With four returning starters and seven lettermen, plus a consistent pitching rotation for the first time in a few years, the Wheaton baseball team is focused on continued improvement and a record that shows it.
At 2-16 last season, the Bulldogs have trudged through the first part of this year at 0-6, but Coach Tucker Dermott has faith Wheaton will add more to the win column this season.
“I think we will be a well rounded team,” he said. “I don’t care if we have an awesome statistical output this year, because if it doesn’t show up in the win column, it doesn’t matter. We need to be sufficient in all aspects of the game — hitting, defense, pitching, baserunning and baseball IQ. Moving a runner over with a well-placed single, hitting a cutoff and throwing a runner out, or pitching to contact and getting out of a jam; all of those things might not show up in a box score but matter. I expect us to excel at those things.”
With that offensive expectation will come an equal part on defense, and the Bulldogs boast a pitching rotation Dermott is excited about with senior Truman Thompson, junior Hayden Royer and junior Preston Johnson.
“Truman has come a long way in his baseball career,” Dermott said. “He was predominantly a JV player until he came on late last spring and last fall. He is a middle of the order bat and one of our rotation arms. Truman has a ton of natural movement on his pitches and is a good competitor on mound.
“Hayden was at every summer workout and is one of the most dedicated workers I have. He has continued to improve on the mound and at the plate. He has a good fastball velocity and a great slider. It will be key for him to have consistent mechanics and repeat his delivery. Preston has a whip action when he throws. He consistently is in the zone and has good movement on pitches.”
Looking for leadership in the field, the Bulldogs will also turn to senior first baseman Elijah Holenda and junior utility Devin Bateman.
“Elijah is a hard-working kid that will do whatever you ask him to do and give everything he has,” Dermott said. “He has been starting for 3 seasons now and I expect him to continue to lead by example. We need a big offensive season from him.
“Devin has been either an All-Conference or All-District selection for me every year. He plays with a lot of grit and fire. My expectations are high for him, and I will use him all over the diamond. Will need him to give us stability at key spots.”
Catching will be a mix-and-match situation, Dermott said, with Bateman, Thompson and freshman Evan Pyle likely to see opportunities behind the plate. The infield should see Holenda at first base, junior Camren Brattin at second, Bateman and junior Michael Hang at shortstop and Thompson at third. Fernando Gonzalez will be in center field, with Johnson and Auston Cox splitting time at right.
“Fernando is an allstate track athlete who started playing baseball only last year, “Dermott said. “He went from being a really raw player to having a 1.000 fielding percentage starting in centerfield this fall. I am tremendously excited to see how good he can be this spring.
As the season began, left field was still up in the air, with multiple Bulldogs possibly rotating in if no one locks the position up.
Dermott said a blessing in disguise for Wheaton is the versatility among the players, and the right strings just need to be pulled.
“I think we will be very multiple with who plays where and can rotate depending on who is on the mound,” he said. “With smaller numbers, it’s a must, but something that will help us. It will also be the first time that I will have a consistent starting rotation since my first season at Wheaton. It has been a lot of mixing and matching and trying to figure out how to get consistent innings. I will be able to rely on a few guys to eat innings, and I’m really excited to have them. If they are successful, it could drastically change our outlook from past seasons.”
As the season moves on, Dermott said the Bulldogs are chasing a quality so many sports teams pursue — consistency.
“We need to be more consistent,” he said. “Whether that be in the box, on the mound, or on the field. We have shown flashes of playing above what most expect us to be. It really does start on the mound, however. If we don’t throw strikes, innings get long and we lose our confidence and momentum. That, in turn, affects all other aspects of the game. Our offense goes flat, defense gets lazy and games get away from us. If we show up and keep ourselves in the game early, we will improve significantly.”
Goal-wise, Dermott said the Bulldogs want to win conference and districts and make a playoff run, but there’s more to it than winning.
“I think every team has the same goals and aspirations, win conference, win districts, et cetera,” he said. “For us, I want each player to improve and get better every day we show up. It sounds cliche, but I want to make sure that we don’t leave games saying we didn’t show up and gave no effort — control what we can and compete. It’s what I ask of our players and why my expectations for them are to be better players than they were a year ago at this time.
“If each guy improves themselves and shows up ready to work, then it will help our team as a whole if we all have that same mindset. We should be a scrappy bunch that can surprise people.”
The Bulldogs played Northeast Vernon County (0-4) on Monday and Bronaugh on Tuesday. They play at Exeter on Thursday.
