The double-elimination state baseball tournaments are when high school baseball coaches really earn those huge paychecks.
Well, the paychecks might not be huge, but the decisions on who to go with on the mound will be critical for the Ralston Valley, Golden and Faith Christian skippers beginning Friday, May 9.
Ralston Valley coach Shane Freehling might have the most options. The Mustangs have ace Matt Skipper, of course, but their pitching depth doesn’t stop there. Freehling could start seniors Connor Knutson, Nate Jurney, or Ryan Barban. Not to mention sophomore Matt Jones and senior Travis Hayes.
Don’t be surprised if Freehling saves Skipper for a potential second-round game Friday against the winner of Golden/Thomas Jefferson.
Golden coach Brad Madden got solid outings from seniors Anthony Carbone and Kyle Seery to pull out two close victories in Pueblo last Saturday to advance to state. It would make sense for Madden to duplicate the same strategy Friday at Machebeuf High School in Aurora.
Madden might not have an overpowering ace like Mark Melancon, who is currently pitching in the minor leagues for the New York Yankees organization, when the Demons won it all in 2003. However, Madden might play the unknown wildcard like he did in the title game five years ago.
Having to beat Mountain View twice in the final day of the state tournament, Madden threw Melancon to get the first win then had senior Luke Roberts start the second game. Roberts hadn’t pitched in a game for a few of weeks, but Mountain View couldn’t catch up with the hard-throwing lefty.
Xander Morris sure hasn’t looked like a freshman when he has taken the mound for the Demons. He is 4-0 in his four starts, but hasn’t pitched since beating Jefferson, 14-4, on April 9. Morris could be the Demons X-factor if they go deep.
Faith Christian coach Gino Carbajal has a solid starting rotation of senior Jobi Wall, junior Pierce Johnson, senior Drew Tycksen and sophomore Mariano Carbajal to start the defense of the Eagles’ 3A state title. The only question for the Eagles will be in what order to start the hurlers that all have an ERA near or below 1.00.
While the players will ultimately decide who survives to play another week of baseball, the coaching moves on the hill play a big role.