CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — Carl Junction baseball has gotten off to an 8-4 start this season, and head coach Phil Cook says the key has been keeping it simple.
"It's been pretty simple. Our pitchers have not given any — or very seldom — free rides," Cook said about walking opposing batters. "They're throwing strikes and keeping the pitch count down. Last night, Brayden Larery had zero walks and pitched a complete game."
Larery and the Bulldogs fell in a close 2-1 contest to Fort Scott, Kansas. That loss ended a five-game win streak.
Along with being effective in the strike zone, Cook has seen his team field the ball well. Prior to last night's game, Carl Junction had only committed three errors, Cook said. And the offense just continuously puts the ball in play.
"We're being efficient and doing the things we need to do to win games against pretty good teams," he added.
The Bulldogs have tallied 78 runs this season to average 6.5 runs per game. They've surrendered 70 total, but a good chunk of those have come from two opponents.
Edmond Memorial (Oklahoma) tallied 19 on Carl Junction in the third game of the season and Collinsville (Oklahoma) scored 10 a week later. No other team has scored double digits. So in the other 10 games, 41 runs have been scored against Cook's squad for an average of just 4.1 rpg.
"When we've not given up a lot of runs, we've kept the ball down and kept them off stride," Cook said.
He's seen his pitchers leave the ball elevated in games when the opponents are hitting the ball well.
Regardless, this start has been enough to be recognized by the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association this week as the 10th best team in Class 5.
"I'm not sure it means a whole lot other than putting a target on our back. Now everyone wants to beat us," Cook said with a laugh. "The ranking that means a lot is the one at the end of the year and that's what we're playing for.
"We want to be at our best for districts and postseason. We want to get better every day and be efficient."
Some of Carl Junction's leaders as it looks to build off this strong start are Deacon Endicott, Cooper Vediz, Brody Pant and Larery. Endicott and Vediz have earned "big wins" on the mound, Cook said. He noted that Pant has been a key piece on offense.
"(Pant) struggled some early at the plate. But he went and got glasses and now he's tearing it up," Cook noted. "He's one of our leaders. Larery might be leading in batting average."
