Last week when Kevin McAvoy walked around the Portland Sea Dogs’ clubhouse, he took a deep breath and smiled.

“Good to be here,” McAvoy said.

Sea Dogs fans get a chance to welcome McAvoy and his teammates properly when Portland opens its home schedule Thursday with a 6 p.m. game at Hadlock Field.

McAvoy, one of Portland’s new pitching prospects, will make the start against the Eastern League’s newest member, the Hartford Yard Goats.

The Yard Goats came into existence when Josh Solomon, the New Britain Rock Cats’ owner, moved his team 12 miles north to Connecticut’s capital city.

Portland will see a lot of the Yard Goats in April. The team’s new stadium won’t be ready until next month, which means the Yard Goats’ home games turned into away games. Four games scheduled for next week in Hartford will now be at Hadlock.

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That makes the Sea Dogs’ opening homestand a long one – from Thursday to Sunday, April 24 (with a day off on the 21st and a doubleheader the 23rd). That’s 11 home games – eight against Hartford and three against the Trenton Thunder sandwiched in between.

April is not the best month to attract crowds but next week is spring break for kids. And if Hartford is going to overstay its welcome, at least the Yard Goats (5-2) are bringing a good team.

An affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, Hartford features some of the best prospects in Double-A, led by third baseman David Dahl, ranked the 39th-best prospect in the minors by Baseball America. Dahl already has four home runs.

Hartford also has 21-year-old pitching prospect Antonio Senzatela, who features a mid-90s fastball and tough slider. Pitching in the wind-blown California League last year, Senzatela had a 2.51 ERA, the lowest in the league in 10 years.

Senzatela (1-0), who threw a three-hitter over six innings in his first start, is scheduled to start Thursday night.

McAvoy (1-0) looked sharp in his Double-A debut last week in Reading, holding the Fightin Phils to two hits and one earned run in five innings.

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McAvoy was Boston’s fourth-round draft pick in 2014 – the highest pick for a player from Bryant University in Rhode Island. The scouting report is simple.

“He’s a sinker/slider guy,” said new Portland manager Carlos Febles, who had McAvoy last year when Febles managed advanced Class A Salem.

In Salem, McAvoy’s first full pro season had expected ups and downs, but he finished with an 11-9 record and 3.89 ERA.

“I just want to be more consistent out of the gate,” McAvoy said.

The Sea Dogs are 3-4 after Wednesday night’s 1-0 loss in Trenton. It was a long trip, but now the boys of Portland’s summer are returning to Hadlock.

 


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