Area play opens Friday, Saturday for Bob Jones baseball
The high expectations that accompanied the Bob Jones baseball team have so far this season been right on target. The senior-laden lineup features no less than eight players who have inked scholarships to play at the next level. The Patriots have piled up 20 wins against only 3 losses and rose in the ASWA polls to #3 in the state.
But now the tournaments and games against non-area teams are over. The next three weeks will feature weekend home-and-home series against area opponents Decatur, Austin, and Florence. First up for BJHS is a game at Decatur Friday night at 6 p.m. followed by a Saturday home doubleheader with Decatur starting at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
One reason for the strong start has been Nate Nelson who has started every game at centerfield after playing infield last year. Nelson, who is batting cleanup, is hitting .425 and leads the team with 28 runs, 31 hits, 2 triples, 5 home runs, and 26 RBI’s.
“We took a look at him in the offseason and we figured he could make the transition to the outfield and help our team more there,” said Bob Jones head coach Jeff Bell. “He’s just a great athlete and he’s doing a tremendous job defensively for us. And he is swinging the bat really well for us.”
Nelson is a senior and has been offered several scholarships to play baseball in college but has not decided if he will play baseball in college.
Nelson has helped the Patriots overcome the loss of leftfielder Austin Sanders who broke a bone in his left foot in the opening game of the year. Sanders, a senior, has signed to play with UA Huntsville.
Still in a walking boot, Sanders said he expects to be back in about 2 weeks.
Patrick Mullin, a Calhoun Community college signee, is the leadoff hitter and if he gets on look out because he is likely to be stealing a base. He leads the team in stolen bases with 15.
As expected, no player has been more valuable that pitcher/first baseman Trey Wingenter who has already signed with Auburn University. On the mound, Wingenter has been almost unhittable. He is 5-0 and has an ERA of 0.24 and is striking out an average of 10 batters per start. He has allowed only one earned run all year.
When not on the mound, Wingenter plays first base. All he has done there is lead the team in hitting with an average of .437 and is tied for the team lead with 31 hits.
“We’re excited to start area play,” said Wingenter. “We’ve been waiting for this all year. To be playing our best going into area play. We are right where we need to be at this time. We just need to keep playing the way we have been through area play and into the playoffs.”
Wingenter will start Friday night’s game at Decatur to open area play.
Charlie Weaver is another starting pitcher who has dominated opponents this season. The righthander signed with UA Huntsville during the early signing period in January. Weaver is also 5-0 and leads the team in innings pitched with 33 and has a miniscule ERA of 1.04.
Size alone makes Weaver and Wingenter imposing figures on the mound. At 6-foot-5 Weaver has developed a cutter to mix with his fastball. Wingenter goes 6-foot-7 and is relatively new to pitching since converting from catcher. He regularly hits over 90 mph on his fastball and also has a very good slider and changeup to give batters something to think about.
With back-to-back games and doubleheaders, baseball can be grind for players at the high school level but Weaver says that conditioning is a big part of his success.
“Me and Wig, after we throw, we run and do all our drills to make sure we are ready for our next start,” said Weaver who has helped himself at the plate this season by hitting .500 in limited at bats.
Brent Elder picked up a win on Tuesday night in a 9-2 victory over Buckhorn to run his record to 5-0 also. Austin May is the closer and leads the team with 4 saves.
