Righthander Tommy Lawrence won 19 games during his two seasons at the University of Maine and holds the school record for victories in a season with 11 in 2013.
He will return to Maine as a member of the first-year Old Orchard Beach Surge, which will compete in the independent six-team East Coast Baseball League this summer.
It will be the first professional baseball team at The Ballpark in 26 years. The Ballpark used to house the AAA Maine Guides and Maine Phillies from 1984-1988.
Alex Markakis, cousin of Atlanta Braves outfielder Nick Markakis, is the general manager of the Surge. He said they will play a 60-game regular season that will span late May to the playoffs in early August.
Lawrence signed a free-agent contract with the Tampa Bay Rays after the college season in 2014 and became a relief pitcher for the Rays’ Gulf Coast Rookie League team after being a starter at Maine.
He made 12 appearances, all in relief, and was 1-0 with a 2.52 earned run average and four saves spanning 25 innings.
His former Black Bear teammate, Jeff Gibbs, also will pitch for the Surge.
Lawrence said Gibbs told him about the new team, and he contacted the team and received a contract.
“I wasn’t really used to being in a relief role and didn’t get much of a chance with the Rays,” Lawrence, 24, said. “The (Surge) manager (Skip Nathanson) told me he wanted me to be a starter.”
Lawrence said that’s what he wanted to hear.
“I developed a routine (as a starter),” explained Lawrence, who had tried out for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League but didn’t make the team.
He hopes this will give him exposure which could land him a spot on a team at a higher level, “and it gives me a chance to play a game that I love and that’s all that really matters.
“This gives me a chance to prove myself again.”
Lawrence has been coaching and working out with his former West Haven High School team in Connecticut and said his arm feels good.
“I’ve been throwing in the bullpen, and I threw live to the team a couple of times,” said Lawrence, the former ECAC and America East Pitcher of the Year and two-time, all-conference, first-team choice.
He is looking forward to returning to Maine.
“I love the University of Maine and the state of Maine,” he said.
Gibbs, who was a top-of-the-rotation starter at Maine, spent two years in professional baseball but was plagued by control trouble and didn’t pitch last season.
“We’re going to try to get some kids with Maine ties,” said 23-year-old Markakis, a native of Lynnfield, Massachusetts, who played in 153 games as the starting third baseman at Saint Joseph’s College in Standish.
Markakis said the Surge is one of five teams owned by the league.
They will have a 22-man roster and Brad Michaels, a former director of player personnel for the Worcester (Massachusetts) Tornadoes of the Can-Am League, is the director of baseball operations.
Markakis said they will have a weeklong spring training in Delaware beginning May 10 before starting the season.
Markakis said the Old Orchard Beach roster primarily will be composed of players between the ages of 22 and 27. He is hoping the Surge will serve as a stepping stone for them to further their professional careers.
The other teams in the league are New York-based clubs the Niagara Falls Explorers, the Watertown Bucks and the Newburgh Newts, as well as Ontario teams the Waterloo Whiskey Jacks and the Welland Wild.
The Surge’s home opener is June 2.