Not everyone is fortunate enough to have their father in their life.
For those lucky enough to have that privilege, time spent with the “old man” can truly be a priceless experience.
Eli Hubbard falls into the latter category. His dad exposed him to the game of baseball at a young age. He taught Eli the game and helped mold him into an excellent pitcher.
“My dad started teaching me baseball when I was three or four years old,” said Hubbard, a recent graduate from Stockton High School. “My dad was always the pitching coach for my younger teams. He still helps me off of the field. He talks to me after every game, tells me what I did good and bad. He's helped me a lot with my pitching. He has always been patient. If I am struggling, he'll video me and watch it over and over again trying to figure out what’s wrong.”
Those lessons evolved Hubbard’s game and eventually led to an exceptional senior year at Stockton.
When Hubbard took the mound, Stockton did not lose. Hubbard had the best record (10-0) and best ERA (1.08) of all of our 1 Awards nominees.
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“A lot of it is the guys behind me and my catcher” said Hubbard. “They helped get outs for me and picked me up. I didn’t have as many strikeouts, so I was just trying to get ground balls and fly balls.”
The all-around athlete dabbled with basketball too. Hubbard played basketball through high school, but admittedly, “just never liked basketball as much as baseball.”
And similarly, despite posting a .429 batting average and 28 RBI’s at the plate, Hubbard really had no interest in raking on offense.
“I’ve always enjoyed pitching more,” he said. “This is the first year I’ve done that great at the plate.”
One of his best performance came when it counted during the district championship game.
On May 18, Hubbard tossed a complete game shutout (seven innings) against Ash Grove, allowing five hits and two walks with six strikeouts. Stockton beat Ash Grove 3-0 to claim the district championship.
“We played really well and got outs when we needed them,” said Hubbard. “I could throw every pitch I had for a strike and my defense played well. It was hard for [Ash Grove] to get anything going.”
But even that game pales in comparison to his gem against Fair Grove on Apr. 26. Hubbard went the distance and struck out a whopping 14 batters with just four hits allowed in perhaps his best game of the season.
Aside from the support from his father and the rest of his family, Hubbard attributes a lot of his success to the bond with his teammates. He established a relationship with his teammates early on in Stockton.
“We’ve been together since we were seven or eight playing travel ball,” Hubbard said of his teammates. “It helped us get to know each other and know what each other does in different situations. It’s a big help.
“I’ll remember all the bus rides and whenever we would go up to Camdenton and Lebanon wood bat tournaments, all the memories up there at the hotel and hanging out with my teammates.”
Hubbard will continue his education at Ozarks Technical Community College (OTC) in Springfield this fall. A handful of his friends will accompany him in college.
As the oldest of four kids, Eli values the time he spends with his siblings. Family and friends are his highest priority, and he hopes to start a family of his own one day.
“I just hope to secure a good job and start making a family and making good decisions,” said Hubbard. “I’m going to stay in touch with my friends. I plan on having kids and teaching them how to play baseball and hunt and fish.
“I’m going to watch my sibling play sports and spend time with them… I want to be around them and teach them things about sports like my dad taught me.”
