NU just finished their Fall baseball at Friedman Diamond...





Michael Sirota...





Meanwhile, D1 Baseball was at Friedman to file this breakdown for their Fall Report...

Fall Report: Northeastern
Vitaly Jangols - October 4, 2021

BOSTON — Northeastern has developed into one of the premier college baseball programs in the Northeast. This has happened under the direction of head coach Mike Glavine, who inked a 4-year extension with the program this past summer. This Huskies squad put together a memorable 2021 season, finishing 20-3 in conference with an overall record of 36-12. They won the CAA’s north division regular season title along with a dramatic CAA tournament final victory, which propelled them to their second NCAA regional appearance in the last three chances. 
Northeastern’s 36 victories in 2021 matched the program record, which was initially set by Glavine’s Huskies in the 2018 season, leading to an at-large bid. They led the CAA in plenty of major categories, such as ERA, batting average, fielding percentage and stolen bases. A 3.23 team ERA was good for fifth in the nation while their 118 stolen bases were the fourth-highest total in the country. Do not forget about the little 20-game winning streak they had that spanned over a month and included 18 consecutive conference victories. 

Northeastern entered a daunting Fayetteville regional as the No. 3 seed. The Huskies jumped out to an early 4-0 against Nebraska in the opening round, but the Cornhuskers rallied in the middle innings to take down the Huskies by a final of 8-6. In an elimination game, Northeastern lost a hard-fought game to NJIT, ending their 2021 campaign. Regardless, they proved once again they do not just succeed in the Northeast, but they will compete with anyone in the country. 

“We will have to be a new type of offense this year,” Glavine said when asked about this year’s squad. That is because they are losing some mainstays in their lineup such as Jared Dupere, Ben Malgeri, and Scott Holzwasser. Dupere alone accounted for nearly half of the team’s home runs last year, blasting 21 in an unbelievable 2021 campaign that saw him get drafted in the 13th round by the Giants. Those three were also the team’s top base stealers, with Malgeri and Holzwasser leading the way with 23 and 22 stolen bases, respectively. 

There may be some growing pains with the offense to start off the year, but the Huskies return plenty of key bats that will need to mesh with some new pieces to replicate the type of success they have seen in the past. Let’s take a deeper dive into the roster for Northeastern heading into the 2022 season. 


Viera Looks To Lead Athletic Offense

True sophomore 2B Max Viera had an outstanding rookie campaign, and he will be the guy this team will look to lead the lineup. Viera earned Freshman All-America honors along with a spot on the all-CAA first team after batting .348 with six bombs. His most memorable moment was blasting a walk-off solo shot in the CAA tournament winner-takes-all game against UNC Wilmington in the bottom of the 10th inning, earning his team an NCAA regional berth. Viera has a compact frame at 5-foot-11, 180 pounds, but he has some sneaky power he will hope to unlock this year. He’s a guy that grinds out at-bats, and always finds himself on base. He played at second base in 2021, but Glavine sees him as an athletic and versatile infielder who can play both second or third in 2022 to cycle some new guys into the infield. 

Another key returner will be 4YR JR Danny Crossen, who slashed .336/.411/.473 last spring, earning all-CAA second-team honors. Crossen has top-of-the-order type tendencies, hits for average and had the lowest strikeout rate for Northeastern in 2021. He has the ability to split the gaps, as he led the squad with 13 doubles as well. Crossen is another super athletic infielder who will serve as a utility guy. He has mostly stuck to third base, but will see time at first to allow some new faces in the infield. One of those new infielders will be sophomore transfer Luke Beckstein. He comes to Northeastern after seeing limited action as a freshman at Kansas State. He was a high-level prospect coming out of Massachusetts, now returning to his home state. 

Jeff Costello is a fifth-year senior and the only starting outfielder who returns to this team. Costello served as the leadoff hitter for the Huskies and looks to do the same after hitting .329 in 2021. The leading returner in stolen bases, Costello will look to embrace that role this upcoming season. As a veteran outfielder, he will make the shift from left to right, which might be the most difficult outfield spot at Friedman Diamond, and Glavine believes Costello has the speed and arm strength to lock down the position. 

Someone who will have a lot of eyes on him through his career at Northeastern will be freshman Michael Sirota, who was drafted in the 16th round by the Dodgers but elected to come to campus instead. He was ranked as a top-200 prospect but was drafted later due to his strong commitment. Sirota stands out for his uber athleticism, though he’s still refining his skill set. He played mostly shortstop in high school, but projects as an outfielder due to his speed and plus arm strength. At Northeastern’s scout day, Sirota ran a blistering 6.40-second 60-yard dash to go with 98 mph throws from the outfield. He has been working out in center for the Huskies, and Glavine thinks he will be able to make a smooth transition into that role. He has some raw power at the dish and is looking to adjust to higher-level arms this fall and winter. 

4YR JR SS Spenser Smith looks to hold down the position once again this upcoming spring. He certainly looked the part when I was able to get a look at this Huskies team during their intrasquad. Smith is a plus defender with elite range and good arm strength. He made more than one web gem through just a couple innings of game play. He also made his presence known in the box, turning around an 89 mph fastball nearly over the right-field bleachers in his first at-bat. Smith will look to lead this team defensively and hopefully, his bat will stay consistent. 

In 2021, the catching responsibilities were split between 3YR SO JP Olson and 5YR SR Teddy Beaudet. Unfortunately, Beaudet has been sidelined due to injury this fall. I did get a look at Olson during gameplay, and he looked improved, making strong throws to bases and solid receiving skills. Olson looks to have made a jump offensively, after batting .296 in the Futures League for the Brockton Rox this past summer. 

There are also a few freshmen who are showing well this fall and are looking to throw themselves into the mix this spring. Justin Bosland is a middle infielder from New Jersey, who ran an eye-popping 6.35 60 yard dash at scout day. It may be tough for him to see action at shortstop, but he is versatile enough to work into the lineup at either left or first base. Luke Masiuk was a top outfield prospect out of Massachusetts and is also in the competition for some outfield playing time for the Huskies. Jack Doyle has shown well this fall as a freshman, looking to make an impact with his bat. 


Schlittler, Keane Headline Pitching Staff

Northeastern loses a few big arms in Kyle Murphy, Brandon Dufault, and David Stiehl, but the pitching staff looks to be dominant again with a couple of key additions who could earn some important roles. The two high-end arms who will anchor the rotation are Cam Schlittler and Sebastian Keane. Schlittler was a second-year freshman in 2021 and had one of the top rookie campaigns in the nation. He went 8-1 with a 1.88 ERA in 76.2 IP, earning Freshman All-America honors, all-CAA first team, as well as CAA Co-Rookie of the Year. H led the conference in victories and ERA, and that 1.88 mark was also good for 11th best in the nation. Schlittler will sit in the low 90s and can run it up to 95-96 mph, and he features a full repertoire of pitches, including a wipeout slider and power changeup with late sink. He’s looking for another successful year to keep boosting his draft stock. 

Keane is another premier arm coming off a solid year that saw him go 6-1 with a 4.09 ERA. Keane was actually the first player in Northeastern history to honor his college commitment after being chosen in the 11th round by the Red Sox in 2019. He burst onto the scene as a true freshman in 2020, getting thrown right into the weekend rotation, and was able to go 3-1 while collecting victories over FAU and USF before the coronavirus shutdown. He had a tough start to 2021 against some tough non-conference opponents but was able to settle in nicely and help solidify the Huskies pitching staff during a record year. He’s another power arm who will sit in the low to mid-90s (though he was more 89-93 with sink in the Cape League this summer) with a swing and miss slider and a developing changeup. This upcoming year, Keane and Schittler can establish themselves as one of the top 1-2 punches in the country. 

There will be some competition leading up to this season for that final weekend spot, between both some new and old faces. Atop that board may be sophomore RHP Wyatt Scotti, who started nine games in 2021 due to four-game conference weekend series. Scotti should not be overshadowed, as he also had a tremendous freshman campaign where he went 4-2 with a 2.82 ERA over 12 total appearances. He does not have a high strikeout rate, but he mixes well and can work deep into games. Scotti continued his success into his summer in the FCBL, pitching to a 1.28 ERA over 21 IP, then joined Harwich in the Cape Cod League. A lanky 6-foot-3 right-hander with excellent arm-side run and sink on his 88-90 fastball, Scott’s 77-78 changeup showed plus fade and a very low spin rate in the 1250-1370 rpm range in the Cape.

Yet another sophomore who could be in the running for that spot in the rotation is RHP Eric Yost. He was a key bullpen arm all year long for the Huskies, finishing with a 4.57 ERA in 2021, but this number does not tell the whole story, as Yost carried a 1.08 ERA into the middle of May before a few letdown outings inflated that mark. Regardless of where he ends up, he will serve an important role in this staff. 

Freshman RHP Dennis Colleran was thrown into the fire early, deciding to play in the FCBL before ever stepping on campus. It’s fair to say he more than held his own, recording 37 strikeouts in 24.1 IP with a 1.11 ERA while being voted the top pro prospect in the league as a recent high school graduate. He is one of the new players on campus who will certainly make an impact as a freshman, whether he can earn a spot in the rotation or become a back-end guy. The stuff is there already, as Colleran’s fastball will routinely touch 95-96 mph while his breaker projects as a plus strikeout pitch. 

The other freshman who will see the mound plenty is Jack Beauchesne, another talented RHP who also threw in the FCBL this past summer. Beauchesne was strictly a starter in the league and had a 3.67 ERA in 41.2 IP. He is quite the athlete, as a three-sport star in high school while also being a consistent 6.7 runner in the 60. He can run his fastball into the low 90s with quality command of the zone as a young arm. 

All of the aforementioned arms are not active this fall due to innings limits, nagging injuries, etc, so I was not able to see any of them in person at their recent intrasquad. The starter during the scrimmage was graduate transfer and college baseball nomad RHP Jordy Allard. This will be Allard’s third stop in his college baseball career, after beginning at Division II Southern New Hampshire and eventually moving onto Division III Babson College, where he went 7-0 with a 0.91 ERA in his final season. In the first inning of his intrasquad start, Allard struck out the side, all on changeups, all right on right matchups. He was really impressive in his two-inning stint. He works uptempo, creating some uncomfortable at-bats. His fastball comfortably sat in the 88-89 mph range, touching 91 mph. As mentioned he flashed a plus changeup in the low 80s that had depth and good arm speed. Glavine is high on Allard, and he looks to be a key part of this Northeastern staff in 2022. 

4YR JR RHP Nick Davis was another arm I was able to get a glimpse of at the Huskies’ recent intrasquad. He battled some injuries and was not able to make a big impact during the 2021 season. Davis certainly looks the part, standing at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds. His fastball was a true cutter, with late horizontal action at 87-88 mph, though he typically will sit around 89-91 mph. He showed off a big curveball in the mid-70s that had two-plane action at times and the ability to freeze hitters. Davis will be another guy who can have some meaningful innings in the back end of the bullpen. 

Another graduate transfer Northeastern was able to lock down is LHP Matt Devlin from Division III Franklin & Marshall. He had one of the better outings from the intrasquad. He has clean, easy mechanics with repeatability. Devlin mixes and matches well, creating plenty of weak contact. His slider is a plus pitch at times, and he has the ability to effectively backdoor it to righties. His fastball worked in the 87-89 mph range, and he has been up to 92 mph in the past. 

Northeastern may need to make some adjustments and play around with its offense, but the talent is certainly there. A refined offense with the clear pitching depth they possess can once again propel the Huskies to the top of the CAA, and maybe a second consecutive regional appearance.