Up for the Pitch

The Fredericktown baseball team has had a very competitive season this year. They have pushed their record all the way to 11 wins and 10 losses. This is very impressive being that the Blackcats were not so fortunate as to have a season record reach more wins than losses in the past few years.

This impressive accomplishment can be attributed to the hard work the boys have put in during off-season training and practices. No matter rain or shine, the boys were always working on their batting, in-field plays, pop fly catches, and—most importantly—their pitches.

This year multiple dedicated boys stepped up to the pitcher’s mound to defend their team from their competitors’ batting line-up. Those boys who showcased their talents the most include Garrett Marler (12), Zander Stephens (11), Ethan Marler (10), Ryan Souden (10), Sam Thomas (10), and Alec Bowman (10).

Pitching looks a lot different in high school baseball compared to the major leagues because over the years young and growing athletes were receiving injuries from overworking themselves in games from throwing way too many pitches. Because of this, many rules were established and a max pitch count was implemented to protect athletes. The count all depends on the age of the athlete. Freshmen and sophomores are given a count of 95 pitches for one day, while juniors and seniors are given a count of 105. Things can become even more tricky when coaches also have to follow rules pertaining to rest days for those players. Even if an athlete pitches around 40 balls, he will still be required to rest for a certain amount of days, and if he throws his max, he could potentially be sitting out for four days.

Making sure the athletes are safe by following these rules can oftentimes result in a team having a lack of pitchers. Due to this, many of the Blackcat boys had to step up and fill the role of pitcher during this season. Baseball coach Joaby Sikes says, “Pitching is a very crucial role to any team’s success. It doesn’t necessarily take a whole dominant pitcher but a whole pitching staff to have success.” It is very clear that this year the boys who were up for the pitch did a fantastic job on the mound and led their team to multiple victories!