The 12-and-under “Swing Away” Windham Little League fall ball baseball team have three aces on their pitching staff in Windham sixth graders Byron Dansereau, Alex McGonagle and Elijah Sun. In seven games, the three players have pitched in 25-plus innings and have combined for over 70 strikeouts. Each pitcher consistently strikes out at least two batters an inning.
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| Windham Little League sixth grade pitchers Byron Dansereau, left, Alex McGonagle and Elijah Sun gather before a fall ball baseball game against Bonny Eagle Atkinson in Buxton on Monday, Sept. 29. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA |
“In ... Byron’s first time pitching in the second inning had us out of it with three batters up, three batters down - all strike outs on 16 pitches thrown,” said Jason Sun. “I just remember thinking ‘wow, that was fast.’ In the third inning, Byron got the leadoff batter to ground out on the first pitch of the inning and then struck out the next two for a total of eight pitches in the inning. Elijah pitched the fifth and sixth innings, striking out three batters each inning. I started looking at the stats and realized Alex struck out three in the first inning. Collectively they had 14 strikeouts of their 15 outs; that is impressive. I looked at the stats from our first game and found their dominance wasn’t a fluke, Elijah had seven strikeouts through two innings and Alex had four strikeouts through two innings.”
Dansereau, McGonagle and Elijah Sun were preselected as the fall ball team captains and have set a tone of excellence. This team has players as young as 9-years old. The three captains provide outstanding role modeling for the younger players. In addition, each captain is hitting very well. When not pitching, McGonagle plays strong defense at first base, Dansereau is a powerful shortstop, and Elijah Sun is the solid arm at third base.
At this age, players are still learning the game, so when a pitcher takes the mound, their main focus just throwing strikes – and that can be somewhat of a challenge. While in his first year as a head coach, Jason Sun has been around Windham Little League for three years and by his assessment, the hardest thing for a pitcher at this level to do is throw strikes.
“I learned how (to improve) my pinpoint, my cutoff and how to improve my attitudes towards the players,” said McGonagle. “This season has been like a journey ... I’ve been doing so good lately throwing strikes, throwing heat. It’s just been great by having good coaches, and a good pitching staff.”
McGonagle began playing baseball in 2021. In his second year of fall ball, he started pitching. The more he threw, the better he became at it, and the better he became the more he liked pitching.
“First, I wasn’t very good, but we worked on it a lot,” said Elijah Sun. “I think if you put your mind to it, you can really achieve something. I think it was pretty cool watching somebody walk back to the dugout (after you’ve struck them out). Fall ball has been good. We’ve really ... faced some good teams.”
Elijah Sun started playing baseball three years ago. He wanted to pitch because it looked fun and he’s fallen in love with it.
“I was watching the Red Sox a lot, and I wanted to play a sport, so I chose baseball,” said Dansereau, who is in his second year of pitching. “It’s really fun, I like pitching and hitting and hanging out with my friends. I feel like I’m improving; pitching is fun. (All three of us) try hard and encourage the team.”
Dansereau was the starting pitcher in the Sept. 29 game against Bonny Eagle Atkinson. He said he was excited, but not nervous to start the game.
Jason Sun said these three pitchers have remained consistent since he first realized their abilities and said these three aces are good kids on and off the field. <
“I learned how (to improve) my pinpoint, my cutoff and how to improve my attitudes towards the players,” said McGonagle. “This season has been like a journey ... I’ve been doing so good lately throwing strikes, throwing heat. It’s just been great by having good coaches, and a good pitching staff.”
McGonagle began playing baseball in 2021. In his second year of fall ball, he started pitching. The more he threw, the better he became at it, and the better he became the more he liked pitching.
“First, I wasn’t very good, but we worked on it a lot,” said Elijah Sun. “I think if you put your mind to it, you can really achieve something. I think it was pretty cool watching somebody walk back to the dugout (after you’ve struck them out). Fall ball has been good. We’ve really ... faced some good teams.”
Elijah Sun started playing baseball three years ago. He wanted to pitch because it looked fun and he’s fallen in love with it.
“I was watching the Red Sox a lot, and I wanted to play a sport, so I chose baseball,” said Dansereau, who is in his second year of pitching. “It’s really fun, I like pitching and hitting and hanging out with my friends. I feel like I’m improving; pitching is fun. (All three of us) try hard and encourage the team.”
Dansereau was the starting pitcher in the Sept. 29 game against Bonny Eagle Atkinson. He said he was excited, but not nervous to start the game.
Jason Sun said these three pitchers have remained consistent since he first realized their abilities and said these three aces are good kids on and off the field. <
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