After shining for Holy Name and Assumption, Holden native Brendan Desautels toes the rubber for Bravehearts

LEOMINSTER — It was three strikes, but not an out.

First, Brendan Desautels received an offer to join the Worcester Bravehearts after he graduated from Holy Name in 2017. It was withdrawn when team officials discovered he had yet to enter college and all their spots for high school players were filled.

Second, the Bravehearts reached out to Desautels following his freshman year at Assumption College. But that same day the Holden resident suffered a season-ending arm injury while pitching for the Grafton Hill American Legion team.

Third, Desautels decided to shake things up, so he headed to San Francisco last summer to pitch. He departed 10 weeks later, worn down and 25 pounds lighter, leading him to decline a late-season invite from the Bravehearts.

“This year it just kind of worked out,” Desautels said last week, noting he initially was going to play on Long Island before the Hamptons League canceled its season.

“I told Coach (Mike Rocco at Assumption), ‘The Bravehearts are playing this year. Is there any way you can get me on the team? I’d love it.’ I’m here and it’s the best baseball experience I’ve had so far.”

After opening the season with five road games, the Bravehearts faced New Britain on Saturday night in their home opener at Doyle Field. They’ll host North Shore, which is in first place in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League, at 4 p.m. Sunday.

The 5-foot-10, 200-pound Desautels, who is pitching out of the bullpen, is 2-0 with a 2.25 earned run average in two appearances. He entered Saturday tied for the league lead in wins and tied for fifth in ERA.

“He’s a super competitive kid and a really good person,” Bravehearts manager Alex Dion said. “I’m really excited to see what he’s going to do the rest of the way for us.”

Desautels ground his way through his FCBL debut, allowing three hits, two walks and a run with one strikeout over two innings as the Bravehearts scored in the ninth to defeat Nashua, 6-5, on July 5. He was efficient and effective three days later, recording three strikeouts and initiating a 1-3 double play in two shutout innings as the Bravehearts edged Westfield, 3-1.

No matter the situation, the mindset remained the same, one instilled in him through personal experience and by his dad, Brian.

“I’ve played in a lot of high stress situations in high school, whether it’s football, baseball or whatever,” Desautels said. “I’ve grown pretty accustomed to it. I don’t care if there’s a guy on third, I’m striking you out.

“You have to block out the noise. That’s always what my dad always says, ‘Block out the noise, focus on this pitch, this snap, whatever it is. Get it done.’ ”

Desautels quarterbacked Holy Name to the Central Mass. Division 4 championship as a junior and made converted four drop kicks — yes, drop kicks! — in the Mewhiney Central Mass. All-Star Classic as a senior.

On the diamond, the T&G Division 1 All-Star hit .550 to rank fifth in CMass as a senior and when he wasn’t catching, pitched for the first time. The Naps only won five games, but Desautels served notice by going 2-4 with a 2.21 ERA and 38 Ks in 38 innings.

Desautels initially planned to play football at Assumption before settling on baseball. He was a raw reliever as a freshman before being converted to a starter and has posted a career line of 3-4 , two saves and 79 strikeouts in 83-2/3 innings thanks to a fastball that is consistently in the high 80s.

Off the field, the rising senior is majoring in business and has a 3.45 grade point average. He’s on track to graduate a semester early in December and then plans to return to Assumption to play his final season of baseball and begin pursuing a master’s in nonprofit administration.

Desautels founded Naps Play It Forward, a charity that collected and distributed used athletic equipment to youth organizations in Worcester, as a senior at Holy Name. He’s involved with Team Impact, a national nonprofit that pairs children with life-threatening and ongoing illnesses with college sports teams, at Assumption.

“It kind of led me into seeing what I want to do with my life after sports,” Desautels said. “Take the nonprofit world as far as college athletics, athletics in general, and how you can apply it to making kids’ lives better.

“Like social issues, getting them involved in sports. You wouldn’t believe how much it helps kids’ lives. So that’s what I want to do for a living, help change kids’ lives through sports.”

As for those in athletics who have helped Desautels, he mentioned former Holy Name football coach Michael Pucko for teaching him to be “a selfless teammate” and Rocco and Assumption director of athletics Christine Lowthert for mentoring him on “how to handle yourself in the business world and how to use college athletics” to your benefit.

—Contact Rich Garven at rgarven@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @RichGarvenTG.