St. Ed’s baseball program has gone the independent route to expose a group of mostly untested varsity and JV players to the real game situations that were lacking under the previous district format.
“What we wanted to accomplish this year was getting a lot of playing time for our younger guys,” Head Coach Jim Peters explained. “We have only two seniors on the roster and a lot of guys with very little real game experience.
“We can practice forever but they need to be on the field so they know how to react under pressure. That’s what’s happening this year. They are learning what to do with the ball.”
With a combined 17 players on both rosters, Peters scheduled some 30 games for his varsity and JV squads. Seventh through 10th graders switch back and forth to maximize playing time, if rain and fog cooperate.
Eight veterans are back from a varsity team than won only four times in 2014. They form the core that has posted a 5-7 record through last week. There will be no postseason district playoffs to aim for, but that doesn’t detract from a plan to end the season in memorable fashion.
The Pirates are scheduled to play a matinee contest against Community Christian Academy at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 18, at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter. Seniors Pierre Cote’ and Thomas Jones will be in uniform for their high school finale.
With the spring training venue of the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals as a backdrop, the season will draw to a close. In the interim there is still some progress to be made on the diamond.
Peters has a basic pitching rotation of Kishore Chundi, Scott Simpson, Tyler Peters, Ryan Motto and Tommy Nelson. The ideal batting order starts with Chundi, Peters, Simpson, Motto, Nelson and Jones, the designated hitter. They are followed by Anand Chundi, Cote’ and Jackson Jennings. Jerry Johnson fits in prominently as well.
By necessity utility roles are common in the field. Peters told us “being a small school we move players around a lot depending upon who we have on the mound. For instance if Kishore is not pitching he’s our best shortstop, but Jackson has also played well up the middle at short and second.
“Our best defense in when Scott is behind the plate and Tyler is on the hill. Tyler is a very good control pitcher and I bring him in quite a bit in relief with men on base. He’s more of a sidearm pitcher, his ball tails, and the batters just don’t hit him very well.”
Peters has a 3-1 record with an ERA of 2.17 in 19.1 innings.
The top batting averages belong to Peters (.552), Motto (.440) and Kishore Chundi (.409). Dylan Toomey has a .500 avg. in very limited action. This is primarily a slap-hitting singles lineup with a scant total of ten extra-base hits in 12 games.
Home runs are a rarity across the board in high school since a new bat rule was adopted. Nevertheless, the Pirates certainly made the most of their lone round tripper this year.
“We were down 4-1 to a quality ball club with a lot of experienced travel players,” Peters said of the March 21 showdown at home with Berean Christian School. “We kept fighting back to tie the game and send it into extra innings.
“Then Tommy Nelson hit an inside-the-park home run in the bottom of the ninth to win the game 7-6. Of course there was a big mob to greet him at home plate and a lot of excitement and joy for the whole team.”
Motto started and Peters got the win with five innings of relief. That was the highlight of the season thus far and proved that the Pirates can win the close ones. They slipped by Marathon 7-6 the next time out for their third one-run victory overall.
“This year we have a lot of kids just learning how to play,” junior Scott Simpson said. “A lot of them are actually coming through nicely. Jerry Johnson has been doing a lot of big stuff as an eighth grader. The team should be able to get a lot out of him over the next few years.”
The thing you notice readily about these players is their willingness to pay tribute to teammates.
“We’re still pretty young and just getting used to seeing high school pitching,” junior Kishore Chundi added. “We danced a lot in that walk-off win we had. Tyler Peters had a great game. A lot of our younger guys produced. As a team we are really coalescing.”
Kishore is the No. 1 starter. His go-to pitch, the fastball, usually sits at 82 mph but can top out at 86. He mixes in curves and changeups, calling the latter his most reliable off speed pitch. He has a 1-3 record, fanning 26 in 16 innings.
Rightfielder Pierre Cote’ and DH Thomas Jones are stalwarts in their roles as players and leaders.
“I certainly do embrace a leadership role on this team,” Cote’ said. “Scott, Kishore, Thomas and I have to be role models for the younger guys. I’m excited to play my last year in high school with my teammates and friends. It’s gone so fast. The final game at Roger Dean is going to be amazing.”
Jones is hitting .385. He said “I can be a goofball but when the guys have their heads down I try to rally the troops. We have a good atmosphere here. I love having fun, but most importantly we want to win. At times I need to have a bulldog type personality. When the guys aren’t paying attention, I snap into it. I always try to inspire the guys.”
