Highland baseball season in limbo, as team hopes to play, settle unfinished business
Coming off a 23-14 season that saw them come within two wins of the IHSA Class 3A state tournament, the Highland Bulldogs are hopeful for the 2020 baseball season to be played and have a definite attitude of unfinished business.
Carbondale eliminated Highland in the Class 3A sectional semifinals in Salem and that loss left the Bulldogs hungry for this spring.
“We were one strike away from playing Waterloo (in the sectional championship), a team that we beat several times during the season and lost to Carbondale on walk-off (hit),” HHS coach Joel Hawkins said. “So the kids felt like they came up short and they should have been able to step through and so they feel like they have something prove going into this season.”
The Bulldogs are deep with 10 seniors back in the fold. Senior returners include pitcher Kolby Frey, Tyler Werner, Austin Toler, Jack Korte, Landon Oestringer, Kyle Schlater, Alex Buchmiller, Carter Wiegman, and Chase Wilson.
“Those seniors were all a part of that team last year and they really matured and came together the last 12 games of the season,” Hawkins said.
Frey and Werner will lead the pitching staff for the Bulldogs and will form a solid 1-2 punch on the mound.
“Kolby won a bunch of games last year and down the stretch was almost unhittable with a 1.69 ERA,” Hawkins said. “Tyler Werner, we pitched him in relief as well as starting and the strength for him is he throws in the strike zone and he keeps your guys active and on their toes.”
Toler will handle the catching duties and will pitch a bit as well. Korte and Schlater will man the middle infield spots of shortstop and second base and will flip flop when needed in those positions.
“They are both solid and real interchangeable at this point and the competition had been good between them as to who would play short or second,” Hawkins said. “They both are very baseball savvy.”
Wiegman, who is bound for Lewis and Clark College next year, hit .295 his junior season with 22 RBIs and is back in right field.
Wilson will be the Bulldogs left fielder. He will look to use the speed on the basepaths and disrupt opposing pitchers. Wilson hit .276 and stole 13 bases last year.
“He’s a very fast young man,” Hawkins said. “I think he’s a got a real shot to give us a lift (this year).”
Oestringer, meanwhile, will patrol centerfield.
“He’s a terrific defensive player and he’s another guy that can really run,” Hawkins said. “I’m really excited about our outfield defensively. They are all veterans, so they should be ready to go.”
Buchmiller will also see playing time in the outfield.
Key junior contributors will include catcher John Walker and pitchers Christian Kassay, Clayton Mallard, Braeden Ramsey. Sophomore pitcher/corner infielder Matt Misick has also caught Hawkins’ eye and will get innings on the mound and potentially have stints at first and third base.
Hawkins said the team is excited about stepping into the new season, but the waiting has been brutal over the last two weeks.
Hawkins continues encouraging team
On March 13, Hawkins met with his players and informed them of the school shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic that has stricken the nation. That meeting left the players feeling nearly hopeless.
“The kids were really down because that was kind of their sense (that the season was over) and I’ve been talking to them because the IHSA has not canceled everything and they are holding out hope and they are trying to get a spring season in,” Hawkins said.
The players have been working out on their own and Hawkins has encouraged them to be active daily.
“I’ve been calling these kids individually and trying to keep them upbeat and remind them it’s not necessarily over,” Hawkins said. “It comes down to what they can do at home (workout wise), and the biggest thing now is they have to throw every day so they can be ready.”
Under the current IHSA COVID-19 guidelines, all IHSA member schools are banned from conducting practices or games while Illinois schools remain closed.