STANDISH, Maine – Former Saint Joseph's College baseball standouts Joe Coyne (Duxbury, Mass.) and Nick Whittaker (Yarmouth, Maine) have signed professional baseball contracts.
Coyne, a catcher, has signed on with that Old Orchard Beach Surge, a team that began its first season as a member of the North County Baseball League with a pair of games in Watertown, New York over the weekend. Whittaker, a right-handed pitcher, will play in the Heartland of America Baseball League, which is stationed in Ozark, Missouri.
Both Independent leagues are new this summer and bring professional baseball back to ballparks where the pro ranks have not played in some time. The Surge, which will play 33 home games, will be the first pro team to play at The Ball Park in Old Orchard Beach since the Maine Guides – the former Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies – departed in 1988.
Coyne was signed, shortly after the Monks' season ended in early May, by former SJC player Alex Markakis, who serves as the General Manager for the Surge. A four-team First Team All-Conference player and 2015 GNAC Player of the Year, Coyne started the first game of the season – an 8-4 win over the Watertown Bucks on Saturday – and went 2-5 in his professional debut.
The Heartland of America Baseball League features an innovative schedule, as the 10-team league will play games at Price Cutter Park, a 4,000-seat capacity stadium that last hosted professional baseball in 2004, when the Frontier League Springfield/Ozark Mountain Ducks discontinued play. With a schedule of 90 games in 100 days, the new league will play four games a day, six days a week (Sundays off), all at Price Cutter Park, with contests starting in mid-June.
Whittaker, who signed a contract with the Heartland of America Baseball League several months ago after showcasing his talents while playing in Palm Springs in the California Winter League, has yet to be assigned to a team. Starting on June 8th, the 6'4" right-hander will participate in a weeklong "Spring Training" session with a player draft, filling out the team rosters, to follow.
In four years as a starter, Coyne hit .350 (219-626) with 114 runs, 52 doubles, nine homers and 121 RBI over 178 career contests at Saint Joseph's. Whittaker went 21-8 with 195 strikeouts over 188.1 innings and 38 career appearances during his NCAA career.
Coyne and Whittaker are the seventh and eighth former Saint Joseph's players to ink a professional baseball contract. They join Steve Osborne '01 (Yankees), Jesse LaCasse '03 (Germany), Charlie Furbush (2005-06) (Mariners), Luke Enman '08 (Nashua Pride), Pat Moran '10 (Pittsfield Colonials) and Todd Keneborus '11 (London Rippers) on the list of former Monks who have been signed to play at the next level.
For more information on the Old Orchard Beach Surge:
http://www.oobsurgebaseball.com
http://www.pressherald.com/2015/06/01/professional-baseball-returns-to-the-ballpark-on-tuesday/
For more information on the Heartland of America Baseball League:
http://heartlandofamericabaseballleague.com
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
