On July 2, the Tri-City ValleyCats announced that St. Peter’s Health Partners (SPHP) will serve as the team’s official healthcare provider for the 2021 season. This relationship will deliver first class medical care to ValleyCats players while reinforcing St. Peter’s mission to provide health care to the entire Capital Region community.
Establishing a medical partnership was viewed as a top priority for the ValleyCats as the organization transitions from their affiliation with the Houston Astros to a more independent format as a member of an MLB Partner League. The ValleyCats officially began their first season in the Frontier League on May 27th but the foundation for a successful year on the field began several weeks earlier when players met with team doctors Thomas Chattathil, M.D., CAQ, and Matthew Brennan, M.D.
Drs. Chattathil and Brennan are based out of Cohoes Family Care, 55 Mohawk Street in Cohoes, a family medicine practice in the St. Peter’s Health Partners Medical Associates network. This partnership provides the team with a wide range of medical services, including entry physicals, evaluations, imaging, physical therapy, and more. Drs. Chattathil and Brennan will continue to work closely with Tri-City’s Head Athletic Trainer, Johan Mussa, to maintain player health and maximize on-field performance.
“We are thrilled to be working with St. Peter’s Health Partners to support our athletes this season,” said ValleyCats President, Rick Murphy. “St. Peter’s offers a tremendous breadth of resources across the region which makes it easier to care for our players around their busy, in-season schedule.”
“Supporting the health of the community is St. Peter’s Health Partners’ Mission and our greatest priority. We are pleased to support the ValleyCats community as their official medical provider and health care sponsor for the 2021 season,” said Kellie Valenti, MBA-H, FACHE, president of St. Peter’s Health Partners Medical Associates (SPHPMA). “We take great pride in our network of physicians and practices throughout the Capital Region, like Cohoes Family Medicine where Drs. Chattathil and Brennan provide expert, compassionate care. Our primary care physicians are here to not only treat individuals in times of injury and illness, but also to provide care and counsel during wellness visits, ensuring people can work, play, and live their lives to the fullest.”
ValleyCats team members will also be receiving physical rehabilitation services through SPHP’s Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital. This aspect of the team’s care, which will include access to a full continuum of rehabilitative services, will be overseen by Matthew Sonagere, DO, Sunnyview’s chief medical officer. It is all part of SPHP’s commitment to serving as the ValleyCats’ and the Capital Region’s one-stop health care provider – an integrated system providing comprehensive primary and emergency care, medical imaging, and physical therapy services.
This partnership demonstrates St. Peter’s Health Partners commitment to serving the Capital Region community and will include a variety of collaborations with the team, both at the ballpark and beyond this season. To celebrate the July 4th weekend, St. Peter’s and the ValleyCats recognized Dr. Tom Triscari with a ceremonial first pitch.
Dr. Triscari is a longtime season ticket holder with the ValleyCats and a recent participant in St. Peter’s Health Partners’ Diabetes Prevention Program. Triscari is a veteran of the United States Air Force, having served with distinction from 1977 to 1995. He retired from active duty with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and worked as a faculty member at R.P.I. for over 20 years. Triscari’s career has included work in information technology at both the regional and national level.
St. Peter’s Health Partners Medical Associates is one of the Capital Region’s largest multi-specialty physician groups, with nearly 700 physicians and advanced practitioners in more than 100 practice locations. It is affiliated with St. Peter’s Health Partners – the region’s largest and most comprehensive not-for-profit network of high-quality, advanced medical care, primary care, rehabilitation, and senior services. Visit www.sphp.com for more information.
