Boston, MA
Fall golf All-Scholastics and league All-Stars
Will Balz (Weston)
Isabel Brozena (North Reading)
Jack Carstensen (St. John Paul)
Matt Costello (Bishop Stang)
Carson Erick (Hingham)
Charlie Fearing (BC High)
Bobby Fish (Danvers)
Nicolas Gebhardt (St. John’s Shrewsbury)
Johnny Gillooly (Milton)
Owen Hamilton (Duxbury)
Tripp Hollister (St. John’s Prep)
Ryan Keyes (Wellesley)
Peter le Gassick (Old Rochester)
Terry Manning (St. John’s Prep)
Jack Martin (Nauset)
Ronan Mooney (St. John’s Shrewsbury)
Matthew Oliviera (Bishop Stang)
Zach Pelzar (Weston)
Charlie Potter (Dover-Sherborn)
Cole Redder (East Bridgewater)
John Scully (Winchester)
Chad Tordone (Barnstable)
Brandon Vitarisi (Reading)
HONORABLE MENTION
Brendan Burke (North Andover)
Chris Doherty (Hanover)
Zac Georgantas (Foxboro)
Tim Hill (Dover-Sherborn)
Spencer Kates (Wayland)
Cooper Mohr (North Andover)
Ilan Rashdan (Westford Academy)
Riley Reardon (Arlington Catholic)
Erika Redmond (Concord-Carlisle)
Ethan Sullivan (King Philip)
Richie Thayer (Bridgewater-Raynham)
WILL BALZ
WESTON
The junior tied for sixth in the Div. 3 North sectional and also tied for third at the Div. 3 state championships. The 2023 NHSGA National Invitational attendee will also attend the match in 2024. The 2022 Div. 3 state champion and North sectional champion is a member of the Modern Music Masters Honor Society is also the chess club co-president.
ISABEL BROZENA
NORTH READING
The senior captain led the Hornets’ to their first state final appearance in 20 seasons while also going undefeated individually on the season. The four-time team MVP and two-time Cape Ann League Kinney Division Player of the Year was the runner-up in the Div. 3 girls’ golf state championship last season. Brozena also qualified for the 74th Girl’s Junior Championship. The National Honor Society member and honor roll student is committed to play golf at Xavier University.
JACK CARSTENSEN
ST. JOHN PAUL
The Div. 3 state champion with a 3-over par as his team placed second in Div. 3. The Cape and Islands co-MVP holds the top scoring record as well as par scoring totals for a season. The senior is a four-time Cape and Islands All Star and a member of the National Honor Society. The honor roll student will play golf at the University of Montevallo.
MATT COSTELLO
BISHOP STANG
The Catholic Central League MVP had a 35.75 scoring average while also winning the CCL Conference while shooting a 65. The senior was a medalist at the Cape Cod High School Invitational with a 73. The seven-year varsity team member went 34-0 in league play and was part of the 2021 Div. 2 state champion squad as well as the Div. 2 2021, 2022 and 2023 sectional champion teams. The honor student will play golf at the University of Connecticut.
CARSON ERICK
HINGHAM
The three-time Patriot League All Star and 2022 Patriot League MVP placed third with a 3-over 75 in the Div. 1 state tournament while taking the Div. 1 South sectional title. The senior is a 2023 American Junior Golf Association Rolex Scholastic Junior All-American Honor Roll member.
CHARLIE FEARING
BC HIGH
The senior placed tied for second with a 1-under 71 as he sunk seven birdies at the Div. 1 North sectional which qualified him for the Div. 1 state title. He tied for third at the NE Junior PGA Qualifier out of 70 players with a score of 74 (2-over) as he qualified for both the NE Junior PGA Championship and the Avidia Cup. The high honors student and BC High Presidential Merit Scholar is a member of the National Honor Society and plans to study computer science and ethics in college.
BOBBY FISH
DANVERS
The Northeastern Conference All-Conference player went 10-0-2 on the season while qualifying for the Div. 2 state tournament where he finished tied for 11th. The senior has also made the Northeastern Conference All-Star team and won team MVP for three years. Fish also played in US Challenge Cup events and is going to college for business.
NICOLAS GEBHARDT
ST. JOHN’S (SHREWSBURY)
The Catholic Conference All Star and champion placed sixth in the Div. 1 Central sectional as well as tied for third (3-over) in the Div. 1 state title while his team took home both crowns. The senior also qualified for the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Match Play tournament. The National Honor Society member and honor roll student will be taking a gap year for golf next year.
JOHNNY GILLOOLY
MILTON
The Div. 2 North sectional medalist with an even par 72 also placed tied for sixth with a 6-over 76 in the Div. 2 state finals. The senior also averaged 37.94 in dual matches. The member of the National Honor Society is unsure of where he will attend a four-year college yet.
OWEN HAMILTON
DUXBURY
The two-time Patriot League MVP had the best scoring average across his four years in the program. The senior was a medalist at the Div. 2 South sectionals and finished top 11 at the Div. 2 state finals the past two seasons. The honor roll student is also a top-ranked disc golf player and hopes to attend Babson College in the fall with his brother.
TRIPP HOLLISTER
ST. JOHN’S PREP
The junior finished second in Div. 1 North sectionals with a 71 and had a scoring average of 36.83 with 15.3 putts per round. He played in the IMG Junior World Tournament as well. The honor roll student also is part of the track and field team and plans to play golf in college.
RYAN KEYES
WELLESLEY
The Bay State Conference individual title champion also won the Div. 1 South sectional individual title and placed tied for third in the Div. 1 state title match with a 3-over 75. The 2021 Div. 1 individual state title champion averages a 35.4. The senior is committed to Columbia University.
PETER LE GASSICK
OLD ROCHESTER
The three-year South Coast Conference All Star was a medalist in 11 of 16 matches on the season with a 36.9 9-hole scoring average. The junior placed sixth in the Div. 2 state final with a 6-over 76 and was part of the 2022 Div. 2 state title team. He qualified for the 2023 and 2024 Mass Junior Amateur tournament.
TERRY MANNING
ST. JOHN’S PREP
The three-time Catholic Conference All-Star and now two-time All-Scholastic placed second in the Catholic Conference tournament, placed second in the Div. 1 North sectional with a 1-under 71 and was tied for seventh in the Div. 1 state tournament with a 4-over 76 while his team placed second. The senior also plays basketball and will be taking a gap year to follow his dream of playing Div. 1 golf and making the sport his profession.
JACK MARTIN
NAUSET
The three-time Cape and Islands League All Star and one-time Cape and Islands MVP placed third in the Div. 2 state finals with a 4-over 74. The two-year captain also averaged 37.3 and notched three hole-in-ones in a calendar year in his career.
RONAN MOONEY
ST. JOHN’S SHREWSBURY
The junior tied for third with a 3-over 75 as St. John’s of Shrewsbury won the Div. 1 state title. In 2022, he shot a 2-under 69 and qualified for the N.E. Interscholastic Golf Championships at Mohegan Sun. The honors student plans to study business and entrepreneurial management in college.
MATTHEW OLIVEIRA
BISHOP STANG
The three-time Catholic Central League All Star was a co-medalist with a 72 in the Div. 2 South sectional and then was part of the Div. 2 state title runner-up squad. The two-time All-Scholastic was part of the Div. 2 state title in 2021 and was Catholic Central League MVP in 2022. The first honors student and National Junior Honor Society member hopes to play golf at the collegiate level while studying finance/business.
ZACH PELZAR
WESTON
The senior shot a 3-under 75 in the Div. 3 state title to lead his team to the title after hitting a 2-under 70 to win the Div. 3 North sectional crown as well. He also shot 70 and 68 respectively in the sectionals and states last season to win both events. Pelzar is committed to play golf at Emory University.
CHARLIE POTTER
DOVER-SHERBORN
The Tri-Valley League MVP and two-time Tri-Valley League All Star was a medalist at the Div. 2 Central sectionals and won the state title with a 1-over 71 as his team won the team title as well. The sophomore hopes to play collegiate golf after he graduates.
COLE REDDER
EAST BRIDGEWATER
The South Shore League Sullivan Player of the year placed tied for eighth while shooting an 81 in the Div. 3 state championship. The four-time South Shore League All Star also placed fourth with a 78 in the Central sectional tournament to advance to the state final for the first time in program history. The honor roll student is considering joining his brother at UMass in their turf management program or heading to a trade school to pursue a career in the trades.
JOHN SCULLY
WINCHESTER
The three-time Middlesex League All-Conference and All-Star team member placed fifth at the Div. 1 North sectional with a 72 as Winchester placed as runner-up. The 2022 Middlesex League MVP also tied for 12th at the Div. 1 state title with a 5-over 77. The National Honor Society member also plays tennis.
CHAD TORDONE
BARNSTABLE
The Cape and Islands MVP finished tied for seventh in the Div. 1 state final match while also placing third in the South sectionals. The five-time Cape and Island League All Star is also a three-year captain. The four-year high honor roll student and member of the National Honor Society will be attending Babson College to play Div. 3 golf next year.
BRANDON VITARISI
READING
The Middlesex League MVP had one of the greatest seasons in school history, going a perfect 11-0. The senior was tied for fourth with a 75 in the Div. 2 South sectionals and placed second with a 2-over 72 in the state finals. The honor roll student and National Honor Society member will attend Saint Anselm College to play golf.
LEAGUE ALL-STARS
CAPE AND ISLANDS
Chad Tordone, Colin Gleason (Barnstable); Jack Martin, Sean Kipperman, Max St. Aubin (Nauset); Jackson Rocco, Casey Huse, Christian Whittle (Monomoy); Chris Shanahan, Declan Norris, Gavin Powderly (Falmouth); Luke Silvia, Nick Rabani, Jack Debettencourt (Martha’s Vineyard); Mya Murphy, Jared Cole (Sturgis West); Colton Chambers. Bradley Knapp, Henry Kathawala (Nantucket); Ryan Weisner (Sturgis East); Ben Catalano, Tripp Germani (Cape Cod Academy); Michael Keif (Rising Tide); Jack Carstensen, Timmy Adams, Matt Curley, Sam Scioletti (St. John Paul)
MVP: Chad Tordone, Jack Carstensen, Henry Kathawala
CAPE ANN LEAGUE
FIRST TEAM: Deven Henehan, Paul Daley (Lynnfield); Colby Arel, Jack Oreal (Newburyport); Isabel Brozena (North Reading); Aidan Gray (Essex Tech); Mason Colby (Triton); Ty Southhall (Georgetown); Cooper Miller, Aidan Noonan (Hamilton-Wenham); Sam Kesterson (Rockport); Charlie Jepsen (Ipswich)
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Isabel Brozena, Cooper Miller
CATHOLIC CENTRAL LEAGUE
Matt Costello, Matt Oliveira, Nathaniel Mello, Noah Cormier, Michael Zeller (Bishop Stang); Shea Newhall, Kyle Rush, Andrew Potter, Micah Hashikawa (St. Mary’s); John Kane, Gavin Walsh (Bishop Feehan); Aaron McCarthy, Brady Sullivan (Archbishop Williams); Louie Spychalski, AJ Picano, Mike Carter (Bishop Fenwick); Riley Reardon, Pat Clair (Arlington Catholic); Jai Karani, Ben Catton (Cardinal Spellman)
MVP: Matt Costello
CATHOLIC CONFERENCE
Ethan Addazio, Quinn Matthews (Malden Catholic); JJ Campbell, Charlie Fearing, Drew Garelick (BC High); Terry Manning, Seamus O’Holleran, Tripp Hollister (St. John’s Prep); Thomas Constantine, Connor Walsh, Quinn Dumas (Xaverian); Charlie Novack, Aidan Kelly (Catholic Memorial); Nic Gebhardt, Ronan Mooney, Savar Bhasin, Cael Duggan, Curtis McDonald (St. John’s Shrewsbury)
COMMONWEALTH ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Matt Tramonte, Liam Milne, Colin Lawson, Max Carpenter (Shawsheen); Jayden Auger, Noah Davidopoulos (Nashoba Tech); Derek O’Brien, Ben Morse (Minuteman); Ben Murphy, Aidan Low (Greater Lawrence); Cameron Carriea, Brian Curtis (Northeast); Dante Gentile, Evan Koes (Lowell Catholic); Jacob Torpey, Brody Simmons (Greater Lowell)
MVP: Matt Tramonte
DUAL COUNTY LEAGUE
ALL-LEAGUE: Erika Redmond (Concord-Carlisle); Spencer Kates (Wayland); Tristan Spiess (Boston Latin); Jason Ahn, Varun Murthy (Acton-Boxboro); Hugo Young (Lincoln-Sudbury); Maddie Smith (Westford Academy)
ALL-STARS: Zach Pelzar, William Balz, William Goldstein (Weston); Evelyn Parkerson, Richard Wells (Boston Latin); Jay Keenan, Connor Lent (Acton-Boxboro); Henry Behrens (Cambridge); Ilan Rashdan, Peier Li, Justin Davighi (Westford Academy); Nico Dischino, John Davis (Waltham); Matt Seney, Champa Vistesin (Lincoln-Sudbury); Will Spring, Ahrinn Desai (Concord-Carlisle); Caleb Hong, Dustin Whitaker (Newton South); Ryan Capobianco (Bedford) Jamie Lehr, Joey Burke (Wayland)
PLAYERS OF THE YEAR: Erika Redmond, Spencer Kates
GREATER BOSTON LEAGUE
Frankie Annunziata, Chris MacDonald (Revere/Malden); DJ McDonough, Anthony Madarese (Medford); Emmett Easton (Somerville); John Crowley, Riley Driscoll, Jacoby Comeau (Lynn English); Kyle McKenna, Cooper Dalferro (Lynn Classical); Makenzie Powers (Everett)
MVP: Emmett Easton
HOCKOMOCK LEAGUE
Dane Holske, Bradley Lehtonen (Attleboro); Travis Thomas, Huck McCready (Canton); Zac Georgantas (Foxboro); CJ Steele, Caden Sullivan, Liam Lewandowski (Franklin); Evan Regan, Ethan Sullivan (King Philip); Brendan Vokey, Nate McClean (Mansfield); Anthony LaPierre, Jacob Hipolito (Milford); Tyson Laviano, Caiden Alberigo (North Attleboro); Braden Shapiro, Lucas Riley, Sean Kearns (Oliver Ames); Dylan Cummings (Sharon)
MVP: Ethan Sullivan
MAYFLOWER ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
NORTH: Alex Dennehy, Mike Repucci, Dylan Roach (Blue Hills); Brady McCarthy, James Hoey (South Shore); Cooper Phillips, Matthew Cairns (Southeastern); Erik Larson (Tri-County); Sean Rideout (Norfolk Aggie)
MVP: Alex Dennehy
SOUTH: Matt Nawoichik, Asher Graff, Zephyn Johnson (Upper Cape); Owen Boutria, Cooper Spirlet (Westport); Devin Maloy, Donny Azar (Bristol-Plymouth); Bob Leach (Diman); Brayden Wright (Cape Tech)
MVP: Matt Nawoichik
MERRIMACK VALLEY CONFERENCE
Jacob Morgan, Lucas Jenney (Andover); Harry Garland (Central Catholic); Ryan Adams, Jake Lessard, Jacob Carlson (Chelmsford); Colin Underwood (Dracut); Tommy Murphy (Haverhill); Cooper Mohr, Tyler Faraz, Brendan Burke (North Andover); Matt Cooke (Tewksbury)
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Brendan Burke, Jacob Carlson
MIDDLESEX LEAGUE
LIBERTY: Carson Muse, John Scully, Cole Cassidy, Brendan Buck, Julian Ragosa (Winchester); Brandon Vitarisi, Jack Murray, Brady Keaveney (Reading); Ryan Nortz, Rohen McKenzie (Belmont); Owen Shea (Arlington); Jeff Lo, Sabrina Wu (Woburn)
MVP: Brandon Vitarisi
FREEDOM: Bobby Cyr (Wilmington); Mitch Deveau, Daniel Crossman (Burlington); Joe Aronis, Charlie Conway, Ryan Fariq, Mike Taranto, Jacob Utter (Stoneham); Roddy McGillicuddy, Noah Fay (Melrose); Connor Jones, James Erickson (Watertown); Patrick Maloney (Wakefield)
NORTHEASTERN CONFERENCE
ALL-CONFERENCE: Bobby Fish (Danvers); Riley Fenerty (Salem); Tyler Feldberg, Cole Velardo (Masconomet); Joe Orlando, Drew Johnson (Gloucester); Charlie Grenier, Marty Ryan (Marblehead); Ryan Murphy (Winthrop)
ALL-STARS: Eli Wickham (Winthrop); Brendan Glowik, Bryce Clark (Danvers); Matt Ryder, Mike Ryan (Peabody); Simon Quicken, Jacob Hershfield, James Bickell (Marblehead); Ryan Jones (Saugus); Isaiah Francis, Nick Tarantino (Gloucester); Dylan Brother, Brenden Sheehan (Masconomet); Lucas Carbone (Beverly); Jason Bouffard (Swampscott)
GOLFER OF THE YEAR: Bobby Fish
PATRIOT LEAGUE
KEENAN: Owen Hamilton, Matt NeJame, Mike Yucuis (Duxbury); Carson Erick, JD Flynn, Drew Golden (Hingham); JD Ambrose, Justin Ford (Marshfield); Sam Magnarelli, William Sears (Plymouth North); Cam Cardarelli (Silver Lake); Blake Belcher (Whitman-Hanson)
MVP: Owen Hamilton
FISHER: Owen Barth, Joe Dacosta, Chris Doherty, Matt Reynolds (Hanover); Aidan Bridges, John Toland (North Quincy); Declan Battell (Pembroke); Matt Walsh (Plymouth South); Jack Dunn (Quincy) Meyer Gack, Tom McMellen, Luke Ryan (Scituate)
MVP: Chris Doherty
SOUTHEAST CONFERENCE
Will Gangi, Tom Moreira, Ian Emery (Dartmouth); Richie Thayer, Jack Balutis, Matt Lydon (Bridgewater-Raynham); Brady Sullivan, Devin Viera (Durfee); Ryan Sinnott, Ryan Walsh (Brockton); Craig Baptista, Luke Tarpey (New Bedford)
MVP: Richie Thayer
TRI-VALLEY LEAGUE
Rebecca Kriegsman (Ashland); Charlie Potter, Tim Hill, Sean Scannell, Mason Melchionda, Grant Mayer (Dover-Sherborn); Mikey McGovern (Holliston); Parker Winn (Hopkinton); Joey Nee, Aaron Ravech, Jack Branca, Sadie Cumming (Medfield); Owen Spellman, Gavin Shipos (Medway); Shawn Clary (Norton); Tommy O’Brien (Norwood); Lillian Guleserian, Gunther Guleserian, Patrick Dalton (Weston)
MVP: Charlie Potter
Boston, MA
Monster effort from Neemias Queta helps pave the way for Celtics in win over 76ers – The Boston Globe
Queta has been a revelation for the Celtics this season and helped them improbably surge into second place in the Eastern Conference. But it is unlikely he or his team envisioned nights like Sunday, when he crafted the best game of his career to propel Boston to a 114-98 win over the 76ers at TD Garden, its 11th in 13 games.
The 26-year-old center finished with 27 points and 17 rebounds and received ‘MVP’ chants several times in the fourth quarter.
“I thought he’s had great ownership and responsibility to what it calls for to be a starting center for the Celtics, and he’s got to continue to get better,” Mazzulla said. “He works at it. He cares. So, it’s a credit to him.”
The Celtics, who entered the night averaging 17.1 second-chance points per game, poured in 30 Sunday, with Queta leading the charge. With 76ers center Andre Drummond often playing up and trying to congest the lanes for Boston’s talented ballhandlers, Queta forcefully and quickly found space around the rim.
“We just gave him the ball and trusted him to make the right decision every time, and he was able to get it going,” forward Jaylen Brown said. “He had some nice up-and-unders in the seam and stuff like that that helped propel us to a win.”
Brown added 27 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists for Boston.
Tyrese Maxey had 33 points to lead the 76ers, but they did not come easily. The All-Star guard played 43 minutes and made just 12 of 34 shots. Philadelphia was without star center Joel Embiid (oblique).
“He didn’t have a ton of layups, didn’t have a ton of free throws,” Mazzulla said of Maxey. “I thought he obviously missed some good shots, but when you have the ball as much as he did, I thought we did a really good job just being disciplined, defending without fouling, keeping him out of transition.”
The Celtics improved to 40-20, with just 22 games remaining in the regular season. After the game, there was a visible reminder of what could be on the way.
Star forward Jayson Tatum, who could be nearing a return from last May’s Achilles injury, sat at his locker and laughed and joked with team staffers. He also posted the latest clip from the NBC docuseries about his comeback on his social media accounts.
For now, of course, the Celtics continue to plow forward without him. On Sunday, Boston quickly wiped away an early 10-point deficit behind Queta. He registered five offensive rebounds in the opening period, and flashed an unusual amount of offensive creativity during his dominant second quarter.
During one stretch, he danced through the lane for a basket, converted a putback, then dazzled the crowd by trailing a fast break, taking a pass from Brown, and converting an acrobatic scoop shot that gave Boston a 40-35 lead.
“We don’t want him to get too carried away with some of those,” Brown said, smiling. “But he was converting them tonight and it looked good.”
Queta reminded everyone that much of his value comes from his defensive work when he swatted a Kelly Oubre Jr. shot out of bounds, and he received a rare standing ovation when he checked out moments later.
Finally, after a well-executed two-for-one opportunity, Brown found Baylor Scheierman, who played with a splint on his broken left thumb, in the right corner; he hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that gave Boston a 62-50 lead at the break. Scheierman gave a high thumbs-up with his bandaged digit.
The Celtics led by 16 early in the third quarter, but the 76ers continued to push back. Three-pointers in the final minute by Quentin Grimes and Maxey made it 89-83 at the start of the fourth.
The 76ers trailed by 6 with four minutes left in the fourth quarter but missed their next five shots, any one of which could have put real pressure on Boston.
With 2:56 left, Queta converted a layup as he was fouled, stretching the lead back to 105-97. He received ‘MVP’ chants for the second time in the quarter when he went to the foul line. Then, with 1:56 left, he put an exclamation point on his memorable night by grabbing yet another offensive rebound and throwing down a two-handed dunk that made it 109-98.
“I thought Neemi matched and exceeded the [76ers] physicality,” Mazzulla said.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.
Boston, MA
Bruins Believe They ‘Didn’t Do Enough’ In Loss To Flyers | NESN
The Boston Bruins suffered a 3-1 road loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.
Boston entered the game in points in eight-straight games, as the Bruins are competing for a playoff spot. However, Boston’s offense struggled on Saturday, as the Bruins scored just once on Dan Vladar, and head coach Marco Sturm felt like the team didn’t do enough to create more scoring chances.
“(Vladar) played really good, he kind of made those saves he needed to,” Sturm said as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage on Saturday. “We just didn’t do enough of a good job being around him or being front of him.”
Although Sturm didn’t like Boston’s play, Vladar still made some key stops when the game was close.
Bruins forward Morgan Geekie had multiple chances and was frustrated that he couldn’t score on any of them.
“Just one of those nights,” Geekie said. “Their goalie played well. Couldn’t quite put it in the spot I wanted to a couple times and Dan made a couple great plays.”
Boston’s lone goal came from Charlie McAvoy, while Jeremy Swayman made 14 saves on 16 shots, as Philadelphia added an empty-netter to secure the win.
With the loss, the Bruins fell to 33-21-5 and are holding onto the final Wild Card spot. Boston will return to the ice at home on Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
More NHL: Charlie McAvoy’s Mother Reveals His Immediate Reaction To Team USA’s Gold Medal Win
Boston, MA
MLB notes: New Red Sox pitching directors looking to keep pipeline flowing
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Over the past few years the Red Sox pitching program has been completely transformed.
Since Craig Breslow took over as chief baseball officer, the Red Sox have gone from one of the worst organizations at developing young pitchers to one of the best, and now the club is overflowing with talented arms who are already making their mark in the majors.
That hasn’t gone unnoticed, and this past offseason one of the people most responsible for executing the club’s turnaround — former director of pitching Justin Willard — was hired away by the New York Mets to be their new major league pitching coach.
Now the Red Sox are handing the baton to two others, who they hope can keep the train rolling and ensure the club’s pitching pipeline keeps flowing.
This winter the Red Sox promoted Ben Buck to succeed Willard as the club’s director of pitching while also hiring away Quinn Cleary from the Seattle Mariners to serve as his No. 2. The two have already begun working to make their mark on the organization, though both emphasized that the Red Sox already have a solid foundation in place and that they plan to continue emphasizing Willard’s core tenet of “throwing nasty stuff in the zone.”
“That is the mantra,” Buck said. “Because it is simple to say, our guys remember it, and you can branch off from each one of those words and they become very complex.”
“It’s a perfect one sentence one-liner that really sums up the two big components of being a successful pitcher in the majors,” Cleary said.
Buck earned his promotion after just one year with the organization, joining the Red Sox as a pitching coordinator following the 2024 season after previously serving in a similar role with the New York Yankees. Upon coming to Boston, Buck worked closely with many of the Red Sox’s top pitching prospects, including Payton Tolle, one of the club’s biggest recent minor league success stories who rose from High-A to the majors in just his first year of professional baseball.
“The first time that I talked to him or heard him talk about pitching, I was a lot dumber then (than I am now),” Tolle said of Buck. “He’s one of the smartest guys that I’ve ever been around in the baseball world so to now have him as the head of development, it’s huge.”
Another Red Sox pitcher who Buck has worked with is Garrett Whitlock, serving as the future Red Sox right-hander’s pitching coach during his rookie ball days as a Yankees farmhand.
“I think he’s going to be great for the organization,” Whitlock said. “He’s a very good pitching mind. He’s going to bring a lot of wisdom to the table when it comes to the movement side of things, the preparation, how to build up arms, that kind of thing. He’s very, very good at that.”
Before making the jump to the professional coaching ranks, Buck spent 15 years as a college coach after playing collegiately at Lamar Community College in Colorado and at the University of Utah. He also played a year of independent baseball before spending two years away from the sport working in a poker room, first as a dealer and then as the boss.
That job prepared him for coaching in ways you wouldn’t expect.
“There are a lot of skills that I learned from poker and from running a poker room that I still use to this day,” Buck said. “We had a VIP list of something like 280 VIPs, so attributing people’s names to their faces and not forgetting. Dealing with conflict, like for them this is higher stakes, it’s win or lose money. In some regards (baseball is) win or lose money. They’re putting themselves on the line thinking in bets. What are you willing to risk? What is not worth the risk? And how aggressive are you? How unaggressive are you? All these are transferable skills to life and this job.”
Cleary’s journey to the Red Sox is equally fascinating.
Just 26 years old, Cleary is only a few years removed from his college playing days at Yale. He has quickly risen through the front office ranks since, first interning at Cressey Sports Performance before landing with the Philadelphia Phillies and then the Mariners, with whom he served as pitching coordinator.
This past offseason the Red Sox hired him as their new assistant director of pitching and head pitching strategist, specifically requesting permission from the Mariners to interview him.
“What a great hire,” Buck said. “Sharp mind, huge feel, I can’t imagine being as young as he is, as smart as he is, with as much feel as he has.”
How has he done it at such a young age?
“I think a combination of being in the right place at the right time,” Cleary said. “I’ve been able to learn from a lot of really good people at all the stops I’ve been at. I hope to continue to do that here.”
Cleary also has a fascinating family history. His grandfather, Bill Cleary, was a member of the gold medal-winning 1960 U.S. Olympic hockey team and was the longtime men’s hockey coach and athletic director at Harvard. His parents were both Harvard athletes too, and his three brothers all attended Harvard as well.
Naturally, Cleary going to rival Yale was a bit of a departure from the family tradition.
“I am like truly the black sheep of my family,” Cleary said. “We joke that I sit at a different table at Thanksgiving but other than that it’s not too bad.”
Cleary described his new role as a hybrid front office and coaching/player development role that helps with both the majors league and minor leagues. He will also be among those assisting injured big leaguers with their rehab process, and he said he hopes to add value wherever he can.
Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey said Buck and Cleary have both been great to work with so far.
“It’s been fantastic, the communication lines are really solid,” Bailey said. “A lot of bright ideas and thoughts and visions, and what’s really good is the open-mindedness and the ability to listen and take in information and what’s worked and what hasn’t worked.”
With three pitchers ranked inside Baseball America’s Top 100 Prospects list and a huge crop of young arms coming up from the past two years’ pitcher-heavy draft classes, Buck and Cleary find themselves in a much different situation than the one Breslow and Willard inherited after the 2023 season. They said a lot of smart people put in a lot of work to help get the club’s pitching program on the right track, and they hope to build on that progress in the months and years to come.
“Justin did such an amazing job when he was here of laying this unbelievable foundation, things are really going in a real good direction and our job is to search for the one percents and two percents to keep improving,” Buck said. “It’s less about change and more about continuing on the path where evolution can happen.”

Bello’s big homecoming
Years from now Brayan Bello probably won’t remember his first two starts of spring training, but you can be sure he’ll never forget his next one.
This Wednesday the Red Sox right-hander will take the mound for Team Dominican Republic in a pre-World Baseball Classic exhibition against the Detroit Tigers at Estadio Quisqueya in Santo Domingo. Bello has never pitched at the historic stadium before, and getting to pitch there will mark a special homecoming for the 26-year-old.
“It’s going to be my first time after I was a big leaguer that I’m getting to pitch in the Dominican Republic in front of my friends and family, in front of my home country,” Bello said Friday via interpreter Carlos Villoria Benítez. “For me it’s going to be very emotional, I’m very excited to be able to pitch there and I’m looking forward to it.”
A native of Samana, a town roughly two and a half hours away from the Dominican Republic’s capital city, Bello hopes to help pitch his country to its second World Baseball Classic title. The Dominican team previously won it all in 2013 and this year features All-Star standouts like Juan Soto, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr., among others.
Hometown kids coming up
Almost anyone who grows up playing baseball around New England dreams of one day playing for the Red Sox, and this spring several local standouts hope to take the next step in their journey towards making that dream a reality.
Shea Sprague and Jack Winnay, both recent draft picks by the Red Sox with Boston-area ties, are among the many minor leaguers populating the Fenway South complex this spring. Sprague, a BC High alum from Hanover who starred at the University of North Carolina, is entering his second full professional season after being selected as a 13th-round pick in 2024. Winnay, a Newton resident who starred at Belmont Hill and Wake Forest, is in his first spring training after going as a 13th-round pick himself last summer.
Brian Abraham, the Red Sox’s senior director of player development, said the organization is really excited about both, noting that the pair also played for the same travel ball club as his son, North East Baseball.
Sprague appeared in 22 games in his first pro season, earning a promotion from Low-A to High-A along the way and finishing with a 3.82 ERA in 96 2/3 innings, which was the eighth-highest innings total of any Red Sox minor leaguer.
“Really good pitchability,” Abraham said of the 23-year-old lefty. “Trying to increase his fastball velo, because he already has a good pitch mix and has a good way on the mound with his mix.”
Winnay debuted as a professional weeks after being drafted and made a strong first impression, batting .321 with a home run, three doubles and 11 RBI in only 15 games at Low-A Salem. The 22-year-old infielder will be a candidate to start this season at High-A, and Friday he was among a handful of minor leaguers who traveled up to North Port with the big league club.
“Jack has been playing mostly third but can play first, has really good power, moves well, really exciting I think,” Abraham said. “A lot of tools that we like and value.”
Burt signs with Tigers
North Andover’s Max Burt, a former St. John’s Prep and Northeastern University standout, signed with the Detroit Tigers as a minor league free agent this past week. The longtime New York Yankees minor leaguer spent his first eight professional seasons with the organization, playing the majority of that time at Double-A Somerset.
According to the Somerset Patriots, Burt departs as the team’s all-time franchise leader in hits (241), runs (179) and games played (361). The 29-year-old will now get a fresh start as he looks to make a push to the majors with a new organization.
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