HOLYOKE – The Valley Blue Sox have clinched a playoff berth as the No. 7 seed in the NECBL playoffs.

The Blue Sox end the regular season with a 21-22 record. As the No. 7 seed, they’ll face the Newport Gulls (27-16), winners of the Coastal Division, in a three-game first round series. The Blue Sox will travel to Newport for the first game on Thursday and then host the second game of the series on Friday at 6:35 p.m. at McKenzie Stadium. Admission is free. A third game, if necessary, would be an away game for Valley on Saturday.

“We’re probably going to have to play one of the top teams, but they have roster turnover too,” Blue Sox center fielder Logan Hugo said after a doubleheader against the Bristol Blues Tuesday night. “I think it’s all up in the air and we’ll see what happens. It doesn’t matter if you’re the No. 1 seed or the No. 8 seed, anything can happen.”

Valley won the West Division last year before losing to Bristol in the first round of the playoffs. They last won the NECBL championship in 2017 and 2018.

On Tuesday, Valley committed 10 errors across the two games of the doubleheader, and Bristol locked up the West Division with 15-6 and 5-2 wins. The Blue Sox locked up a postseason spot after the Ocean State Waves lost to the Mystic Schooners.

The play of the game for the Blue Sox came in the fifth inning, when Hugo scored from second base on a sacrifice fly from Jay Bant. Hugo, an NECBL All-Star and a rising senior at Eastern Michigan, said before the season started that he wanted to work on his baserunning this summer. He’s one of several Blue Sox players that stated specific goals they wanted to work toward during summer ball.

He currently ranks second in the NECBL with 27 steals, and credited work with Blue Sox coaches Pedro Santiago and Phil Guidrey for his bag-swiping success. 

“I think early in the year, I was jumpy, I was talking about how I want to steal,” Hugo said. “I’d run and get myself out. And then just talking with Pedro, some technique stuff, just trying to pick the right pitch to run on, and I think that’s really what’s helped me get where I’m at.”

Hugo was the only player in the NECBL to play every regular season game and his on-base percentage has hovered around .400 all summer, so he’s had lots of chances to steal bases, but he said Santiago helped him pick his spots better. 

In addition to serving as the Blue Sox’s hitting coach, Guidrey is a sprint coach, and he worked with Hugo to make his technique more efficient. Guidrey told Hugo to strike the ground with his whole foot, not just his toes, and helped him adjust his shin posture while running. Hugo has also changed up his pregame sprints routine. He’s always had speed, but Guidrey helped him harness it better.

“Learning how to start right was explained to me from them in a way that I can understand,” Hugo said.

Hugo also stated in early June that he wanted to improve his pitch selection. He finished the regular season with a 39:22 strikeout-to-walk ratio, but he’s also been hit by a pitch 14 times, which lifts his stats to a nearly 1-to-1 ratio.

He said he’s gotten better at taking pitches early in at-bats and working around umpiring calls he doesn’t agree with.

“This summer has allowed me to be like, ‘it’s OK if I get to two strikes. It is what it is,’” Hugo said.

Hugo has previously played in the Appalachian League and the Northwoods League, but said he’s had an “unbelievable” amount of support from Valley’s management and coaching staff this summer. He singled out team owner Matt Drury for his willingness to help Blue Sox players with anything they’ve needed.

“Matt Drury, our owner, has gone above and beyond,” Hugo said. “I’ve been to two other summer balls, and I’ve never had an owner come around. He is here 24/7, comes on the road with us, sets everything up for us on our off-days.” 

He also praised the team for how effectively it has replaced players who have departed the team because of injury or innings limits. Not every team is as lucky – in a recent game, the North Adams SteepleCats were forced to pitch with position players because they didn’t have enough pitchers still on the roster.

After a successful regular season, Hugo isn’t ready for the ride to end.

“It’s been exciting. I’m excited,” Hugo said. “It’s been a great year and I hope we get to keep playing for another week.”