A ton of All-Stars and a NESN broadcast: Norwich Sea Unicorns continue historic season
Norwich Sea Unicorns manager Kevin Murphy is happy his team is having a historic season.
The Sea Unicorns recently set a franchise record for most regular-season wins and sent a league-best 11 players to the annual Futures League All-Star Game.
"It's a great accomplishment," Murphy said. "Honestly, it's just a reflection of the guy's hard work that they've put in this year."
But a three-game losing streak, including Sunday’s 4-2 loss against Nashua before a crowd of 1,379 at Dodd Stadium, thwarted a chance for the Sea Unicorns to vault into first place at the all-star break.
With players leaving for vacation, as well as heading back to their respective colleges and universities, Murphy knows the final two weeks of the regular season are going to give new meaning to the “dog days of August.”
“Despite the records, every team in this league is tough,” Murphy said. “It’s just a numbers game at this point … who’s healthy, who’s not. We’ve got enough arms down the stretch to win ball games but it’s very hard to win in this league. It’s been a good year but we can’t make it worth nothing. We’ve got to get into the playoffs.”
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Norwich’s magic number to secure its first playoff berth is seven. The Sea Unicorns (31-19), who are just one-half game behind league-leaders Vermont (31-18) and Worcester (32-19), are six games ahead of fifth-place Westfield (26-26) with 11 games left. Pittsfield (22-24) is also still alive for the fourth and final playoff spot. New Britain (28-23) sits in fourth place.
“It’s tight,” Murphy said. “Everybody behind us is on our heels. Guys can see the finish line for sure but other teams are all in”
On Sunday, the big crowd at Dodd was hoping to see Norwich move into first place for the first time during the team’s three seasons in the FCBL.
The Silver Knights (19-29), however, got RBI hits from Luca Giallogo, Cam Carignan, Brady O’Brien, and Shane McNamara to build a 4-1 lead. Wake Forest’s Will Ray pitched the ninth inning to earn the save.
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Dean Ferrara (3-for-4, one run scored), Joey DeMucci (2-for-4, one RBI), and Zach Donohue (2-for-4) paced the Sea Unicorns offense, while relievers Sean Finn and Waterford’s Payton Sutman (Holy Cross) allowed no runs over the final four innings.
Donohue, a shortstop who helped Eastern Connecticut State win the Division III national championship a season ago, was a late season addition to the Sea Unicorns roster.
“We’re just trying to bring in local guys that will be here for the rest of the season,” Murphy said. “We also added catcher Matt Malcolm (Eastern Connecticut State). We’re just hoping we can keep at least half of our core so we can make a playoff run.”
Donohue had been playing in the Greater Hartford Twilight League.
“They needed another infielder and I was ready to go,” Donohue said. “It’s a lot of fun. Obviously, being close with all the coaches, just being Eastern Connecticut guys, it’s been like a second family, especially being here every day with each other and putting in the work before every game. Guys are in the weight room and the cages getting extra reps and doing whatever they need to do.”
Donohue played for the New Britain Bees the past two seasons. He’s looking forward to Norwich’s playoff push.
“Winning is fun,” Donohue said. “We’re going to get a little reset, relax, flip a switch, and get back at it on Thursday.”
NESN’s bright lights
Norwich returns from the all-star break on Thursday. The Sea Unicorns host the Westfield Starfires at 7:05 p.m. at Dodd Stadium. The game is being broadcast by NESN, home of the Boston Red Sox, as part of the “Futures League Thursdays on NESN” series.
NESN has aired four Futures League games during each of the last two summers. The partnership between the Futures League and NESN began with a three-game slate in 2020 when no other league in the northeastern United States completed its season at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’ve been watching the Red Sox all of my life,” Murphy said. “We’re excited to play in this game. It’s going to be awesome and really cool for the guys.”
Sea Unicorns send 11 to All-Star Game
The Sea Unicorns had a league best 11 players selected for this year’s All-Star Game, which took place on Tuesday, July 25 at historic Centennial Field in Burlington, Vermont.
Norwich’s all-star contingent included pitchers Chris Jenkins (Endicott), Brad Lewis (Bryant), and Matt Wooton (Eastern Connecticut State), catcher Joey DeMucci (Monmouth), infielders Andrew Bianco (Seton Hall), Dean Ferrara (Fairfield), Johnny Knox (Nichols), and Jackson Ferrigno (North Alabama), and outfielders Brennan Hyde (Nichols) and DJ Perron (Rhode Island).
The fan vote selection was Ray Leonzi (Eastern Connecticut State), while Perron was Norwich’s representative in the popular Home Run Derby.
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Norwich Sea Unicorns will play on NESN during playoff push
