Anthony Redfern ended the Central New England Prep baseball tournament buried under his Phillips Andover teammates.
The Easthampton native threw a two-hit shutout in the championship game against Exeter on May 20 in Andover, then his teammates mobbed him.
“To be on the mound at my home field for the past three years, pitch that last out and have my whole team come and celebrate in a huge pig-pile was a really special and emotion moment,” he said. “We walked out as champions, which is all we really wanted in the end.”
He struck out seven and walked just two in the 8-0 win. It was the third straight year Redfern started in the tournament’s championship game. Phillips Andover also won the title his sophomore year.
Redfern, who will play at Georgetown next year, was named the Central New England Prep MVP for the first time and First-Team All-Central New England Prep for the third year in a row.
“I appreciate the trust more than anything to be in that situation with the ball on the mound and the outcome in my hand,” Redfern said.
Andover coach Kevin Graber called Redfern’s season one of the finest in Andover history. The team has been playing interscholastic baseball since the late 1800s. Redfern started six games and won all of them. He also had two saves. Redfern allowed two runs over 45 innings. Just one of them was earned. He struck out 51 compared to just nine walks.
“He’s so competitive and pitches his best when the lights are brightest. He’s incredibly receptive to learning, so he’s always asking questions and seeking out ways to improve,” Graber said. “More importantly, Anthony is, simply put, the hardest worker I’ve been around in my more than two decades in professional, collegiate, and now high school coaching.”
Redfern gained 32 pounds in the offseason and focused on his conditioning to be able to manage the workload. He works out with Eric Cressey at Cressey Sports Performance in Hudson.
“I found so much that in the late innings my arm was not sore at the end, but it was my legs that felt it so I knew my legs were doing all the work,” Redfern said.
He’ll continue working out with Cressey during the summer in lieu of pitching for a summer league team. The plan includes simulated bullpen sessions and a long toss regimen in addition to his workouts six days a week.
“I’ll move right into the fall season at Georgetown hopefully in the same shape and stability that I had here,” Redfern said.
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com.