WISCASSET

As you walk into the gymnasium at Wiscasset High School, you can hear an old familiar sound normally heard this time of year in Maine — a baseball smacking against the palm of a leather glove, indicating spring is just around the corner.

Being stuck inside a gym for baseball players can be frustrating, with most fields in Maine still covered by snow or too wet to get in any outside work.

However, at Wiscasset it’s a return to the sport that the Wolverines missed out on last year, with the team returning to compete in the Mountain Valley Conference this upcoming season.

A year ago, the program only had nine players sign up for baseball, leaving Wiscasset athletic director Mandy Lewis with little choice than to make the tough decision to forgo the varsity season and compete in a much shorter jayvee slate.

“We played six games,” said coach Greg Wood. “It was a much shorter season than we would’ve liked, but we just didn’t have any kids come out.”

Prior to the 2017 season, the Wolverines put together modest, successful seasons, 8-8 (2016), 5-11 (2015) and 10- 10 in 2014. The 2014 squad captured the Western Maine Class D championship before falling short to Bangor Christian in the State Class D title game, 5-4 in eight innings.

Wood’s first season at the helm was in 2016, and with enrollment dwindling at Wiscasset, he has seen the decline in baseball numbers ever since.

“Last year, there just was no interest,” said Wood. “The kids don’t play summer ball anymore, there isn’t Babe Ruth or Little League here in Wiscasset.”

This year, the Wolverines will again compete in Class D South while playing a Class B and C MVC slate.

On to brighter days

This year, Wood has more than a dozen athletes out for the squad, including nine freshman.

“We have about 14 kids going out,” said Wood. “We’ll be starting at ground zero. I need to learn their strengths and weaknesses, and minimize those weaknesses.”

With a young team and an open roster, Wood stresses everyone has to do their part.

“We’re still looking at positions. I’ve told the kids they will have to learn all the positions,” said Wood. “That being the case, most of the players were able to come into practice last week, as pitchers and catchers reported a week earlier.

“We had most of these kids in here last week, we need to see who can pitch and possibly play catcher.”

He’ll have some time to sort those things out, with Wiscasset’s first of 16 regular season games scheduled to begin on April 18 at 11 a.m., when the Wolverines host Hall-Dale.

Meanwhile, Wood and his team know that while there will be some challenges ahead playing in the competitive MVC, just being back as a varsity program does sounds pretty good.

“I’ve told them to enjoy this,” said Wood. “Even though we’ll be going up against bigger teams, have fun. They know what they are up against.

“The most important thing to me is these kids aren’t sitting home and doing (nothing).”

Senior Andrew Hendrickson echoes his coaches comments.

“It’s better than last year, as we didn’t get to play much,” said Hendrickson. “A few of us weren’t too happy we didn’t have a lot games last season. This year will be more fun.”

As the snow continues to melt and the field dries, Wood will continue to coach the game of baseball to his young players inside the gym.

“We’re not your typical team that has players one through five that can hit,” said Wood. “ We’re going to work a lot on bunting and base running, a little

small ball.”

And once the fields does clear, it will not only be the sounds of spring in the air, but the sights and sounds of balls striking aluminum bats and hitting leather gloves on the diamond in Wiscasset.