It’s ‘Batter Up!’ for a New Warriors Baseball Season

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Warrior Baseball

Diamond Boys: The Warrior baseball team is gearing up for another season Shown left to right are: senior Chandler Coleman, juniors Nick Gaitan, Narada Monge, Marc Church, Brett Robert and senior Isaac Mundy.

With the start of the second semester always comes a barrage of spring sports and tryouts, including baseball. This season the Warriors will be welcoming a different looking team following the departure of many key senior starters and the introduction of new head coach Ricky Plante. However, the Warriors will be looking to continue to improve and succeed this season.

The team will be faced with the challenge of replacing four senior starting position players as well as a plethora of senior pitchers. In doing so, it will be important for fielders to play smooth and for pitchers, including junior Nicholas Tranakos, to hit their spots and step up during the season. “For us to have success this season, we need to control each game by minimizing errors and throwing strikes,” Tranakos said.

Knowing that a lot of preparation will be required for any team to win, the Warriors have spent much of their offseason putting in work. Junior Marc Church and much of the team have bettered their game by maximizing reps and staying in shape. “I have improved this offseason by taking ground balls and batting practice, and hitting the weight room a lot,” Church said.

In addition to hard work, the Warriors are very optimistic for a successful season due to the hiring of Plante as head coach. Although it has only been a few days, many players, like sophomore Parker French, have the feeling that Plante’s baseball knowledge and experience will be huge this season. “He definitely has a lot of experience so he will be able to teach us new ways to play the game and make us better,” French said.

Plante, a seasoned baseball skipper, has coaching experience on the collegiate level and has been a scout for both the Braves and the Red Sox organizations. Most recently he was coaching a travel team in Sarasota, Florida.

Among Plante’s coaching staff are assistants Richard Pirkle and Greg Hendrix, both of whom are returning to the team for their second seasons. When building a program, continuity is key, and having some returning coaches to help adjust to a new head coach will allow sophomore Jack Kiefer and his teammates to remain comfortable heading into the season. “Having returning coaches will benefit the team since they know what we are capable of and we know what they expect of us,” Kiefer said.

For several Warriors, their high school and even baseball careers will be coming to a close this spring. However, some, like senior Chandler Coleman, aspire to play further in college and beyond. “High school baseball went by really fast, but I am looking forward to playing at the next level,” he said.

With the season right around the corner, the time is now for the Warriors. Another offseason of work to go along with experienced coaching will allow for the team to be well prepared for one of the toughest high school regions in the state. So the team is stepping up to the plate with focus and diligence. It’s no longer “get ready.” It’s time for the Warriors to “play ball.”