August 15, 2011
Bilodeau lives out dream in Cape Cod League
by Ed Flaherty/
In his third year in the Cape League, Keith Bilodeau was Maine's ace in 2011. (photo: University of Maine)
The difference between having a dream and having that dream realized is often just a matter of hard work and determination.
Just ask Keith Bilodeau.
Bilodeau grew up on Cape Cod and spent more than his fair share of summer nights as a youngster watching Cape Cod Baseball League games.
For some kids, a night out at the ballpark is enough. After the game, they head home and find some other form of entertainment to occupy their time. For others, it triggers something inside, creating a desire to take the game to another level. The start of the dream.
For Bilodeau, who grew up in Bourne, Mass., watching those Cape League games helped pave the way for where he is today.
“I’d be one of the little kids at the games trying to get the foul balls,” Bilodeau said. “It was always my dream to play in the Cape League. It really became a dream of mine.”
The dream has become reality three-fold for Bilodeau, who recently completed his junior year at the University of Maine.
The right-handed pitcher is in his third season playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League, the premier summer collegiate league. The summers of 2009 and 2010 were spent with Wareham, and Bilodeau is playing with Chatham this summer.
The Cape League always has held special meaning for Bilodeau, who not only grew up chasing those foul balls at the games but also got to know the players in the league as well.
Bilodeau’s family has housed players during the summer league on the Cape, including future major leaguers Bobby Higginson and Val Majewski.
“They were my idols,” Bilodeau said of the collection of talented players who passed through the Cape each summer.
Now that he is a member of the elite fraternity of players who can say they played in the Cape League, Bilodeau is savoring every moment.
“This is my third year in the Cape League. The whole experience is unbelievable,” he said. “To be a part of this is special. Just having the support around me when I go out on the mound is special.”
There were many steps along the way for Bilodeau before he could play in the Cape League, however, and the 6-foot-4, 190-pound pitcher has proven to be an ace at each stop on his journey.
At Bourne High School, Bilodeau had a 1.82 ERA as a junior and had a 7-0 record with a 0.62 ERA and a no-hitter during American Legion action in the summer.
He was rated as a top 100 prospect by at least one recruiting publication and headed north to play his college baseball at the University of Maine.
As a freshman at Maine, Bilodeau made nine starts and 17 appearances for the Black Bears, finishing the season with a 1-7 record and a 4.38 ERA.
Bilodeau’s progression continued in 2010, when he went 4-2 with a 5.98 ERA, striking out 36 batters in 49 2/3 innings pitched for Maine.
His efforts as a sophomore landed him on the All-America East Second Team.
Bilodeau had a breakout season in 2011 as a junior, and Maine coach Steve Trimper attributes much of that success to his pitcher’s hard work on the Cape during the summer of 2010.
With Wareham in 2010, Bilodeau appeared in 14 games, all as a reliever. He threw 17⅓ innings, giving up 16 hits and six earned runs for a 3.12 ERA.
“He really made a huge jump from his sophomore year to his junior year, and I think that had to do with the success he had in the Cape League last year,” Trimper said.
“If you work hard, the pieces will fall into place,” Bilodeau said.
In 2011, Bilodeau was 10-3 with a 3.04 ERA for Maine, allowing 80 hits over 91⅔ innings while striking out 83. His 10 wins tied the school record for victories, and at one point, he won eight consecutive starts.
Bilodeau’s success mirrored that of the Black Bears, as Maine captured the America East postseason title and made a return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2006.
As Maine’s No. 1 pitcher, Bilodeau got the call in the America East tournament opener, and he delivered.
In a 4-3 win over Binghamton, Bilodeau turned in a complete game, allowing two earned runs while striking out six. He set down 16 straight batters at one point during the game.
“Winning the America East title was unbelievable,” Bilodeau said. “They gave me the ball in Game 1 (of the America East tournament), and I’ve never been so gassed up to pitch a baseball game.”
Bilodeau’s success in the America East tournament shouldn’t have come as a surprise, as he was 7-0 with a 1.76 ERA during conference games in 2011.
“He was basically a guaranteed win for us in conference play,” Trimper said.
Bilodeau again got the call for Maine’s NCAA tournament opener against North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
Bilodeau had a shaky first inning against the Tar Heels, surrendering all four of North Carolina’s runs in the opening frame as Maine lost, 4-0.
Still, Bilodeau rebounded after that rough first inning, allowing just five hits while striking out six over seven innings.
Despite the loss, Bilodeau basked in the moment, even while giving up a three-run homer to North Carolina’s Jacob Stallings.
“I’ve never heard a crowd erupt like that,” Bilodeau said of the reaction following Stallings’ homer. “The experience was unbelievable. We came up a bit short.”
Bilodeau had five complete games for Maine in 2011, a testament to his competitive nature.
“He’s just a competitor,” Trimper said. “He’s a fierce competitor. He doesn’t want to lose, he doesn’t want to come out of games.”
That attitude and desire doesn’t go unnoticed, Trimper said.
“It’s a comfort zone (when he’s on the mound). He gives our whole team confidence,” Trimper said. “The other pitchers start to build off that and mimic him.”
“I always rely on my defense,” Bilodeau said. “They see how badly I want to win. It’s good to see how they want to pick me up and I want to pick them up.”
Bilodeau’s attitude and desire serve him well on the mound, but those intangibles can only take a pitcher so far.
“He knows how to pitch, he doesn’t just throw the ball,” Trimper said of Bilodeau’s pitching acumen. “He knows how to get a batter out.”
Featuring a cut fastball, slider and curve, Bilodeau has a distinct pitching philosophy when he’s on the mound.
“I pitch everyone like they’re Barry Bonds,” he said. “I pitch everyone the same: as tough as I possibly can.”
Bilodeau said during the first and second innings he establishes the strike zone, studying how umpires are making their calls. From that point on, he attacks the strike zone and challenges hitters.
Bilodeau’s success at Maine and on the Cape has drawn the attention of major-league teams.
In the 2011 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, Bilodeau was the 24th-round selection of the San Francisco Giants.
“It’s always been my dream to get drafted, and that happened,” Bilodeau said. “And it’s always been my dream to play pro.”
As far as Trimper is concerned, Bilodeau’s dream of playing professional baseball can become reality just as his dream of playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League did.
“I think he’s going to have success at the next level,” Trimper said. “I think his competitive attitude is going to impress any manager.”
This article originally appeared in the August 2011 issue of New England Baseball Journal.
Ed Flaherty can be reached at feedback@baseballjournal.com
