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High School baseball: Injury bug bites early this season
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Article RatingIt's never a good thing when teams have to deal with injuries before setting foot on the field.
It's even worse when those injuries hamper your pitchers.
High school baseball is odd in that a team can go far, or fall flat, depending on the arm of one guy.
So it has to be a concern of both Shippensburg and Red Land when their seasons started this week with pitchers Wes Etter and Kyle Otstot, respectively, battling injuries.
“He was our clear No. 2 and obviously got better as the season went on last year,” Shippensburg coach Dan Watkins said of Etter. “It got to a point where you knew when you gave him the ball you had a chance to win. That's what you always look for.”
But the Greyhounds now have to fill that No. 2 spot with someone else until Etter can return.
The senior right-handed pitcher is battling inflammation in his rotator cuff - an injury he suffered during soccer in the fall.
“It was painful; I could feel something was wrong but I couldn't pinpoint anything,” Etter said. “Right now I'm just practicing, building up strength. I've been going to therapy and throwing.
“Hopefully I'll be back the week after Easter.”
Until then, it's up to his teammates to keep Shippensburg in the playoff hunt. The Greyhounds started 1-1 with a season-opening 6-5 win Thursday over Greencastle-Antrim and a 7-3 loss to Carlisle on Friday. Corey Yost took the loss against the Thundering Herd in what most likely would have been Etter's first start.
“It's a bummer because I'm a senior,” Etter said. “But I should only miss two starts. I'm excited to get back.”
Otstot also is itching to get back on the mound.
The Patriots have started the year 2-1 with Otstot relegated to the designated hitter position.
“I think he's progressing well,” Red Land coach Kyle Wagner said. “He would probably like to get back on the mound a whole lot sooner than I'm comfortable with. As far as his role with the team, I think everybody realizes we'll never be as good as we can be until he's back.”
Otstot is working through a partially torn ligament in his elbow. The injury happened during a basketball game.
“Right now I'm going to therapy three times a week,” Otstot said. “I've been going to rehab for at least a month now and should be out of therapy in a week.”
For the junior right-hander, the sooner the better.
“It's been killing me,” Otstot said. “Baseball is my favorite sport, but I can't do anything about it. It means a lot to come back and pitch this year.
“We're going to be real good when I'm back.”
West Perry hasn't been immune to the injury bug either. The Mustangs (1-1) are eagerly anticipating the return of No. 2 starter Kevin Jones, a senior right-hander who is recovering from a fractured foot.
Another top hurler hurt
Philipsburg-Osceola returns four starters and six letterwinners from last year's Class AA District 6 champion and state semifinalist team.
The district title was the Mounties' first since 1979 but J.D. Mason, who was a key part of the P-O pitching staff last year with a 7-1 record and 3.16 ERA is out for the near future with a shoulder injury he suffered in basketball season.
The other two predicted starters - Matt Curtis and Mike Supko - went a combined 3-3 with a 3.89 and 2.96 ERA, respectively.
P-O looks strong offensively with second baseman Ben Maurer (.486) and center fielder A.J. Czap (.427) returning, but it lost power-hitting catcher Matt Adams to Slippery Rock University. Adams hit over .500 last season.
And another
Christopher Dock, the two-time defending PIAA Class A champion, is a longshot to make it three in a row. The Pioneers, who local fans know from their thrilling 4-3 win over Camp Hill in the 2005 state first round, lost a bevy of pitching since they celebrated a 9-0 win over Villa Maria last June in the state final.
Do-everything pitcher/shortstop Greg Flogia - the winning pitcher in those two state finals, who had a career 0.74 ERA and batted .634 in 2006 - has graduated and is now playing at Missouri. Dock, a District 1 school in Lansdale, also lost Tom Houseal to graduation. Houseal is playing for Eastern Mennonite University.
But the Pioneers' biggest loss was that of Eli Detweiler, expected to be the ace this season. Detweiler had Tommy John surgery in the offseason, ending his high school career.
Detweiler went 6-0 last season with a 1.16 ERA but is relegated to the bench for his senior year.
Early success
A pair of local pitchers started the season out on the right foot this week.
Red Land's Andrew Hunt, a left-handed junior, tossed a no-hitter on Thursday afternoon as the Patriots evened their season record at 1-1. They have since moved to 2-1 with a 6-5, eight-inning win over Susquehanna Township on Friday.
“I've been working hard this offseason, I'm glad it paid off,” Hunt said. “My curveball was good in the beginning but it started getting a little wild in the middle innings. I got it back at the end but my fastball was on all day.”
Hunt struck out six, including the last two batters he faced, and surrendered four walks.
“Unbelievably we were throwing in the gym last Saturday and he made a mechanical adjustment where he dropped his arm angle a little bit, which kept him centered toward the plate a little bit better,” Red Land coach Kyle Wilson said. “We were super excited leaving the gym but certainly you can't expect (a no hitter).
“He was magnificent.”
Another pitcher who loomed large during the season's opening week was Carlisle senior Cory Myers.
The right-hander won both of his starts - 3-1 over Elizabethtown on Monday and 7-3 over Shippensburg on Friday - as the Thundering Herd moved to 2-1.
Myers totaled 22 strikeouts on the week - 15 against the Greyhounds.
“The key is to win when Myers is on the mound,” Carlisle coach Brett Livingston said. “When the best pitcher on the team, and possibly in the conference, is out there we have to win those games.
“We're hoping to win every other game. If we can do that, we'll have a productive season.”
