Strikeout Leader Bobby Alcock Records his 300th Career ‘K’

The milestone was greeted quietly and with little fanfare, but that’s how St. Mary’s 6-foot-4 pitcher Bobby Alcock likes it.

Alcock, one of the leaders of St. Mary’s march to tonight’s Division 2 state championship game versus Hopkinton, recorded his 300th career strikeout in the Spartans’ 5-0 victory over Woburn Saturday in the Division 2 North sectional final.

That’s a lot of swings and misses and surely a number of caught-looking strike threes amidst one superlative, three-year career for Alcock.

Three-hundred strikeouts is probably the equivalent of 1,500 to 2,000 career points in basketball but whether Alcock gets his own banner in the Conigliaro Gymnasium will be AD Jeff Newhall’s decision down the road.

For now, all Bobby Alcock wants is a banner that says: “St. Mary’s State Baseball Champions 2019,” and it is likely that Coach Derek Dana will hand the ball to his ace Thursday night for what Dana is simply calling “our next game – the most important game of the season.”

Alcock, the son of Bob and Lori Alcock, has picked up where he left off during a regular season in which a pitcher’s rhythm and routine was severely tested by an unseasonably cold, rainy spring.  The hard-throwing right-hander has a 7-2 record with two saves and a stingy 1.00 earned run average.

When you allow an average of one run every seven innings, that’s Cy Young material. Just ask Bob Gibson, who had an awesome ERA of 1.12 (over nine innings) in the 1968 MLB season.

“Bobby has been our leader – he’s been pitching for three years now,” said Dana. “He has taken the ball every time we’ve asked him to take it since he was a sophomore. He’s had some great results, he’s pitched well all year – but he’s saved his best for last and I hope his last one is his best one.”

Alcock, who was a two-time 12-year-old All-Star in the Wyoma Little League, has pitched 15 scoreless innings and struck out 15 batters in the state tournament in victories over Middlesex League powers Belmont and Woburn.

“Our defense has been phenomenal this tournament,” said Alcock. “There have been a lot of run-saving catches, great defense and great offense, too, We started scoring runs earlier, which makes it a lot easier.”

 Alcock said he and the other hurlers have been fortunate to have a catcher the caliber of junior John Mulready as the other half of the St. Mary’s battery.

“He’s been really good,” credited Alcock. “He’s one of the most underrated players I’ve ever seen. He frames the ball really well. He has a cannon for an arm. He’s a great kid, too.”

Alcock said he learned of his 300th strikeout milestone following the North sectional final. A state title would be the ultimate career-capper for the 18-year-old son of Bob and Lori Alcock.

“It would mean a lot,” said Bobby. “We’ve worked really hard. I’ve personally worked really hard ever since I was 14 years old. I knew this was a goal coming in my freshman year. Since March, I felt we had the team to be able to do it. I know Hopkinton is a good, hitting team, but we’re ready for it though.”

Bobby Alcock will celebrate his 18th birthday on the Fourth of July. He will be playing for Antonelli Baseball this summer and then it’s off to  Winchendon, an outstanding prep school located in north-central Massachusetts.

College and pro scouts will no doubt find their way to Winchendon next spring.Lynn’s SkillsUSA announce as this year’s

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