After months of preparation, the Worcester Bravehearts will host the Futures League All-Star Game at Polar Park.
The Big Dipper and the Pleiades have nothing on the Worcester Bravehearts when it comes to stars.
The celestial season that the collegiate summer league baseball team is experiencing was resoundingly recognized with the selection of a league-high 14 players to take part in the Futures League All-Star Game at 7:30 p.m. on July 22 at Polar Park.
“I’m super proud of all the guys and all their hard work,” first-year manager Luke Beckstein said July 17 before greeting Bravehearts summer campers at Fitton Field. “They all are very deserving of this honor, and you know they have accolades and success on the field that can truthfully back up their selections.
“Having 14 guys is amazing. And the fact that we get to host the All-Star Game here at Polar Park, as well, and have our fans and our people come out and see our players is exciting.”
The Bravehearts entered July 17 with a league-best record of 31-11, good for a five-game lead over second-place Vermont.
They have a 10-game winning streak on their résumé and haven’t lost more than two straight ‒ something that has occurred twice ‒ this summer.
“Luke is doing an unbelievable job managing the team and the players have played outstanding throughout the summer,” said director of player personnel Alex Dion, who previously managed the Bravehearts from 2019 to ’24.
“So it’s a great opportunity for us in the year that we’re hosting the All-Star Game and the fact we’re in first place, that we have the most all-stars in the league. It’s awesome for the Bravehearts and the city and the players and everyone involved.”
The Fab 14 were divided evenly among the two all-star squads.
Team Smiles, a nod to the “Smiley Face” logo created by Worcester native Harvey Ball, includes catcher Wyatt Hoffman (Carson Newman), infielder Ryan LeClair (Stonehill), first baseman Jackson Marshall (UConn), outfielder Chris Mondesir (Maine), and pitchers Caleb Allen (Oakmont/Bentley), Aiden Cardoza (Wheaton) and Jaylem Sepulveda (Western Oklahoma).
Team Hearts, which pays homage to Worcester’s “Heart of the Commonwealth” moniker that inspired the Bravehearts nickname, includes shortstop Will Kraemer (Pepperdine), outfielders Evan Cali (Keene State), Evan O'Rourke (Salve Regina) and Kaleb Woodward (Trinity, Texas), and pitchers Jake LeFrancois (St. Paul/UMass Lowell), Jason Potvin (Rhode Island College) and David Siciliano (Shrewsbury/Fort Lauderdale).
The breakdown could pit Braveheart on the mound versus Braveheart at the plate, adding a game-within-the-game intrigue for baseball followers.
“That’s going to be really cool,” Beckstein said. “It’s definitely something they’re going to remember for a long time.
“Hopefully they’re going to battle it out ‒ some 3-2 counts ‒ but whether it’s going to be strikeouts or barrels or whatnot, I think that will be pretty cool for the guys to be going against one another.”
The Bravehearts could have a 15th all-star, as well.
Josh Fischer of Hopkinton, who is heading into his senior year at Wheaton, is one of six players vying for two additional all-star berths via online voting on the Futures League website.
The 5-9, 200-pound lefty is 1-1 with 20 strikeouts versus three walks in 11⅔ innings spanning nine relief appearances. Voting ends at noon on July 19.
Central Mass. will also be represented by former Murdock High and current AIC standout Cole Patterson, who is having a superb season for Nashua and will suit up for Team Smiles.
The All-Star Game will be broadcast live on NESN+ with replays airing on NESN.
Marshall, a native of Hooksett, New Hampshire, who committed to UConn in mid-June after a terrific freshman season at Southern New Hampshire University, will also be among the headliners at the Home Run Derby that’ll take place at 6:30 p.m. on July 21 at Fitton Field.
The 6-foot-8, 260-pound slugger is the defending champion and ranked second in the league in home runs with eight as of July 17.
Marshall will be joined in the derby by incoming Siena freshman Cole Hambly, who joined the Bravehearts a few days ago and had two hits and an RBI in his first three plate appearances.
Hambly hails from Cranston, Rhode Island, and graduated from Worcester Academy in June after being selected as a Central New England Prep School Baseball League all-star.
The players will be the center of attention at the Home Run Derby and All-Star Game, both of which will take place in Worcester due to work that took place out of the spotlight by the Bravehearts organization in conjunction with the Worcester Red Sox.
“It’s been months of preparation,” president Matt Vaccaro said. “The WooSox staff and our staff have been working hard behind the scenes. (General manager) Donny Porcaro, myself, my father (owner Frank Vaccaro), (community relations manager) Helena Stamatakis, (group experience coordinator) Devin Barbour, and (stadium operations manager) Pat Hogan.
“Our front office staff has really been working hard. Donny has been working hard with Sara Barlok (director, special events) over on the WooSox side on preparing for this event.”
Tickets are $17 for the Home Run Derby, $22 for the All-Star Game and $20 ‒ yes, just $20 ‒ for a two-day package and can be purchased at polarpark.com/futuresleague.
—Contact Rich Garven at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @RichGarven.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Bravehearts at center of Futures League All-Star celebration at Polar Park
Category: General Sports
