Quantcast
Channel: www.wvgazettemail.com Columnists
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 751

Mitch Vingle: Examining the state's D-I baseball crop

$
0
0
By Mitch Vingle

At this instant, Nitro High is nationally known for its 2016 senior video.

As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, the fun video had over 65,000 web hits featuring the students and dancing principal Jason Redman.

If you haven't seen it, check it out. Redman has more moves than Mick Jagger playing chess. More moves than an octopus in a wrestling match. More moves than a bucket of worms.

But the school also has some baseball players. Some baseball players, that is, that'll soon by moving on to Division I universities.

Was 2016 a great year for Mountain State high school baseball talent? OK, so perhaps not. But when the state tournament hits Charleston next week, there could be more than a few D-I signees at Appalachian Power Park.

First, understand some of the higher ranked state players - George Washington's Druw Bowen, Bridgeport's Dante Bonamico and Elijah Drummond and Clarksburg Notre Dame's Jordan Miller - have accepted walk-on football invitations at WVU rather than play baseball.

Yet there's more.

Let's start at Nitro. The Wildcats of coach Joe Gayda (a position formerly held by Steve Prichard) boast not one, but three D-I signees in pitcher Jacob Bradley and outfielder Matt Harrison (Marshall) as well as catcher Matt Jewell (Wright State).

"All have been top hitters for us," Gayda said, "and Bradley has been unbelievable on the mound."

It's in his genes. Bradley's brother J.R. was taken by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the second round of the 2010 Major League draft. The 6-foot-3 righty is still playing Double-A ball for the Mobile BayBears.

Jacob Bradley, meanwhile, is 8-1 this season with a save and 84 strikeouts in 52 innings pitched with just 14 walks allowed. He's batting .333 with three homers and 24 runs batted in.

"In the past, he was mostly a fastball and curveball pitcher," Gayda said. "Now he's throwing a fastball, curve, cutter and changeup. He's keeping guys off-balance more."

Bradley will take his miniscule 0.67 earned run average into Wednesday's Region 4 final against Hurricane. His battery mate will be Jewell, who is hitting .326 and leading his team with 36 RBI.

Then there's Harrison, who plays outfield and some shortstop for the Wildcats.

"Honestly, I don't know what's not to like about him," Gayda said of Harrison. "He's a huge kid with a great baseball body. He's quick, can throw and has really matured as a hitter."

The senior missed a few games with a shoulder injury, but is hitting .548 since returning. He's batting .405 and is tied for the Kanawha Valley home run lead (five) with Sissonville's Josh Landis.

Meanwhile, if Jefferson High can get past Martinsburg's Spring Mills High, state baseball fans will be able to check out the Cougars' Paul Witt, the state's Gatorade Player of the Year.

Witt, a 6-foot, 175-pound shortstop, is another D-I signee headed to Virginia Commonwealth. He gave VCU a commitment his junior season.

"Paul is doing well," said veteran Jefferson coach John Lowery. "He's hitting .510 through 34 games and set a school record with 178 career hits. He's a gap-to-gap type [of hitter]. He has 10 stolen bases. He's just solid in every facet of the game."

If Witt has the school record in anything for Jefferson it's saying something. The Cougars have won a record 11 Class AAA championships and Lowery, now in his 46th year coaching, is the state's all-time winningest coach. ("I've been retired from teaching for 11 years," Lowery said. "Baseball gives me something to look forward to.")

One player that won't be playing in Charleston is nonetheless one of the state's best: Logan Goodnight of The Linsly School in Wheeling. Back in November of 2013, Goodnight committed to Penn State and this past November signed with the Nittany Lions.

This season, Goodnight's team finished 20-4 and won the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference's 3-A title. The 6-2, 195 pound shortstop batted .473 with 25 RBI and was 5-0 with a 1.43 ERA on the mound. He was first-team all-conference and the 3-A league player of the year, according to his father Scott. Schools like North Carolina, Georgia and Vanderbilt all expressed interest before Goodnight pulled the trigger early.

Understand there will be other state players on Division I rosters. Also signing with Marshall, for instance, were Fairmont Senior's Ryan Ricer, Huntington High's Ben Haikal and Cabell Midland's Zac McNeel, although perhaps as walk-ons.

So maybe it wasn't a banner baseball year for the Mountain State. But, hey, there was still some moving and shaking going on.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 751

Trending Articles