Worcester Bravehearts Hope for a Season!

In spite of the uncertainty surrounding all kinds of gatherings, the Worcester Bravehearts are planning for the 2020 baseball season!

Although General Manager Dave Peterson has been furloughed, he’s still on the telephone and runs into the office a couple of days per week, making sure the organization is as prepared as any entity can be in these strange times.

The team’s roster is set for the season, with an expanded roster due to some colleges are allowing student / athletes an additional year of eligibility because of the shut - down effecting all schools. A few of the local players include: Nick Martin, Kevin Hummer, and John West from Shrewsbury; Carson Hauben from Grafton; Hunter Reynold from Marlborough; and Jordan Kjoniksen from Westborough.  “We’ve already found homes for the summer for most of the players, although we do need a few additional homes, if anyone is interested.” Peterson says.

With the roster set, Peterson is working at preparations such as ordering signs, contacting ticket holders who regularly celebrate birthdays at the park, and making other plans for the start of the season.  “I’m making plans for the purchase of everything from baseballs to bats to uniforms and other equipment.” Peterson continues. “However, we can’t place those orders until we know for sure that we’ll be playing this summer!”  The team has a number of purchases to make that would make no sense to complete now, until the current restrictions are allowed to end, from all those kinds of equipment to contracting buses for away games and concessions.

“When people do go back to work and restrictions on being together at events are relaxed, we’ll have a lot to do in a very short period of time, we’ll all have to work harder than ever, in every business and organization, because everything will be compressed into August, September, and October.” Peterson says. “People will be re-booking events like weddings, graduations, even the Boston Marathon, and most every business from restaurants to caterers ( and the Bravehearts are owned by a catering and tent rental business ) to limousine companies to hair stylists and barbers will be working very long days trying to recover some of the income we’re all losing now.”

There is a great deal of uncertainty. “We just have to take one day at a time and see what happens at the beginning of May.” Peterson says. “Without May and June, our business would be so affected that we couldn’t operate this year, and we’d have to wait until 2021.”  Peterson believes that so long as the season opens by mid-June, the team would still have a positive impact on the community, and complete a season.  The team will also have to work with Holy Cross in regards to the use of the ballpark, and right now Holy Cross is closed to students, and the school is also waiting out the spread of coronavirus cases.

It would be very disappointing for the season to begin after the two morning games in early June when the team hosts field trips to these games and provide Baseball in Education Days.  Prior to those games, the schools get a curriculum that involve students being asked questions about subjects like math that apply to many aspects of life, including baseball. Four thousand area students attend the games, and prior to the games, are asked questions about those subjects and topics. 

“In any event, I have to maintain a positive outlook.” Peterson states. “We’re going to figure out ways to entertain people, after all that’s our business, and generate revenue in the offseason.”  A number of entertainment focused possibilities are being discussed by team officials, but no decisions have been made yet, as the hope is the coronavirus crisis will have been successfully mitigated by the summer.

So, as with so many other kinds of businesses and organizations, the Worcester Bravehearts will wait and see how successful physical distancing and other measures to halt the rapid spread of the coronavirus are, and go from there.

To learn more about the Worcester Bravehearts, and to stay updated about the season, visit the website: www.worcesterbravehearts.com 

---------------------------------------------------------------30---------------------------------------------------------------