Sean Sposato’s career has consisted of four full seasons, 50 appearances and 178 total innings pitched up to this point, with all of those statistics coming in front of his family.
Sposato, a fifth-year starting pitcher on the University of Rhode Island’s baseball team and native of Ashaway, Rhode Island, has been the backbone of the Rams’ pitching staff for five years.
Before the honors and the starts at Bill Beck Field, Sposato was a high school pitcher looking to find a home.
“I came to a camp, they saw me, I threw once,” Sposato said. “I came to another camp a few weeks later and then, I think within the week, they offered me [a scholarship].”
URI Head Coach Rafael Cerrato had never seen Sposato pitch, until he threw at the team’s recruiting camp.
“I had heard about him, but we hadn’t seen him in person yet,” Cerrato said. “He went out and threw and I was like, ‘jeez, this kid is pretty good,’ so we had him come to our development camp that fall.”
Since then, Sposato has been an opening day starter and a key piece for the Rams.
“He’s a tough kid, he competes,” Cerrato said. “He’s battled some hip injuries this year. He’s been a staple for this program for five years.”
Sposato has also taken up a leadership role for the Rams, but not in the typical energetic way, according to Cerrato.
“He’s become a leader, he’s not a ‘rah rah’ type leader,” Cerrato said. “He’s someone who’s gonna lead by example, push guys in the right direction. It’s fun seeing guys grow up from when you first meet them at 16, 17 to 22 years-old. He’s definitely grown over the years.”
Now in his fifth season with the Rams, Sposato earned scholar athlete honors and was able to receive his award at the State House in Providence on Monday. The award is presented to athletes who perform well in both their sport and the classroom. He was able to receive his award in front of the people he cares about the most.
“It was awesome,” Sposato said. “Being from Rhode Island, my family was there and they got to experience it. They’re really the reason I’m here, so it means alot to be able to get honored like that in front of them.”
Cerrato knew what it meant to Sposato to represent his team in his home state.
“It meant a lot,” Cerrato said. “He’s a kid who had some struggles as an academic early in his career, but he’s really turned it around. He has such pride playing for his home state school and I think it was a nice honor for him yesterday.”
As the Rams’ season rolls on, Sposato has some goals with the Atlantic 10 championships rapidly approaching.
“We have a saying, 1% better,” Sposato said. “We just want to improve every time we go out there. Whether it’s small changes, making your stuff better, command. But obviously the best teams win late in the year.”
Sposato and the Rams continue their push for the A-10 title at 3 p.m. on Friday at Bill Beck Field in Kingston, Rhode Island. The game is available to be streamed on ESPN+.