After a deep run in the state tournament last season, the Greenfield baseball team returns enough talent to do the same thing again this spring.
But don’t ask coach Tom Suchanek to do any forecasting. A lot of things can change throughout the course of a high school season.
“I am not big on prognosticating what our success is going to be,” Suchanek said. “I learned a long time ago about saying ‘ we are going to have a great year’….no, no, no.”
But the players on the team do make a good case for some success on Vets field in 2026.
“We’ll be competitive,” Greenfield coach Tom Suchanek said. “As the season goes and we improve as I anticipate we should we could be in the hunt for a variety things. But don’t count your chickens before they hatch. You might get surprised.”
Suchanek enters his 53rd season with the Green Wave and the passion for coaching hasn’t dissipated. Some of the passion goes far beyond the baseball diamond.
“I enjoy working with kids,” Suchanek said. “You hope you can make a difference in there life. Not just baseball. Get them down the right road. If they are struggling, help them out.”
With the snow almost completely gone at at Vets Field, the Green Wave had practice outdoors on Monday afternoon. The remaining snow hid sneakily behind the dugouts.
Arthur Fitzpatrick will step onto the mound as the pitcher with the most experience for Greenfield. The senior started some games last season and did some spot duty in relief. Along with his duties as pitcher, Fitzpatrick will help lead some of the younger players on the pitching staff. Fitzpatrick wants to attack the strike zone to get ahead in counts and force bad swings.
“I think it did pretty good last year, just keep up with that,” Fitzpatrick said. “In all of the bullpens we throw in practice just help mentor some of the younger kids. We have four seniors but we are a pretty young team this year. We need to show leadership toward all the younger kids.”
Leading the offense is Conner Bergeron, who led the team in hitting as an eighth grader. Bergeron can only get better with a full season of experience as he heads into his freshman season. Part of playing last season was just fitting in on a varsity team as a middle schooler.
“I just want to put the ball into play,” Bergeron said. “I learned many things last year. What it’s like. I learned how to fit in and just play.”
Bergeron plays shortstop and does some pitching for the Green Wave. He can play just about anywhere for Greenfield. Bodie Burke is another player who will play multiple roles. Burke can pitch and play in the infield or outfield. Chase Zraunig, a sophomore, is in his third year with the varsity team. He is another effective bat in the lineup for Greenfield.
“Chase had a decent year hitting last year,” Suchanek said. “I expect him to be a little bit better.
Urijah Jenness improved steadily last season at the plate and figures to be even better this season. Jenness is the starting first basemen for Greenfield. A good anchor for the pitching staff and the team in general is catcher Luca Siano.
“Defensively, on the field it’s kind of half my job,” Siano said. “It can translate to the locker room too.”
Siano has a lot of experience with Fitzpatrick, Burke and Bergeron behind the plate.
“I’ve grown up with all three of these kids,” Siano said. “We’ve got good chemistry. From off the field. Being good buddies. Going to school together. It should translate out on the field pretty well.”
The Green Wave begin the regular season with an independent match up at Ware on March 31.