Eastwood baseball’s dream inching a little bit closer

Keep it simple.

That’s the basic philosophy for the Eastwood baseball team this season, and it’s one that has gotten them to 26-1, a No. 3 ranking in Division III, a Northern Buckeye Conference title, a district championship and a spot in the regional semifinals.

“That’s the approach we’ve used all year,” said Eastwood coach Kevin Leady, now in his 11th season at the helm. “Our kids will tell you today that we are 0-0 (every day). We take it each game (as it comes). That’s the approach we’ve used all year.”

Winning a second consecutive district title was not easy, by any means. The Eagles had to hold off a late Coldwater rally, clinching the 3-2 victory when Lake Boos struck out Braylen Harlamert with runners on first and second base.

With Eastwood holding a 2-1 lead in the top of the sixth inning, the Cavaliers tied the score when Braxton Howell singled to drive in Harlamert. But the Eagles responded, taking the lead for good when Dylan Hoffman beat out an infield hit that drove in Jackson Bauer, who had reached on an error and moved to third base on a ground out by Andrew Badenhop.

Boos pitched seven innings and allowed two runs on two hits to go with four strikeouts and five walks.

Last season, Eastwood had to outlast Minster, 2-1, in nine innings to win the district.

“The longer I actually do this, the easier it becomes. It’s not easy, I can’t control it, and I wish I could be up on the mound pitching, (but) the kids are going to do the best they can,” said Leady, an Eastwood alum who had a successful baseball career at Bowling Green State University. 

“Those tight games help us down the stretch. For us, it’s just been another game.”

To get to the district final, the Eagles had to beat Minster, 3-0, in the semifinals and Rockford Parkway, 10-0, in a sectional final. The lone blemish on the season was a 1-0 loss to Otsego.

Leady credits his leaders for their efforts in keeping the team focused. There are five seniors — Boos, Isaac Cherry, Andrew Arnston, Dylan Hoffman and Toby Marten. They’re part of a senior class that won league and district titles in basketball and went 8-3 in football while winning a playoff game before losing a heartbreaker to Otsego in the second round, 35-28.

“One of the things is leadership. They really do hold everyone accountable,” said Leady. “Our big topic was, how do we get to those goals? Can we get better every day to achieve those goals? We focus on practice, being a good team and having a good practice.”

The Eagles are winning with great hitting and fantastic pitching. Seven Eastwood batters have an OPS (on-base and slugging percentage) of over 1.000. 

Case Boos has been magnificent and is hitting .486 (1.318 OPS) to go with three home runs, 23 RBIs and 46 runs. Jordan Pickerel has had a great season, too, hitting .443 (1.214 OPS) to go with nine doubles, 26 RBIs and 26 runs. Bauer is hitting .431 (1.189 OPS), has scored 24 times and driven in 23 runs. 

Hoffman has a .436 average (1.178 OPS) and has scored 16 runs in just 19 games. Lake Boos has a .392 average (1.135 OPS), 32 RBI and 31 runs. Tristan Schuerman is hitting .340 (1.049 OPS) to go with two home runs, 14 RBI and 22 runs. Arnston has a .299 average (1.044 OPS) and leads the team with four home runs. He’s also driven in 19 runs and scored 27 times.

“We feel like we can put pressure on the pitcher with our lineup one through nine. If you don’t get a hit or get out, you pat the guy on the butt and say, ‘Pick me up.’ We want the pitcher to have to battle number one thru nine,” Leads said. “They’ve given us a lot of good at-bats.”

On the mound, the Eagles have been even better, allowing just 25 runs, just under one per game, 17 of which were earned. Ethan Rapp is 8-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 45.2 innings. Lake Boos is 6-1 with a 1.02 ERA and 65 strikeouts in 41.1 innings. Bauer has a 6-0 record with a 1.08 ERA. The other two starters are Marten (3-0, 1.05 ERA) and Badenhop (3-0, 1.75 ERA).

Arnston, the catcher, has done a fine job handling the pitching staff this season.

“He’s in total control of the staff. We wouldn’t be in the position we are in without his leadership,” said Leady. “He runs the show for us behind the dish. He does an excellent job calling the game and controlling the run game. He’s in total control for our team.”

Leady has high praise for the high school’s strength coach and varsity track coach, Brian Sabo. 

“He does such a great job helping the kids. You’ll see 150 kids at the first day of training even with school being finished (for the summer),” Leady said. “He helps out athletes like our baseball players even though they’re not going to run track for him.”

Leady credits his players for the current state of the program.

“I think it says a lot about the kids. Tons goes on behind the scenes. We have players that have spent countless hours playing travel ball, getting in the weight room and (competing) at practice. We build a culture that cares about winning,” said Leady. “There have to be good players to win a district title.”