Baseball Pioneers ready for opener
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Rather than relying on the big inning or overpowering opponents offensively, coach Jimmie Walker’s team looks to use strong defense and pitching, to protect leads they’ll build by manufacturing runs.
“We’ll have to change our philosophy a little this year,” Walker said. “We don’t have the guys who can just go out there and bang.
“I don’t know how well we’re going to hit, but give us two or three runs and with defense and pitchers we’ll try to hold it.
“It ought to be fun. I like playing ball like that.”
With seven seniors on this year’s team, the Pioneers list 10 pitchers on their 2002 roster. Depth at pitching was so high, it’s allowed Walker and his staff to let regulars Derek Kennamer and Glenn Rogers — both of whom took the hill last year — to concentrate solely on playing the outfield.
Ryan Vincion, Joey Haston and Nicholas Robinson are among the upper classmen who are expected to toe the rubber for most of Warren County’s games, while Randal Harrell, Colby Jenkins and Cody Mitchell, as well as freshmen Landon Boren, Todd Gilley, Tommy Jones and Jared Qualls, could also see action on the mound.
“We’re going to give these younger guys a chance to pitch,” Walker said. “We’re going to play a lot of JV games, but they’re going to get a chance to pitch in varsity games, too.
“Right now it’ll probably be Ryan, Joey and Nicholas in the rotation, but when we get Randal Harrell here and can get some innings out of him he’ll be a pretty good competitor for us, too.”
“Coach (J.W.) Holt’s worked with the pitchers a lot, and they’re going to be OK, they’re going to be in shape,” he added. “We don’t really have that Chad Reed-type kid that can just go out there and dominate, but we’re going to have kids that can get people out.”
Offensively, Walker said his team has started slowly, but as the preseason has gone on their bats have begun to heat up.
“Some of them are pressing right now because they’re not hitting the ball, but that will come with more work. We swing the bats OK, it’s just our timing’s off.
“Coach (Brent) Whitlock has worked with our kids on changing some bad habits at the plate, and that will just take some time. But the kids are starting to buy into that now.”
With seven freshmen and three sophomores on the team, Walker said the eagerness of his younger players to find spots in the Pioneer lineup has pushed the upperclassmen to work even harder to get ready for this season.
“It’s made us better,” he said. “From the start of weight training, we give out awards, and the first awards we gave were to three freshmen. They out-worked everybody, and I think that kind of rattled the cages of the seniors a little bit. It woke them up.
“It’s friendly competition, and that’s what we want. We want to feel like we can put a young guy in there in a situation, and he can get the job done.”
Getting the job done in District 7-AAA will be just as tough as ever, as the Pioneers will be battling in what is perennially one of the midstate’s most competitive leagues.
“It ought to be fun,” Walker said. “Our district’s going to be tough.
“Riverdale’s probably the shoo-in, as far as the top, and then Oakland. But Cookeville and Lebanon are going to be OK, White County’s got everybody back, and Blackman can be tough.
“So it’s going to be tough all the way up and down. It wouldn’t surprise me if somebody with four losses won the district.”
The Pioneers’ season begins Monday with a road game at Tullahoma, with junior varsity action set to begin at 4:30 and the varsity game to follow at 7 p.m.