Coming off a second straight losing season –– the only two in his 15-year tenure –– Houston High School baseball coach Brent Hall took his staff to Berry College in Rome, Ga., this winter to seek advice from the longtime leader of a successful program.
“We laid our program out there,” Hall said. “We told him we struggled last year, but had been a strong program in years past. We asked him, ‘What do we have to do to change things?’”
The answer?
“Basically what I gathered from him is we’re headed in the right direction and just because we had a bad year doesn’t meat we scrap the whole program.”
Hall’s approach with the 2013 Tigers is continuing to do what has worked in the past. He said he will make minor adjustments, but he will mostly be relying on an experienced group to return HHS baseball back into a winner.
The team is anchored by three returning all-conference selections. Tanner Cantrell led the team in hitting as a freshman, and juniors Aaron Cantrell and Devin Coulter will start for the third straight year. They are joined by four other returning starters from last year’s 6-15 team.
Hall said the mental approach will be the determining factor for the Tigers.
“We haven’t proven to be a winner –– not just baseball, but anything,” Hall said. “We’ve struggled to put together wins. We were in a lot of games, we just couldn’t win them. We’ve got to try to break the mold and once we do that, there’s no telling what will happen. We’re in a little rut right now, and I’m hoping we can be the group to break it.”
Tanner Cantrell, who hit .412 with a team-best 26 RBIs last year, will move from first to third base. He and Aaron Cantrell, who knocked in 18 runs, will anchor the middle of the lineup.
Coulter will start at shortstop and potentially bat leadoff. Trevor Merckling returns as the starter at second base, and sophomore Kolby Walker will slide over to first. Austin Keeney returns as a starter behind the plate.
Freshmen Whitley Welch, Nathan Poynter and Ethan Kelley will be in the mix on the infield. Hall said Whitley Welch could DH when he wasn’t starting defensively.
Aaron Cantrell anchors the outfield in center. Quinton Alston returns as the starter in left. Chance Gale can play both center and right. Stetson Welch will start in right when Aaron Cantrell pitches.
Cole Hooper and Logan Cantrell will provide bench depth in the outfield.
Aaron Cantrell, who hit 84 mph during the team’s annual 50-inning game Saturday, anchors the pitching staff after going 1-9 last year with a 7.08 ERA. He struck out 75 batters in 57 1/3 innings.
Tanner Cantrell and Coulter will log innings at the top of the staff. Walker, who has been throwing submarine style, will be available in short spurts in relief.
“We’ve got three or four guys that we feel like we can put out there and win a game at anytime,” Hall said.
HHS begins the 2013 season Monday by hosting a round-robin tournament with Mountain Grove, Salem and Cuba.
“We’ve got all the ability in the world to win games. But can we do it?” Hall said. “I’m not going to sell these kids short. They are capable of winning every game they play. We have the athletes to win. If we add the execution and mental toughness, I have high expectations for this team.”