As soon as the basketballs went away at the end of the winter season, members of the Turners Falls baseball team took full advantage of an open gym to start polishing their baseball skills. Along with a nice early start, the Thunder return a solid group of players from last season.
“We are ahead of the game,” Turners Falls coach Scott Minckler said. “We have 11 returning varsity players. That’s a good sign. When they came back, they knew the expectations and what we are looking for and we hit the ground running.”
Three players to watch are Kainen Stevens, Jackson Cogswell and Julian Kaiser. Those three players are the captains and have played on the varsity roster ever since middle school.
Stevens got called up to varsity as a seventh grader and is entering his sixth season playing varsity baseball. This season, Stevens will pitch and play catcher.
“He has turned into one of the best players on this team and is a silent leader,” Turners Falls coach Scott Minkler said. “He has been with me for more than half of my coaching tenure. Kids look up to him, and our team goes how he goes. I look for big things out of him.”
Cogswell is the centerfielder for the Thunder. Kaiser is a pitcher and plays first base. Stevens is the top pitcher. At the plate, Cogswell hits for a solid average. He hit .375 as a junior last season.
Trevor Lyons started last season on fire for the Thunder but cooled off as the season progressed. Turners Falls expects him to be more consistent this season with some more experience.
The Thunder moved into the Suburban East and will play a tougher schedule.
“I think we have the experience to do very well,” Minckler said. “This team is only two years off from a league title…most of those kids are still here. A lot of my seniors were on that team. They know what it feels like to win a league title. They are ready to try compete and battle for another league title.”
Turners Falls has a later opening day than the rest of Franklin County. The Thunder get started at home against Greenfield on April 6.
Franklin Tech
COACH: Dan Prasol
LEAGUE: Suburban East
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 10-10, lost in the Division 5 Round of 32
ROSTER: Juniors — Matt Telega, Aiden Winn, Caleb Begos, Levi Clark, Braeden Talbot, Cole Gamache, George Gutierrez Jr., Brody Hicks, Hunter Donahue. Sophomores — Mason Bassett, Jed Niquette, Wayde Bardwell, Nick Prasol, Cody Yetter.
OUTLOOK: Franklin Tech returns most of its roster from last season. Playing in the Suburban East should be more of a challenge for the team. The Eagles will get strong offensive production and exceptional fielding from Hunter Donahue. Brody Hicks is the top starter on the mound. When he’s not pitching, Hicks plays shortstop. Nick Prasol and George Gutierrez Jr. can be dangerous at the plate for the Eagles. Mason Bassett makes the move to varsity this season and figures to get extensive innings on the mound.
Athol
COACH: Henry King
LEAGUE: Suburban East
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 11-9 (Lost in the Division 5 Round of 32)
ROSTER: Seniors: Oliver Johnson, Ethan Heuer, Alex Lavigne, Dominik St. Andre, Eli Wein, Cooper Smith, Aidan Lashua, Elijah Etienne. Juniors — Enyert Arias-Cepeda, Maddox Greene, Taiven Linnus, Connor Pineo. Sophomores — Seth Manjourea, Jason Gerard, Antonio Bourque. Freshman — Marshall Jones, Ralle Anderson. Eighth grade — Landon Cummings.
OUTLOOK: Ethan Heuer mashed at the plate last season, hitting .450 for the Bears. The senior is also poised to be the ace on the pitching staff. Fellow senior Alex Lavigne has some pop out of the leadoff spot. Lavigne cranked a couple homers last season and figures to add to that production. Lavigne brings some heat on the mound as well for Athol. Landon Cummings, an eighth grader, is a player to watch for Athol. Cummings will start on the varsity squad at second base and will see time on the mound.
Turners Falls
COACH: Scott Minckler
LEAGUE: Suburban East
LAST YEAR’S RECORD: 8-11, Lost in the Division 5 preliminary round.
ROSTER: Seniors — Kainen Stevens,. Jackson Cogswell, Eithen Eichorn, Brody Girard, Nathaniel Trinque, Curtis Kretchmar; Juniors — Porter Dubow, Julian Kaiser. Sophomores — Trevor Lyons, Freilyn Abarua-Corona; Freshman — Liam Kerivan, Ryan Newton, Davis Burnett.
The Recorder also highlighted the Greenfield, Frontier and Pioneer baseball teams with profiles on each squad. Below are the links to each story.
Greenfield preview: https://recorder.com/2026/03/23/spring-preview-greenfield-baseball-set-for-competitive-season/
Frontier preview: https://recorder.com/2026/03/24/spring-preview-frontier-regional-baseball-returns-to-diamond-with-loads-of-skill/
Pioneer preview: https://recorder.com/2026/03/26/spring-preview-new-faces-same-pursuit-of-excellence-for-pioneer-valley-baseball/
