'The perfect storm': Blackstone Valley Tech's hitters feed off each other's momentum
UPTON - The storm opens with thunder crashing. One metallic ping of a hit from Blackstone Valley Tech's metal bats begets another. Then another.
The Beavers boast one of Central Mass.' most dangerous offenses. They average 8.1 runs per game, tied for the most in the Colonial League and among the top five in the region. Blackstone Valley has scored at least five runs in 12 of 13 games this season, compiling a 10-3 record and piling up double-digit runs three times
"The perfect storm is the way I explain it," BVT senior Corey Magill said. "Once we get going, it's hard to stop us. It starts with one guy, the energy's up , and it stays up. That's what I really love about this team."
Blackstone Valley hits all along its lineup. There are five hitters in the beavers lineup hitting at least .300. Alex Vosburgh leads the team at .425 - second in the league, while Magill is at .378. Magill has a team-high 11 RBIs followed by 13 from Vosburgh and 11 from Jack Marino (.361).
"It's something we pride ourselves on, being able to have a deep lineup, hit the ball hard and make the defense make plays," BVT coach John Burke said.
Focus on the measurables
That pride stems from practice repetition. The Beavers drill down on approach, timing and mechanics. They want to understand counts and pitch sequence to be able find balance and pick a pitch to hit.
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"We try and focus on some of the more measurable things, not so much the stats, but more like, 'What can I do to be productive at the plate this at bat?'" Burke said.
That changes depending on the situation in the game and even within the at bat. If a hitter drops down to 0-2, they're looking for a different potential result like moving a runner over than in a positive count with fewer than two outs trying to drive a run in.
"The best thing is staying competitive. We do individual stuff, but mostly it's staying competitive working through game-like scenarios, staying in a game mentality the whole time," Vosburgh said.
The batters higher in the lineup deliver intel about how a pitcher throws, what his arm angle looks like, what the ball does coming out of his hand.
"It's a game of inches. If you can get any advantage you can to lock in to how the pitcher holds his wrist when he's breaking it to early he shows it to how late he shows it," Vosburgh said. "You've got to stay locked in to all of those things."
Never out of it
The quality of Blackstone Valley's hitting keeps it in any game it plays. Even if the Beavers go down early, they know they aren't out of it.
"Even if we're flat at the end, we really start getting good momentum throughout the game," Vosburgh said. "It feels like you can really do anything. It feels like you can bet any team. You can put it on anybody you want to, work through every inning."
They may need it coming forward. Blackstone Valley's schedule to end the season features a host of highly-ranked squads including Bay Path (No. 19 Division 2), Millbury (No. 12 Division 4), down the street rival Nipmuc, Uxbridge (No. 1 Division 4) and AMSA (No. 10 Division 4). The Beavers are No. 8 in Division 3 and will need to overcome pitchers and teams of that caliber to advance further than last season's Round of 16 berth.
"It feels like we're jumping into the playoffs now," Burke said.
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Once the Beavers reach the playoffs, they know margins shrink. Every team throws its top two starters. BVT believes its offense is constructed well enough to maintain its output anywhere against anyone. Even if the Beavers do go down, they know they're never out of a game with how they can hit.
"Hitting is contagious. One gets in there, then two then three. The floodgates open up a bit," Burke said. "You're always within striking distance. We have a chance, we do enough to keep ourselves in it so down the stretch the last inning you've got a chance to go home with a win."
Contact Kyle Grabowski at kgrabowski@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kylegrbwsk.
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Blackstone Valley Tech baseball hitting prowess keeps it in every game
