For a while, it seemed only the rain might slow down Taylor Whitworth.
The Ash Grove senior pitched an absolute gem Tuesday night, tallying nine strikeouts, one walk and four scattered hits in a 2-0 Pirates victory.
While the game began amidst a light sprinkle, the skies quickly ramped up to a steady downpour. With a firm control of the corners, Whitworth was able to cruise through the early innings. Still, the rain's cumulative effects forced the right-hander into some early adjustments.
"The more the rain came down, it was kind of hard to get my footing in the mud," Whitworth said. "I was kind of sliding all over the place. Once I kind of realized it, it was keep a light foot and just work the stuff. Just keep the fastball and not work a lot of off-speed. Then, finally, the rain let up, everything dried up, baseballs dried up and I was able to get back into the grove."
Midway through the third inning, umpires and coaches gathered for a conference at the mound. After a brief inspection, tarps were brought out to allow for the system to pass over the area.
During the 30-minute delay, kids from both schools were given the opportunity to, well … be kids. Spectators were treated to a host of rain-delay antics, including jousting knights, waddling turkeys and bat-wielding field snipers. Rumors of a freshmen bowling exhibition spread through the dugouts, yet underclassmen were thankfully spared in the nick of time by the dissipating showers.
Pirates head coach Troy McMain discussed the importance of both coaches allowing their kids to have some fun.
"Part of it's staying loose," McMain said. "There's a lot of over-thinking that can happen in baseball; there's a lot of things that, if you spend too much time on, can hurt you more than help you. I think we've got a great group of seniors that kind of know how to cut loose but, at the same time, can refocus pretty quick."
Once play resumed in the bottom of the third, Skyline took advantage of a momentum shift. Austin Crawford ripped a leadoff single off Whitworth to give the Tigers their first scoring threat of the game.
Skyline was able to move Crawford to second with only one out; however, a Whitworth strikeout and a groundout to third ended the rally.
In the fourth, Ash Grove finally got a rally going of its own. Hits from Whitworth, Paul Brugh and Braden Trammell bunched together to score the Pirates' only runs of the game.
McMain talked about the importance of moving runners around the bases when opportunities arise.
"We've been working the small-ball concepts in the off-season a lot," McMain said. "Just so far as trying to get the hitters to really focus and have quality, smart at-bats and not try to do too much. Things like ground balls and little bloop shots can help quite a bit."
Were it not for the quick series of fourth-inning hits, Skyline pitcher Mason Lile might have written a different headline for this article.
The Skyline sophomore turned in a gutsy performance of his own, giving up just five hits, no walks and only one earned run. Despite the loss, Tigers head coach Brett Bybee was pleased with his pitcher's performance.
"For me, this gives me a ton of confidence in him," Bybee said. "He started last year as a freshman for us and didn't pitch very much. Now, he comes out and is expected to do the bulk of our pitching, and he's done a great job with that. Shows a ton of maturity for a sophomore kid to come out and take as much pressure as he's got and pitch the way he did today."
In a close game full of adverse conditions, little things made the difference in Skyline's defeat.
"We did put a few balls in play," Bybee said. "We just didn't get them at the right time. We had a few guys in scoring position, but we just didn't get that extra base hit. That's what wins good baseball games, and that was a good baseball game. They just got the runs in when they needed to."
Both teams are back in action on Thursday. Ash Grove (9-6) hosts Marionville, while Skyline (8-11) hosts Pleasant Hope.
Ash Grove – 2, Skyline – 0
Skyline 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
Ash Grove 0 0 0 2 0 0 x — 2
