Blue Sox welcome 2016 alumnus as new head coach

Feb. 22, 2021 | Danielle Eaton
deaton@thereminder.com

Hezekiah Randolph was recently named as the head coach for the Valley Blue Sox.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo

­­­HOLYOKE –   The Valley Blue Sox will have a new head coach at the helm when they return for the 2021 season.

Hezekiah Randolph is originally from Baton Rouge in Louisiana and played for the team during the 2016 season. He said he first connected with the team through Hunter Golden, the team’s former general manager. “He did a great job developing a roster, getting guys from different parts of the country,” he said.

Randolph said he was recruited to play for the Blue Sox during his college career after Golden saw a home run derby he’d participated in while in high school. From there, he said Golden looked up his collegiate career, and reached out to his coaches. “I was all aboard, I took control of my career to give myself the best opportunities to be successful,” he said. “So it was definitely something I wanted to be a part of.”

He laughed and said the coaching staff for the Blue Sox didn’t think he was a real person, as prior to showing up they had not been able to get in contact with him via phone. “They didn’t think I was a real human, throughout the whole process they’d never spoken to me on the phone,” he said.

While Randolph is young and close to the age of some players, he said he’s excited to be able to connect with and invest in the players on the team. “I think it’s awesome, a new dynamic obviously. At the end of the day, it’s all about connecting with the players. There’s going to be some kids pushing towards my age, a couple of these guys may be 23, it could be weird,” he said.

However, he emphasized that he felt his experience, knowledge of the game and willingness to invest in each player would help the players respect him and his role as head coach. “Respect comes with knowledge, the more I’m able to prove I care about their development as a person, I can prove I’m knowledgeable about the sport, respect will come with that,” he said.

Randolph said he doesn’t believe that you have to be older to have wisdom, and just wanted to give players “an environment to learn, grow [and] develop.” He said, “Knowledge doesn’t always come with age. I always thought that was one thing to show they’re invested in their personal development.”

While his contract, at the moment, with the Blue Sox is only for one year, Randolph said he was hopeful that he would be with the team for longer than that. “As of now it’s just this season, but I can’t see myself going anywhere,” he said.

He attributed his commitment and passion for the Blue Sox to the connections he made while playing, including with the previous head coach John Raiola. “When I played for the Blue Sox, he was the head coach. He was also the associate coach at Western New England, I was the assistant coach there for him. I know him as a coach, colleague and friend,” he said. “He’s always been there for me, invested in me as a person and a player, as a friend. He got me to see coaching from a different point of view, [and] invested in me as a man. I have such a respect for him.”

In addition to his excitement about the players and the season, he said he was also excited to be able to be involved in the community aspect of the team. “I’m very excited to provide [and] give back to the fans of the Blue Sox. It’s a team and organization that holds near and dear to the community,” he said. “The impact, it goes above wins and losses. It’s about the people you can touch. The fans really know what’s going on.”

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