Blue Sox gear up for 2026 season

By Kate Endres and Graham Goodman

The Valley Blue Sox return for the 2026 season after finishing last season at 20-22 record. Despite narrowly missing out on the playoffs, The Blue Sox ended the season on a high note with a dominant 23-1 win against the Upper Valley Nighthawks in July. The Blue Sox will open up their season June 4 against the Newport Gulls at home. 

The Gulls are coming out of the gates as Regular Season Divisional Champions, after posting a 29-15 record in 2025. The teams last met on a rainy July day in Rhode Island, where The Blue Sox pulled off a 6-5 comeback win in extra innings. 

“Regardless of who we have out there … [it’s] just creating that kind of sense of urgency from the beginning .. and you want to certainly make a good first impression,” head coach John Raiola said. “Play hard and compete, that's really what I ask every day, no matter what … [and] that starts on June 4.”   

Raiola returns as head coach of the Blue Sox after five seasons in the front office as the team’s director of baseball operations. Following the departure of former head coach Endy Morales in pursuit of the Banana Ball League, Raiola returns to a team that he coached to back to back NECBL championships in 2017 and 2018.

Returning to the same coaching job he first stepped into 11 years ago, one of Raiola’s top priorities is to put a team on the field that is ready to compete. 

“It's not just summer ball,” Raiola said. “It's an opportunity for you to put your best foot forward and show that you, in basically an all-star league, can compete against the best throughout all over the country, and show up and do it every single day.”

The Blue Sox offense ranked in the top of the NECBL last season but the pitching staff struggled, finishing with a team ERA of 4.93, the eighth best in the league. Raiola, who served as a pitching coach at Western New England University and in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, seeks to heighten the threat of Valley’s arms.

“One thing that's really important for us, and that I tell [the players] … is that they leave better than they came,” Raiola said. “... You should have something that you know that you need to do and that you don't do particularly well and we should be working towards solving … so that when you leave, you leave better than we found you.”

Raiola spent the 2015-2019 seasons as head coach of the Blue Sox, and has been the head coach of the Elms College baseball team since 2020, where he’s posted a 94-120 record.

Raiola is no stranger to NECBL titles. Prior to his time in Holyoke, Raiola won a championship as a part of the Newport Gulls coaching staff in 2009, another with the Keene Swampbats in 2011, and made a championship appearance with the Sanford Mainers in 2014.

Raiola has exciting names to work with this summer from all over the country. 

Returning for the Blue Sox is infielder Michael Elko. Elko suited up for Valley in 39 games last season, tallying 165 plate appearances. The Texas native earned 30 runs with 34 hits and finished the season off with a 0.252 batting average. A senior at the University of Richmond, Elko’s college season ended with 52 starts and was named the Atlantic 10 Baseball Player of the Week back in March. 

Incoming Blue Sox shortstop Anthony Grabau has made headlines in his junior season at Fordham University. In 2026, he hit for a .303 batting average across 218 at bats, posting a .911 OPS, a promising left-handed bat. Grabau finished with nine home runs and 38 RBI and earned a spot on Baseball America’s College Team of the Week on April 21 at shortstop after an 11-for-21 week where he hit for the cycle. Grabau has been a defensive anchor at shortstop, starting all 55 games in the position and posting a .946 fielding percentage.

Behind the dish, junior Jacob Dilley has had a monster year at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. In 50 games, Dilley has hit for a .325 batting average, recorded a .960 OPS, left the yard for 10 home runs and recorded 38 RBI. Dilley has spent less time behind the plate in 2026 but has moved around the field for UNCG, making appearances in the outfield and first base in addition to his catching duties. 

Junior Gavin Degnan brings a solid bat to the Valley outfield from the University of Pennsylvania. Degnan drove in 41 over 42 games which led his team, and had a .306 batting average and a .898 OPS to go with it. Degnan went deep for seven home runs and at times was a threat on the basepaths, swiping 14 bags. 

Raiola has also assembled a diverse bullpen with a wide range of arms. Coming from UMass Lowell, Jake LeFrancois posted a 2.03 ERA on a little over 11 innings pitched for the Riverhawks, emerging with potential to be a reliable arm for the Blue Sox. Right-handed pitcher Dylan Reid brings some more experience on the mound, logging nearly 60 innings pitched with a 3.77 ERA for Brown University. Averaging 4.9 innings pitched per game for the Bears in 2026, Reid profiles as a durable arm and can compete deep into outings. 

Returning to the mound for Valley is Justin Masteralexis. A Western Massachusetts native, the left-handed pitcher logged over 19 innings for UMass Amherst this past season. Masteralexis struck out 19 batters for the Minutemen and earned Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team honors back in 2024. 

"It's not just about picking the best players and the stats and all that, it's about getting the right guys,” Raiola said. “[Seeing] how they mesh together, pull for each other and show up every single day.

The Blue Sox will kick off their 2026 season on June 4 at Mackenzie Stadium in Holyoke. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. with a Schedule Magnet giveaway for attendees.