'Great to be back': Following team trip to Fenway South, Worcester Academy is ready for season

WORCESTER — As Mavrick Rizy took a break from situational drills Monday afternoon, the 6-foot-9, 245-pound pitcher dropped his glove and performed jumping jacks near the third base line.

Not for calisthenics. No, Rizy just wanted to stay warm while he was off the mound.

Exactly a week after practicing in the comfy confines of JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida, the Worcester Academy senior standout was admittedly a bit chilly as his team returned to breezy Gaskill Field for their first official practice of the spring.

“In Florida, everything felt great being loose,” Rizy, 19, said. “But it was a reality check when I walked off the plane after landing in Worcester. (So I just had to) adjust back to the cold.”

From 86-degree sunshine to 43-degree cloud cover, the Hilltoppers are just happy to be back home playing baseball — no matter the weather.

“There’s no better place in the world than Worcester, Massachusetts,” Worcester Academy coach Mike Abraham said. “So we’re really excited to get back to work here.

“First day went great, good energy from the guys, especially with it being a little chilly out here, so really excited after the first day and excited about this group.”

A bond through baseball

During Abraham’s first season at the helm of the Hilltoppers last year, the private school in Worcester captured a Central New England Prep School Baseball League championship for the first time since 2017.

Worcester Academy finished the spring at 17-3.

“Last year was a special year,” Abraham, 31, said. “We were very old; we had a lot of seniors, and I was the new guy. ... So we had some ups and downs and just about everything that could’ve went right (did). It was a special group.”

Meet the coaches: Worcester's Abraham brothers excited to bring passion for baseball to Worcester Academy

Following a team-wide trip to Cape Cod in the fall, the Hilltoppers continued their team bonding beyond the walls of Worcester earlier this month.

Worcester Academy played six games in a six-day stretch in Florida and held a handful of practices — with one session coming at the spring training home of the Boston Red Sox. Abraham’s oldest brother, Brian, who is the Red Sox director of player development, helped the Hilltoppers receive the royal treatment at Fenway South.

From stretching and throwing on the “pristine” backfields, to using some of the state-of-the-art technology in the batting cages, to meeting WooSox hitting coach Rich Gedman, Worcester Academy had a ball at JetBlue Park on March 18.

“For them to be able to see the beauty of being in professional baseball and that kind of aura and that space, it makes you want to work a little bit harder,” Abraham said.

“It was really special, just seeing what the potential end goal could be,” said Rizy, a right-hander who is committed to pitch at LSU. “Just like ‘Wow, these facilities are great’ and we’re Boston guys so we grew up going to Fenway so just seeing the mini-JetBlue (Park) was super cool, something I’ve only seen on TV — so seeing it in person was kind of surreal.”

For the Abraham siblings (which includes middle brother, Matt, an assistant coach with Worcester Academy), it was cool to cross paths on the diamond in Florida.

It marks the latest wrinkle in their ever-growing bond through baseball.

“Baseball has always been a really big part of our family,” said Brian Abraham, who grew up in Worcester and played baseball at St. John’s and Holy Cross. “It’s pretty special. We're very lucky.”

“I think just us all having some sort of connection in the baseball world, it’s just a bond that we’ve always been close,” said Mike Abraham, who played baseball at St John’s and then Eckerd College. “It's a beautiful game.”

Soaking in the moments

With their first game scheduled for Wednesday, the Hilltoppers braved the elements Monday at Gaskill Field.

In just a week, Worcester Academy players and coaches ditched shorts for pants, T-shirts for sweatshirts and sunscreen for handwarmers. From Florida to Worcester, the scene on the diamond looked — and felt — a little different for the Hilltoppers.

“Florida was super nice,” Worcester Academy senior captain and catcher Cam Papetti said. “I think we can all say that our bodies were feeling good in the warm, but I think it’s part of us, playing in the cold, it’s kind of being gritty in Worcester and taking these moments and just cherishing them and getting better every day.”

“(The Florida trip was) a little preview for the summer, but I’m taking this (weather) all day,” Worcester Academy junior captain and shortstop James Anastasopoulos said. “The cold, it’s a mental thing. Just being mentally stronger than someone else, outperforming them in the cold. ... It’s great to be back.”

A sentiment shared by Rizy, also a captain of the Hilltoppers.

In his fifth and final season with Worcester Academy, the 19-year-old from Fiskdale — who hit 98 miles per hour in a recent bullpen session — is soaking in all the memories.

Warm or cold. Jumping jacks or not.

“There’s going to be a lot of lasts this year, and that was the first one today, so it was hard, but nothing beats spring baseball, so (I’m) very excited to be back,” Rizy said. “Knowing this is the last couple of months I get to spend at Gaskill Field, I will definitely cherish (them).

“Can’t take any moment for granted.”

—Contact Tommy Cassell at tcassell@telegram.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44. 

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Academy baseball visits JetBlue Park in Florida on team trip