’ve made are just unbreakable and they’re never going to go away… they just keep on coming, especially here at Endicott.
Even providing some play-by-play analysis, Mulready said his favorite memory of college baseball (so far) was last season’s Cortland Regional win against Cortland.
“It was just such a great memory to be a part of,” Mulready said. “It goes to show just how much fight this team really has.”
That said, the biggest gift he’s gotten from baseball is something off the scoreboard.
“Baseball has really taught me to be humble,” Mulready said. “You’re never as good as you think you are… you’re never as bad as you think you are.”
“It has a way of picking you up when you’re down,” Mulready said.
The Gulls (5-1) have impressed out of the gates, even snagging two road victories against No. 28 Pomona-Pitzer.
Mulready, who took home Team of the Week honors last week, hopes to “come away with some hardware at the end.” But win or lose, we know he’s doing what he loves.
“It’s always been baseball,” Mulready said.
