Nearing the midway point of the regular season, the Valley Blue Sox were already doing pretty good with the roster they had. They put together a five-game winning streak in mid-June, and had won eight of their last 10 games played. That added up to a comfortable spot in the West Division of the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
But first-year manager Pedro Santiago was still looking to add to the group’s already talented lineup. So when he saw Antonio ‘A.J.’ Guerrero’s name flash across the transfer wire late last week, he jumped at the opportunity to add the University of Washington rising sophomore to Valley’s roster.
“We saw that he was available on the transaction wire, so we reached out right away,” Santiago said. “We were going to be a little bit short on outfielders so I wanted to reach out before anybody else did and see if he was willing to come out here and play some ball with us, and he wanted to come.”
Guerrero, fresh off his freshman season with the Huskies, had originally joined the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod Baseball League for the summer. After spending the start of his summer season with the Hawks, Guerrero and his coaches realized it might not be the best fit for him.
“I’m kind of a younger guy and all those guys are all older, all from really good schools,” Guerrero said. “So my coach told me you’re probably not gonna get that much playing time because there’s so many people, and he gave me the option to either stay or find somewhere else.”
So far, Guerrero’s decision to join the Blue Sox has been a mutually beneficial one. The 6-foot outfielder has made an immediate impact for Valley. In his debut game with his new team Monday, a road tilt against North Adams, he went 3-for-5 at the plate and drove in a jaw-dropping six RBIs, highlighted by a grand slam in the top of the fourth inning.
“It felt good to just get up there and swing and help the guys win,” Guerrero said on his opening performance.
The Valley Blue Sox are still riding high, winning nine of their last 12 games as of Wednesday. That streak started with a 9-5 win against Winnipesaukee on June 15 and the squad’s success has snowballed from there. After a shutout loss against Keene two days later, the Sox turned on the jets and pieced together a five-game winning streak, including a 5-3 win over Bristol, currently the top team in the NECBL’s West Division with a 13-5 record.
“We’ve been doing a nice job of hitting with two strikes, getting two strikes and competing,” Santiago said on his team’s strong play. “Putting the ball in play, fouling balls off and just being much tougher.”
Longer term, Guerrero hopes that his stint with the Blue Sox will be an important step in his baseball journey. In his first year with the Huskies, he put together a solid freshman campaign, blasting 10 home runs and 14 doubles while amassing 42 RBIs with a .299 batting average. He wants to improve on those numbers moving forward.
“In my development path, I’d say (I want to) just try to get stronger, faster, all that good stuff,” Guerrero said. “Get the swing dialed in, and I want to win this, obviously.”
Currently, the Blue Sox are one of five teams who have cracked the double-digit mark in wins. If they keep up their current level of play, they should be in a good spot come playoff time.
“They’re really good at staying together, fighting, working together. They’re really, really good at that. They root for each other, they all want what’s best for each other,” Santiago said. “If we can keep building on that, that’s enough of a strength to carry us through.”