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June 11, 2023 7:00 am | by Amanda Foster
One day before Opening Day of the 2023 season of the Cape Cod Baseball League, David Glancy (St. John’s) stood at home plate at Fenway Park, taking batting practice. He crushed a pitch deep to left field, sending it to the Green Monster where it bounced off the wall, just feet away from clearing the top of the wall.
In the hustle and bustle of Fenway Day, Glancy could barely recall the swing, as powerful as it was. But little did he know, that hit was a sign of what was to come just one day later.
Opening Day saw the Gatemen take on the Falmouth Commodores at Guv Fuller Field. Glancy earned the start in right field and quickly settled in at the sixth spot in the lineup. By the time the fourth inning rolled around, most nerves had settled and the Gatemen were taking advantage of whatever they could get.
Glancy came up to the plate for his third at-bat of night with two outs and two runners on base. The Gatemen led 5-4, but had just let up 4 runs to the Commodores in the bottom of the fourth inning. Glancy stood poised in the right-handed batters box and, when he saw the pitch he wanted, delivered that same power he showed at Fenway Park.
The difference was, this time, the ball went over the wall in left field.
“I just tried to make a pitch-by-pitch adjustment, try to get the barrel of the bat out to the front of the zone, catch something out front,” Glancy said. “When I saw (the ball) go in the air, I was kind of like ‘Come on, get out, get out!’ and I was trying to talk to the ball, push it a little further, and it went out.”
Glancy’s home run marked the first of his Cape League career, and the first by a Gateman this summer. But as he was rounding the bases, that accomplishment wasn’t quite what Glancy was thinking about.
Amidst all the excitement, and after willing the ball to clear the fence, Glancy took the time to simply be thankful for the opportunity.
“I just tried to tell myself to look around and enjoy the moment,” he said. “Just be in the moment here. (I’m) just thankful to be in general, so whatever happens I’m just blessed and thankful. I just want to go out there and just have fun and play stress-free.”
That mentality aided Glancy in all facets of the game, as he played clean defense in right field and recorded two stolen bases alongside his three RBIs. The stolen bases both came in the second inning, displaying one of the tenets of first-year manager Ryan Smyth’s ballclub: aggressiveness.
Whether it comes at the plate or on the base paths, Smyth’s message to his players is clear: play hard and don’t be afraid.
“First practice, he was like ‘be aggressive’,” Glancy said. “‘If you mess up, you mess up, but be aggressive and go out there and play hard.’”
Clearly, that kind of approach leads to victory, as the Gatemen took down the Commodores 11-10 for their first win of the season. But it also seems to aid in calming nerves — at least, it did for Glancy.
“Coming in, first game, we’ve got a little jitters,” Glancy said. “But I think the best way to get it out is just playing hard and running like a chicken with his head cut off.”
