Telegraph Sports Reporter Tom KIng.

Think he’s glad he bought the franchise?

Of course, Worcester caterer John Creedon Jr. is. While still the owner of the Worcester Bravehearts, he took the Nashua Silver Knights off original owner Drew Weber’s hands back in March 2019 and never realized he’d have to deal with a pandemic, etc.

All the right buttons, though, were pushed. Creedon hired longtime pitching coach Kyle Jackson to succeed franchise icon B.J. Neverett as manager. He and commissioner Joe Paolucci led the charge to see if there was any possible way the Futures Collegiate League could play this summer.

And he got his two teams squaring off against each other for what we like to call The Creedon Cup.

“A storybook ending to a storybook season,” Creedon said. “Again, it was never a given that we’d see the end of the season, and to see it end on the highest note, hoisting the trophy, is quite a capstone to everybody involved.

“We got everybody through to the end, with the ultimate result, which is unbelievable.”

Creedon credited Nashua Mayor Jim Donchess and city health director Bobbie D.Bagley and others in the city for the help and push to get the season off the ground at Holman. Nashua and New Britain were the only teams allowed to have fans, state regulations allowing it but not doing so in Massachusetts.

He got to benefit first hand from the same type of fan support he saw in the past when Nashua beat Worcester in back-to-back finals in 2016-17.

“It’s incredible,” Creedon said. “It’s about culture. Success is about culture and culture is about people. You’ve got to put the right people in place, and then build that culture, and that’s what we’ve been able to do in Nashua.”

Creedon rewards hard work because in helping to build up the family catering business in Worcester, Creedon & Co., he does the same. He put his faith in a front office that had little experience, promoting Cam Cook to general manager and an intern, Katie Arend, to assistant GM. The two had the same chemistry that the former front office team of Ronnie Wallace and Cheryl Lindner had during the team’s previous heyday. Hey, sometimes you push the right button. Promoting Jackson to the manager’s chair after six seasons as pitching coach was a no-brainer, but it was his first managerial season. And he wins Manager of the Year, and also made the right choice in Ariel Ramos to succeed him as pitching coach.

“Cam Cook, Katie Arend, Kyle Jackson, Ariel Ramos, they’re the right people at the right moment,” Creedon said. “To me the whole season was just a victory.”

It sure was, for the entire league. The benefits of playing this year will be many. The Silver Knights provided the city with a summer of highlights that didn’t seem possible a few months ago. Just play the game, who cares about a championship, may have been the feeling.

The franchise is in good hands. Weber , now enjoying life in Arizona, wanted to make sure of that when he sold it to Creedon. After all, Creedon’s Bravehearts since they arrived in 2014, basically had the best attendance and have incredibly been in the finals every year of their existance, winning the title four times. Creedon put great people in place in Worcester and there was no doubt he’d do it here in Nashua.

So now we move on, and the league will be hoping that it won’t have to take the economic hit it did this year by playing. It would have been easier not to play at all; remember that. It is expected Pittsfield returns after opting out; there will be a move to likely get an eighth team so the schedule can be balanced.

“We’re not done yet,” Creedon said. “This is a place that gets it. Nashua loves its baseball here at Holman Stadium. This is a special place to play. It’s a privilege, it’s an honor, these kids come to win. And reflect it back to the community.”

You might say the owner gets it, too.

Tom King may be reached at tking@nashuatelegraph.com, or@Telegraph _TomK.

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