Athlete Spotlight: Jake Boucher

Jose Rodriguez '24, Staff Writer | Media & Communications

SALEM, Mass.- Salem State Athletics is featuring the all-time saves leader, Jake Boucher (Wallingford, Conn.), who recorded his record-breaking 12th career save when the Vikings beat Mass Maritime on April 20.

Boucher talked about what it means being the all-time saves leader at Salem State. "It is an awesome achievement to have the record. However I would not have it if it wasn't for every kid I played with and learned from." He said his junior year, he told himself of the possibility of breaking the record. "I came into school as a middle infielder and earlier on in my career it did not look like I would be pitching very much. After my junior year it seemed like it would be a possibility. I give almost all the credit to my team, in order to record a save we have to be winning at the end of the game so they have done pretty much all the work. Even when I am on the mound, they are still behind me trying to make every play to end the game."   

The Walingford native touched on the importance of trust between a catcher and a pitcher. "I think it is extremely important to be on the same page and trust one another. Without any trust or communication things can end up going wrong very quickly. I need to trust my catcher to call the right pitches in the right spot and he needs to trust me to make the right pitch." 

At the beginning of the season an injury kept Boucher from swinging the bat. "I have a torn tendon in my left hand that occurred a week before our first game, it was very difficult to swing and more importantly not be able to work on anything in the meantime. There was not a ton of rehab put into it as it is still torn and I have been playing through it. I will be taking the summer off to let it heal and hopefully be good to go once we get back in the fall. While it was difficult not to be swinging, I absolutely loved watching and cheering on the team, and luckily I was still able to pitch."

A game he is looking forward to the most during the course of the season is the postseason. "I am most looking forward to the playoffs. We were unable to make them last year, but have made great strides to get better. Especially this year with the division it seems everyone has an equal chance of winning and once we get in anything can happen." 

Boucher mentioned the differences between this team and last season. "We have a lot of first-year guys that came in and have changed the culture as well as a lot of returners that have worked hard over the summer and fall to help the team as much as they can. We have a very close team this year and have found ways to win as much as possible." 

He spoke what the word Viking means to him. "Viking will always be an important part of my life, being in my fifth year and having one more season means I have spent a lot of my life at this place and being a Viking will always be special to me." The memories will be hard to forget especially from this year. This is one of the best teams I have been a part of in terms of always having fun. It is going to be tough to say goodbye one day, but the memories with this group, I wouldn't trade for anything. My senior day will be next year, but in terms of everyone else graduating, I try to see it as a special day instead of a sad day. Some of the kids leaving have been here my whole career, so it definitely will be a little tough to see some of them go." 

He briefly spoke about his in-season and off-season routines. "Off season I just try and work on getting stronger as once the season starts up I end up losing a good amount of weight. In season I try to stay as loose as possible and that way I can move as much as possible." 

Boucher talked about a goal that he has during the season. "My main goal was to try and help win every game in any way. We have mostly won throughout the year, but once playoffs start we want to win it all." He also added what he wants to improve on. "At this moment I am just trying to work on having good at-bats and trying to make my swing as good as it can possibly be."

On being named captain this year. "It is a great honor to be a captain of the team and try and lead the team as much as I possibly can. The responsibilities are mostly behind the scenes and it is tough to make sure everything you do is for the good of the team."

He mentioned the people that has influenced him in his life. "I don't think anyone influenced me the most, I think everyone in my life had some sort of influence on making me push myself to get better. My parents who always support me, my coaches that help me work on whatever I am struggling with, and my teammates who push me to be the best I can be are just a few people that influence me."

A player that he grew up watching and idolizing. "I liked watching Dustin Pedroia as he was a smaller guy that always played the game hard. I also liked watching Miguel Cabrera as he was always a guy that had a ton of fun on the field, and was always joking around."

Boucher and the Vikings will travel to North Adams for their final series of the regular season when they take on MCLA on Friday May 3. Game time is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.