Pawsox’ Bill Wanless fondly recalls Canton days

Bill Wanless had two passions when he was growing up in Canton: sports and writing. Today he combines both of those loves in his position as the vice president of public relations for the Pawtucket Red Sox.

Bill Wanless (right) with Boston Red Sox star 2nd baseman Dustin Pedroia

Wanless loved all sports when he was a kid, although he acknowledges that baseball was his favorite. “Canton is such a tremendous sports town,” he said.

He grew up in Ponkapoag and attended the Hansen Elementary School and Galvin Middle School before going on to Canton High where he played in the outfield and at first base on the same baseball team with his good friend Bobby Witt, who went on to pitch in the Major Leagues for 15 seasons.

Wanless majored in business at St. Anselm College. During his junior year, family friend and Canton resident Jack Reilly suggested that he apply for a summer internship with the Pawsox. Reilly was the controller for the Boston Red Sox.

“[Reilly] had a relationship with people here in Pawtucket,” Wanless said.

When he went to the interview, Wanless took two important sports stories with him that he had written a few years earlier. As a reporter for the Canton Courier, he had interviewed hockey great Bobby Orr and baseball star Willie Mays at Blue Hill Country Club during two successive years when the athletes were guests at a golf tournament. The stories ran on the front page of the Courier. Wanless was hired for the internship.

“I really credit Mr. Reilly,” Wanless said. “It was a great opportunity to learn everything from the ground level up.”

Soon after returning to St. Anselm in the early fall, he received a call from the Pawsox offering him a job once he graduated.

Wanless’s job responsibilities change according to the time of year. “During the season, I’m compiling information about the team, players and events, and dispersing it to the media,” he said. He works on the game program, media guide and team newspaper in the offseason.

He also works with the players, a number of whom start in Pawtucket and move on to Boston. “Every season is a new season,” he said, “new players and new staff. You get to see them and work with them on an individual basis. Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Kevin Youkilis — to see the way they play on the field and handle themselves off the field is really rewarding.”

Wanless maintains his connection to his hometown through his parents, Bill and Donna, who live in the Spring Valley area of Canton, and his brother, Brian, who is a Canton police officer and owns Brilliant Auto Body. Wanless and his wife, Linda, live in North Attleboro with their daughters, Lauren and Hannah, and son, Matt.

He has had the chance to move into a different role in a different area, but chooses to remain in Pawtucket. He is especially proud of the fact that the Pawsox draw more fans to games than many other teams in the country.

“We have ten or eleven thousand people on a summer evening,” Wanless said. “People enjoy coming here. Families especially enjoy attending a game at an affordable price. We’re all working as part of a team.”

Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=13192

Posted by Mary Ann Price on Apr 26 2012. Filed under Features. Both comments and pings are currently closed.