2017 Scheduled Speakers

Matt Antonelli

Antonelli Baseball

Coach Antonelli has excelled at every level of play (HS, college, professionally) and has quickly become a favorite at the MBCA Clinic.  His insight and ability to teach the game is outstanding and he will be speaking about Team Defense with the MBCA. Matt graduated from St. John’s Prep where he was a three-sport athlete in football, hockey and baseball. He earned the Massachusetts Gatorade High School Player of the Year honor in football his senior year. He also was a three-time All-Scholastic selection in baseball and two-time in hockey. He attended Wake Forest University where he started all 163 games the Demon Deacons played during his three years there. He finished with a 0.324 batting average, 18 home runs, 110 RBI and 46 stolen bases. He was the San Diego Padres 1st Round Pick, 17th overall, in 2006 and made his Major League Debut in 2008. He played eight professional seasons with the San Diego Padres, Washington Nationals, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Cleveland Indians.

Mark Bettencourt

Peabody HS (MA)

Coach Bettencourt is the head coach at Peabody High School where the Tanners are annual threats for a deep playoff run and his program is well-respected.  One of the keys to Peabody’s success has been the development of pitchers in both quality and depth.  Coach Bettencourt will be sharing his thoughts on how to develop young arms as part of our Panel Discussion on Pitching.

Dr. Jeff Brown

Harvard Medical School

Contrary to popular belief, winning in life has little to do with IQ, your circumstances, your financial resources, or even luck. Yet it has everything to do with creating a failure-resistant brain. Every time you think a thought, feel an emotion, or execute a behavior, your neuro-circuitry changes, and the good news is you can take charge of this process.  Based on cutting-edge research connecting neuroscience and cognitive psychology, Dr. Brown identifies the strategies that will increase the specific brain functions that drive winning behavior.  Through simple everyday practices, Brown explains how to unlock the brain’s hidden potential.  This is a talk that MBCA members will simply not want to miss.

John Casey

Tufts University

Coach Casey has won over 600 games and has established Tufts Baseball as one of the most respected in New England.  The Jumbos won back-to-back New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) titles and earned the #1 seeds in the 2011 NCAA New England Regional Tournaments in both 2010 and 2011.  Coach Casey is the First Vice President of the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and is a member of its Executive Committee, served as chair of the NCAA Division III National and New England baseball committees, and is the former secretary-treasurer of the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA). Coach Casey has been a longtime supporter and member of the MBCA and we are pleased that he will be an integral contributor to our Panel Discussion about his thoughts on pitching.

Noel Figueroa

Flanagan HS (FL)

Flanagan HS is one of the most respected baseball programs in the country, having annually place numerous players at the D1 level as well as developing many draft prospects.  Coach Figueroa has been at the forefront of the program’s dominance for the better part of the past decade.  Coach Figueroa has been coaching for 28 years and his wealth of knowledge will be on display as he shares his thoughts on “Infield Play and Drills” on Friday and “Common Hitting Flaws in Young Hitters” on Saturday.

Jeff Mejia

Northern Essex Community College

Since Coach Mejia came to Northern Essex in 2013, the Knights have been crowned New England Regional Champions and earned a bid to the NJCAA World Series for the third, fourth & fifth time in the program’s history.  For these accomplishments, Coach Mejia has been named the New England Regional Coach of the Year in 2013, 2014 & 2015.  Previously, Coach Mejia was a long- time Assistant Coach of Suffolk University.  During the past three seasons, the Knights finished 67-34 (.665%), with a 40-17 (.700%) record in New England, 31-10 (.760%) in League Play and a 9-2 (.825%) record in the New England Regional Tournament.  Coach Mejia will be sharing his thoughts and coaching style when it comes to base stealing – an area his teams have excelled in and one you don’t want to miss.

Matt Noone

Babson College

Coach Noone has won over 300 games while at the helm of Babson College, including 13 winning seasons and 22 or more wins in nine of those seasons.  The Green and White have had four postseason appearances, including a NEWMAC Championship and the program’s first NCAA Tournament berth in 2004, and another conference title and NCAA bid in 2009. He was selected as the NEWMAC Coach of the Year in 2004.  Prior to his arrival at Babson, Noone spent 12 seasons as the pitching coach at Northeastern University, as well as serving as a pitching coach in the Cape Cod League for both the Bourne Braves and the Hyannis Mets.  Coach Noone is one of the best pitching minds in the area and the MBCA is pleased that he will be contributing to our Panel Discussion on Pitching.

JP Pyne

Clark University

JP Pyne took over at Clark University after many successful coaching stints leading to the culmination of the head coaching position at Clark. Prior to Clark, Coach Pyne spent two seasons at Maine, helping lead the Black Bears to consecutive America East Tournament births. Coach Pyne was named NECC Coach of the Year in 2009, 2010 and 2013 for his work at Daniel Webster, while 24 student-athletes earned All-NECC honors, including 19 first-team selections. The MBCA is thrilled to have Coach Pyne share his well-tested and successful practice planning ideas with the association.

Barry Rosen

St. Anselm College

Coach Rosen has over 43 years of coaching experience with 2017 being his 11th season as Saint Anselm.  Rosen was the head coach at Winthrop High School (MA) from 1976-1992, appearing in four state tournaments and one state championship (1981). He was the league Coach of the Year twice and was named to the MBCA Hall of Fame.  Rosen then served as the head coach at Merrimack College from 1992-2003. At Merrimack, his teams captured six regular-season conference championships, two conference tournament titles, one ECAC Championship and competed in two NCAA Regionals.  After Merrimack, Rosen was an assistant coach at Brandeis University from 2003-06, before taking over the reins at St. Anslem College.  The MBCA is honored to have Coach Rosen speak to our association.

Dom Savino

Head Coach, Glenbrook North (IL)

Coach Savino recently took over the successful Glenbrook North (IL) program and his impact has been felt immediately as they made the State Tournament in his first season.  Coach Savino has spoken at the BCA and has quickly earned the reputation as being an excellent clinician and teacher of the game.  Also a football coach, his intensity and attention to detail will be on full display when he shares how he teaches his hitters to have fun at the plate as well as how he attacks the opposition’s defense through small ball.

Steve Simoes

Hopkinton HS (MA)

Coach Simoes is one of the more respected baseball minds in the area having been successful at every stop along the way, most notably at Hopkinton HS where he led the Hillers to three Tri-Valley League Championships (2001, 2004, 2005), and a Massachusetts State Championship (2004).  He earned ABCA Region I Coach of the Year and Daily News Coach of the Year in 2004 and the Boston Globe Coach of the Year in 2005.  He also led Hopkinton to three Tri-Valley League Sportsmanship Awards (2002, 2003, 2005). After Hopkinton HS, he served as an assistant coach at Holy Cross.  Coach Simoes has done or seen it all and the MBCA is excited to hear him speak about how to run a successful high school program.

Mike Stone

UMass – Amherst

Coach Stone just completed his 29th season as the head baseball coach at the University of Massachusetts, after returning to his alma mater in 1988 from the University of Vermont.  In his 29 seasons, the Minutemen have compiled a 664-636-3 (.511) record and Coach Stone has won over 700 games as head coach.  While at UMass, Stone has led the Minutemen to eight Atlantic 10 regular season titles, two Atlantic 10 Tournament crowns and two NCAA Tournament appearances.  Coach Stone is well-respected not only in New England, but nationally, as an excellent teacher of the game.  The MBCA is pleased that he will be speaking about Catching Mechanics and Drills as he is sure to enlighten and help coaches from various backgrounds and experiences.

Alex Trezza

Boston College

Coach Trezza joined BC as the pitching coach, catching coach, and the associate head baseball coach in July 2016.   He has 8 years of coaching experience and 12 years of professional playing experience.  Before his coaching days, Trezza was a standout player at Stony Brook, earning Freshman of the Year honors in 1999 after hitting 17 home runs and driving in 55 RBIs as a shortstop. In 2001, he launched a program-best 23 home runs and was named the school’s first All-American after moving behind the plate and playing first base. Trezza was drafted in the 18th round by the Detroit Tigers following his junior year and played four seasons in the organization. Coach Trezza has quickly earned the reputation as an excellent clinician and has spoken at the World Baseball Coaches’ Convention.  The MBCA is proud to welcome Coach Trezza to the Boston area as he speaks on how to develop your pitcher-catcher relationship.