PORTLAND, Maine — The official start to spring may have been last month, but for many Mainers the season begins this week, when the Portland Sea Dogs take the field.
Friday is opening day for Maine's Double-A minor league baseball team. The Sea Dogs will host the New Hampshire Fisher Cats for a three-game series that concludes Sunday afternoon.
“It’s just exciting. It never gets old," Geoff Iacuessa, president and general manager, said ahead of his 22nd season with the Sea Dogs.
At the press availability after the team's first practice at Hadlock, Iacuessa said last year's COVID-19 restrictions didn't totally disrupt the team's business operations, which depend on ticket and concession revenue.
Iacuessa said there are no COVID-19 restrictions at the ballpark. He also said pre-season ticket sales exceeded expectations set by the Sea Dogs front office.
“If things change and we have to have guidelines, we will. But right now we’re opening up with full capacity with no restrictions," he added.
As the Sea Dogs faithful pack the bleachers this spring and summer, there will be some new faces to watch out for on the diamond and in the dugout.
Chad Epperson is in his first year as Sea Dogs manager after spending the last 12 seasons as the catching coordinator for the Boston Red Sox, the Sea Dogs' major league affiliate.
"If you love baseball, you love opening day," he said Wednesday. “In the summers especially, [Hadlock Field is] a great atmosphere. The fans are electric."
The manager added that fans will be able to watch a good group of baseball players because his team has depth in the starting pitching rotation, the bullpen, and around the diamond.
Katie Krall is the team's new development coach and the first female coach in Sea Dogs' history. Hitting coach Doug Clark is also making his debut in Portland this season.
Krall said her job is to help players understand advanced analytics, scouting plans, and statistics, which have been new ways of thinking in the baseball world. She added there has to be a balance between the data analysis and the traditional human element to understand the game.
“The Red Sox, from what I’ve seen, have done a really good job at trying to blend those worlds and make sure that we’re not going too far on the data side," Krall said.
Like all the players in the clubhouse, Krall wants to see these Sea Dogs play at the next level and eventually in the big leagues. She said her job is also to help prepare the players to understand the statistical information before they get a chance at Fenway Park.
Despite all the work she has done and will do for the team, she understands there is another role she will fill this season off the field as an inspiration to future generations of young women and girls.
“I’m super grateful for the opportunity, and I think that, hopefully, if I’m the first, I’m not the last," Krall said. "So, I do try to hold, you know, both of those responsibilities: the in-uniform coaching responsibilities but also recognizing that, I hope, I can be a role model for little girls who are also pursuing opportunities, not only in baseball but in other industries.”
Along with new faces on the coaching staff, plenty of new Red Sox prospects are set to come in and out of Portland this year. While they may not stay for the whole season, Maine baseball fans will be able to catch some future major leaguers for at least a little while.
Brayan Bello and Jay Groome are the two pitchers on both the Sea Dogs' opening day roster and the Red Sox' 40-day roster. Bello is one of Boston's top-rated prospects, and Groome, a 23-year-old former first-round draft pick, returns to Portland after throwing 15 innings for the Sea Dogs at the end of last season.
Bello and Groome are rated fifth and twelfth in the Red Sox system, according to MLB.com. Infielder Christian Koss is the organization's 27th-ranked prospect and will start the season in Portland.
Major League Baseball will be testing some new rules in the minor leagues this year, including at the Double-A level where the Sea Dogs play. An expanded pitch clock will be implemented at all levels, including in Portland, as pitchers and batters now have 14 seconds to get ready and deliver the ball. Pitchers will get an extra four seconds to throw if there is someone on base.
According to the new rules, pitchers will be limited to two pick-off attempts or step-offs per plate appearance this year. If the pitcher exceeds that, the runners on base will advance.
Larger bases are something fans from the bleachers of Hadlock will be able to see starting this week. The base size will increase from 15 to 18 inches. The "scale up" is intended to give both baserunners and defensive players more room to operate around the base.
Defensive player restrictions are back this season as teams must have a minimum of four defensive players on the infield when their pitcher delivers, with at least two infielders on either side of second base.