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Newburyport Clippers Baseball '08

Mr. Clutch: Newburyport's Holmes has sparked team's resurgence

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After a slow start to his varsity career this spring, Newburyport junior Kevin Holmes, a three-sport star, is enjoying a nine-game hitting streak. The Clippers, in turn, are enjoying a hot streak as a team, too. » Bryon Eaton, Staff Photographer

Friday, May, 09 By John Shimer
Staff writer

Similar to the Nike ad campaign "Witness" that launched the career of LeBron James, fans of Newburyport athletics have witnessed the launching stardom of local three-sport standout Kevin Holmes.

A junior, Holmes has emerged as one of the school's top all-around performers in golf, hockey and baseball, putting up top raw numbers in each sport.

This spring, Holmes has become perhaps the baseball team's best all-around hitter with a .391 average (second on the team), while also showing some pop (team-leading six doubles).

His sudden arrival from a junior varsity player last spring to an impact player this season might be a surprise to coaches around the Cape Ann League. But according to Clippers coach Bill Pettingell, Holmes has not been flying under the radar in the Newburyport program.

"We have know all about Kevin, but he was a sophomore a year ago and we had a senior-laden ball club," Pettingell said. "We could've brought him up at the end, but I wanted him right where he was | leading the JVs in hitting and getting his 50 to 60 at bats to build up his confidence.

"To me he's not a surprise, but to the league he probably is," Pettingell said. "It's not an exaggeration, but I expected him to be one of our top three hitters despite the fact we had three returning starters (Tyler Stotz, Richie Burke, Kyle LeBlanc) because I think he's one of the top two or three athletes in the school and one of the best all-around athletes at Newburyport in the last 10 years."

His hockey coach Paul Yameen was in complete agreement with Pettingell, saying that Holmes' hard work both in season and during the offseason has paid dividends.

"You could see it coming. He had an injury that held him back a bit last year, but as he has physically matured he's put in the hard work to make himself better," Yameen said. "Like the old adage says: Hard work pays off. To me. I think Kevin is so physically gifted that if he chose to play football, he would also be one of the best football players. But he's made a nice little path for himself in golf. He's got such good eye-hand coordination and athletic ability that he's good at virtually all sports he puts time into."

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