Summer starts gets Perrault ready for Owl season

            KEENE, N.H.  8/8/11– The Keene State College baseball season is months away, but if it was up to Eric Perrault he'd be up on Owl Athletic Complex mound today.

            And who could blame him?  Perrault, a junior from Salem, N.H., just completed a sensational summer pitching the Nashua Silver Knights to the championship in the inaugural season of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League. 

            Perrault was the top starter in the four-team start-up league, dominating the competition on the way to earning both pitcher of the year and best pro prospect awards.  The 6-foot, four-inch, 190 lb. lefty posted a nearly flawless regular season line going 5-0 with a 1.57 ERA while fanning 48 batters in 46 innings.    Tossing the first of two championship-round games against the Torrington Titans at historic Holman Stadium in Nashua last Thursday, Perrault was almost perfect in the 12-0 shutout victory, throwing seven and a third-innings of one hit ball against the Titans to go with 10 strikeouts.  He lost his no-hit bid in the sixth inning when Rich Graf from UMass-Amherst singled up the middle.  "I was pretty pumped up pitching in front of so many people," said Perrault about his outing. "I was on my game that night."  

         The Silver Knights wrapped up the title the following night in Torrington with an 8-3 win.

            "I had a chance to watch Eric's last game and followed him throughout the summer," said KSC Coach Ken Howe.  "Hopefully it's a sign of things to come for him as well as for us."

            Busy coaching the Swamp Bats in the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL), Marty Testo, who also serves as the associate head coach at Keene State, still managed to keep close tabs on Perrault. "I was extremely happy to see him do so well," said Testo.  "It should definitely boost his confidence and hopefully open his eyes to what he can do.  "We've seen glimpses of his ability the past two years.  Now it's time for him to realize that he can be the man here and take Keene State to the next level."

            Perrault, who posted a 2-2 mark with a 5.12 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 26.1 innings coming out of the pen for the Owls last spring, had a opportunity to return to the NECBL North Adams Steeple Cats this summer.   However, looking down the road to next season, both Howe and Testo decided it was best for Perrault to play for Sliver Knights where he'd get a chance to start.  "We wanted to get Eric's pitch count up, so he could move into the rotation," said Howe.  "It turned out to be a good move for him. He's continued his maturation while demonstrating the ability we expect from him."

            "We tried Eric as a starter last year and he wasn't ready for it," said Testo.  "This summer, he's learned how to go out there with a relievers' mentality and start games."

            Perrault says he's enjoyed his new role.  "I like doing all the stuff that you need to do between starts and it's also been a little bit easier on my arm," he said.  "Instead of pitching an inning here and there, you have a consistent schedule." 

            Instead of an all-star game the Futures Collegiate Baseball League, whose rosters must contain at least 13 players for New England or from area universities and colleges, holds a Major League Baseball scouts day to showcase some of its players.  One of the pitchers selected for the event that took place at Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, Mass., Perrault didn't disappoint the 15 scouts in attendance.  "They had the radar guns on you and I was throwing in the 90-91 range with a good, hard curve," said Perrault.  "After the session several scouts came up to me and asked if I was willing to sign right now."

            Many of the scouts continued to persue Perrault, catching caught some of his performances later in the season and telling him they were planning to come to Keene State next season to see him pitch.

            "There was talk that he might not come back, so I was holding my breathe a little bit," said Howe.  "Because Eric red-shirted as a freshman, he's technically eligible to sign as a free agent, but I'd like to see him come back and help us out."

            "We projected Eric as a draftable player, said Testo.  "We know he has a good arm, size, and a tremendous work ethic.  "I hope he has a chance to sign, but I also hope he wins a few more games for Keene State before that happens."