By Kary Booher/For OzarksSportsZone.com
In the eight years that Joey Little was the Hurley High School baseball coach, the Tigers always seemed to run into larger schools in the district tournament.
Now, four years after stepping aside in order to juggle a lot of other tasks for the school district, Little is back leading the Hurley baseball program. But this time, the outlook is somewhat favorable, given Hurley is now a Class 1 school thanks to state classifications expanding to five in the years since.
“I’m excited about it,” said Little, who had stepped aside as baseball coach at Hurley partly because he also was juggling high school principal and athletic director duties. “I think we’re in pretty good shape this year. I’ve got some young kids who are going to have to step up and play, but I’ve got seven returning lettermen back.”
Like other small schools in an era of the new state-mandated pitch counts, Hurley will have to reach deep on the mound. For one, the team graduated Justice Jones, a two-time All-State selection who was 7-3 with a 2.71 earned run average last year.
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That puts the onus on senior Isaac Carlson, junior Chase Simpson as well as William Pope, Wyatt Pope and Kohlton Hicks.
Carlson, a two-time All-State and three-time all-district and all-conference, was 6-3 with a 4.44 ERA last season. He also was a big reason why the team finished 16-5 in the fall season. He has signed as a catcher with Ecclesia College in Springdale, Ark.
“I expect a lot out of him,” Little said. “He’s been working hard in the offseason. He throws in the lower 80s. He has a good offspeed pitch and is working on a change-up. He throws the ball well and is a competitor.”
Simpson was 3-1 with a 4.64 ERA last year.
“He throws a lot of offspeed, junk stuff,” Little said. “He probably throws in the low 70s. I expect him to throw a lot of innings, too. He has a weird delivery that helps keep hitters on their toes.”
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Fortunately, the defense behind them won’t be afraid. With Carlson pitching, look for Pope to catch.
“We have some hard-nosed players who will put their nose in front of the ball, which I love,” Little said. “Up the middle, we’re pretty strong.”
The lineup likely will have center fielder Wyatt Pope at leadoff, followed by third baseman Justin Wilson, Carlson, William Pope, first baseman Austin Jackson, Wyatt Pope or Simpson, outfielder Brandon Page, second baseman Thomas Wilson and Hicks in the outfield. Cody Austin also could be in the mix.
Carlson hit .309 with five doubles, two triples and 28 RBI last season, while William Pope hit .384 with seven doubles, two triples and 22 RBI.
“We play a lot of small ball. In fact, we work on bunting every day,” Little said. “But we can hit a lot of doubles. We just don’t hit for power.”
For Hurley, the incentive is to build toward May and get hot going into the district tournament. After all, the Tigers will host the District 6 Tournament this year. It includes Everton, Exeter, Golden City, Greenfield, Verona and Wheaton.
“We’re hoping to push for state. That’s our goal,” Little said. “I really pushed to get districts at our place. So they’ve been working hard in the offseason. Half of them play basketball, but in their spare time, they’ve been playing catch. So, I expect a very good year and to be competitive.”
