He was hanging around the house, driving his wife crazy.

After a few days, a day without baseball just didn’t fit for J.P. Pyne.

“After the Daniel Webster season, I looked at those two-and-a-half weeks, and said I need that,” Pyne said the other day. “But after four days I was chomping at the bit.”

Pyne, of course, coached DWC to its most successful season in school history, all the way into a three-game stint in the NCAA Division III tournament.

Now, like a lot of fans, he’s ready for the start of the Nashua Silver Knights season, his first as manager.

And it starts on Friday.

Can you believe it?

The season just sneaks up on you. Pyne was anxious after four days, just think how anxious many of the fans who have regularly flocked to Holman Stadium the last two years are.

Players are reporting early this week, with the team’s annual media day set for Tuesday. Pyne already has a workout schedule in place and has a staff complete with hitting coach Mike Rocco, VP/assistant manager (previous manager) B.J. Neverett, and pitching coach Tom Boles.

It was such an emotional ending to the Eagles season, you wonder how he can shift gears so quickly.

“I think it’s probably easier than people would think,” Pyne said. “But you’re right, when you’re in school, you’re pouring nine months or so into it, it’s what you do.”

But Pyne pulled into the Holman Stadium parking lot the other day and got that Silver Knights feeling back. He wasn’t around for the inaugural 2011 season, but as pitching coach in 2012 he caught the Silver Bug. Knights Fever can run rampant sometimes, because the team has won two straight Futures Collegiate League championships. Players who are no longer eligible to compete for the team (college seniors, etc.) always come back saying they wish they were still able to play.

“I remember the playoffs last year,” Pyne said. “We went right to around August 15 when it ended. Usually you’re ready to unwind. But the sad thing was that it had to stop, we wanted to keep playing.”

Well, believe it or not, it’s time for them to start playing again. The last time the Silver Knights were on the Hallowed Holman ground was when they were rolling in it after winning their second straight FCBL title, sweeping North Shore.

Pyne has joked that he’s not afraid to be the first Silver Knights manager to not win a championship (Neverett and Mike Chambers did). But don’t count him out. He’s got the perfect blend of the college game, plus, he’s been a pitching coach in the Toronto Blue Jays system (interim in Gulf Coast Rookie League two summers ago).

“In this position in a lot of ways, I draw more from my professional experience,” he said. “I look at each one of these guys as professional prospects. That’s why my priority is to give them a professional experience. It’s a unique experience for these guys.”

That’s what has helped the Silver Knights success on and off the field – despite this being a college player league, the franchise is run as a minor league team thanks to the resources Drew Weber/Lowell Spinners ownership has. The field boss has always taken his cue from the top, and the players have taken their cue from the manager. Get to the park early, prepare, and play the game the right way.

That’s why Pyne’s message to the players when he meets with them this week will be to make sure the fans get their money’s worth.

“My message won’t be ‘we’ve won two championships and we have to go out and win another,’ ” Pyne said. “Sure, we want to win. But this for me is more about making sure people who come and pay to see us play have a great baseball experience.”

The team may be more speed oriented than the power teams of the past.

It’ll have some interesting locals, such as returnees Alek Morency and Travis Terrill (Merrimack College) and newbies like former Merrimack High School standout Tom Hudon (Saint Anselm) and former Nashua High Schoo North standout pitcher Jake Mellin (Hartford).

Friday night begins the way it did last year, with a championship ring ceremony. Pyne knows the players need to adjust from a recently concluded college season, some just coming off postseasons, others idle for last couple of weeks.

“One of the things that always speeds up the process is Opening Night,” Pyne said. “Hard not to get excited about that.”

Believe it or not, it’s time to get excited Silver Style again.

Tom King can be reached at 594-6468 or tking@nashuatelegraph.com. Also, follow King on Twitter (@Telegraph_TomK).

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