Alan Hoskins
Thursday, February 26, 2009
College Advancement
Click here for 2009 Schedule
With only two fulltime starters and one pitcher returning, Kansas City Kansas Community College’s young baseball team is going to have to grow up in a hurry.
“We’re going to have to pay attention to what’s right there in front of us,” says veteran head coach Steve Burleson. “We can not look ahead. We truly need to stay in the moment.”
On the plus side, the Blue Devils reported in the best shape of any team in his 30 years of coaching at KCKCC. “The really worked hard at conditioning which is a huge reflection of the work of our two assistant coaches, Matt Goldbeck and Damian Stambersky,” said Burleson. “They’re also great kids, good in the classroom and they’ve raised more money for our program than any previous team. The one area they’ve not been tested is gaining a competitive edge and that’s the arena we’re in. Our challenge as a coaching staff will being able to create an overall baseball awareness, something I’m not sure they get in baseball academies and schools.”
Depending on how many step forward, depth could be a real strength. “We’ve got a lot of options and will certainly be willing to make the necessary moves to making this a winning team,” says Burleson, who is working with a 30-man roster – only 10 of which are sophomores.
Austin Etling, a sophomore righthander from Derby, and Jared Berman from Lawrence, Ind., will anchor the pitching staff. Etling was 5-1 with a 2.44 earned run average in 52 innings last year while Berman was a medical redshirt after seeing limited action as a freshman. “They’ll get the bulk of the starts,” says Burleson.
Newcomers to the staff are two southpaws, Danny Schmidt, a transfer from Ellsworth (Iowa) Community College, and Ryan Hollenberg of Mexico, Mo.; and five right-handers, Hunter Benton of Little Rock, Ark.; Mitch Carver, Washburn Rural; Rick Ideus, Lincoln, Neb.; Brandon Verhulst, Olathe Northwest; and Dean Whiteside of Willowbrook, Ill., a converted catcher.
“We are very definitely untested but with a 56-game schedule, they’re going to have to pitch,” says Burleson. “They all competed hard in the fall but they have yet to make the transition from pitching in high school to what it truly takes to get college hitters out.”
The infield will be built around the returning keystone combo of Blake Stroth of Shawnee Heights at second and Brandon Kelley of Emporia. Stroth hit .369 with 10 doubles and 24 RBI in 47 games last year while Kelley batted .262 with 23 RBI but with 32 errors.
Nate Wilder, a lefthanded hitting freshman from Lincoln, Neb., will be at third base while there’s a logjam at first base between sophomores Zach Frerichs of Smithville, Mo.; Jarid Renzelman of Kearney; Kyle Koch of Liberty; and promising freshman Mike Rezin of Piper. All are lefthanded hitters. Frerichs hit .343 last year but did not finish the season; Renzelman batted .274 in 39 games; and Koch hit .400 in just six games.
Dale Ricketts, a righthanded hitting freshman from Australia, has the inside track on the starting catching job over T.J. Lorson of Topeka Seaman and Colten Rhoades, a transfer from Northeastern Oklahoma. “Ricketts is an outstanding prospect,” says Burleson. “We should get good production out of the catching position; all are good hitters in the middle of the lineup.”
There’s also a logjam in the outfield with nine hopefuls including two redshirt freshmen, Willie Wilson of Bonner Springs and Jeremy Thomas of Sherwood, Mo.; and Cavett Bright, a sophomore transfer from Carl Albert State from Oklahoma where he hit .316. Freshmen candidates include right-handers Joe Borowicz of Flushing, Mich.; Daniel Segalo and Robert Keisler, a transfer from Ottawa where he played football; and southpaws Adam Hightower of Oak Grove, Mo.; Kyle Porter of Holton and Nigel Williamson of Topeka.
The Blue Devils are coming off a 36-19 season in which they almost recorded a miracle finish. Beaten in the opening game of the Region VI playoffs, they rebounded to win five games in a row including 16-7 over Johnson County to force a winner-take-all championship game won by JCCC 6-2 and a berth in the College World Series.
The winning record came despite playing home games in four different ballparks. This year, five doubleheaders will be played at Community America Ballpark at The Legends starting March 24, 26 and 28. All other home twin bills will be at Mid-America Sports Complex.