By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
After capturing a district title and Big 8 Conference championship last season, Marshfield baseball looks for continued success in 2020.
While the 15-7 Blue Jays fell to Helias Catholic in the sectional round, a big portion of the team’s lineup returns for another shot at the postseason.
“The goal last year was to win a district championship,” said head coach William Pate. “We
know that we bring back a lot of our team from last year, so we want to build on that from
last year and get back to that district championship.”
To make another district title run, the Blue Jays will first need to replace a pair of key graduated seniors in Truett Gardner (.365 BA, 15 RBI, 6 SB, 5-2, 2.686 ERA) and Parker Dinwiddie (.274 BA, 5 RBI, 5 SB).
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Gardner received both all-conference and all-district honors, while Dinwiddie was an all-district selection. Both players will continue their baseball careers at the collegiate level this spring at Evangel University.
“Truett was one of our top pitchers and hitters last year,” Pate said. “He was a positive guy in the dugout and was a great leader for us. Parker was the guy that simply loved playing the game. He had high expectations for himself and the team and did a great job of leading by example.”
With only two roster spots lost to graduation, Marshfield returns a solid core with high expectations.
The Blue Jays will be led by a quartet of seniors, including all-state catcher Brooks Espy (.390 BA, 9 RBI, 7 SB).
“Brooks has been our leader behind the plate for two years now and was one of our top hitters last year,” Pate said. “We look for him to be a strong leader on the field and in the lineup.”
Outfielder/pitcher Brennan Espy (.231 BA, 9 RBI, 7 SB), pitcher/infielder Austin Dobrick (.270 BA, 11 RBI, 2 SB, 7-2, 2.00 ERA) and infielder/pitcher Thomas McIllwain (.386 BA, 22 RBI, 8 SB, 1-0-1, 1.826 ERA) also return to provide experience and veteran leadership.
Dobrick and McIllwain garnered all-conference and all-district accolades last season.
“Brennan’s speed in the outfield is a huge advantage as well as his arm,” Pate said. “He has the ability to be a dangerous bat in the lineup. Austin is our top guy on the mound, was solid for us last season and we look for him to be a strong leader with our pitching staff this year. Thomas has the ability to hit for power, drive in runs for us and is versatile in the field.”
A trio of juniors round out Marshfield’s returning cast, including infielder/pitcher Jackson Vestal (.273 BA, 10 RBI, 2 SB, 1-1, 2.234), outfielder/pitcher Ben Casterlin (.318 BA, 5 RBI) and outfielder/pitcher Ethan Grace (1-0, 8.00 ERA).
In addition to its returning group, Marshfield welcomes a quartet of newcomers to the varsity roster including junior catcher/infielder Logan Crum, sophomore outfielder/infielder Kyle Jones, junior infielder/pitcher Hayden Curley and junior infielder/pitcher Landon Wilson.
Entering his second season at the helm, Pate believes his lineup can do a lot of the little things necessary to be extremely competitive.
“We feel like we return a strong lineup that can compete at the plate,” Pate said. “We have a lot of gap-to-gap guys but also some who can hit for power. We also have a lot of speed in the lineup. Our team speed hasn’t changed much from year to year but we want to utilize it more offensively this year to manufacture more runs.”
The Blue Jays’ pitching staff should also emerge as a team strength, with plenty of experience and depth.
“We feel that our pitching staff is strong and will be one of our strengths this season,” Pate said. “Last year we had depth with our pitching but some weren’t experienced at the varsity level. This year we have that experience.”
Marshfield’s difficult schedule should have the Jays battle-tested for district play and features the likes of Monett, Hollister, Willard, Webb City, Nixa and Republic.
“We play a tough schedule and have added some tough opponents to it so that will be a challenge for us,” Pate said. “It’s also a challenge to play multiple games in a week and stay mentally sharp through the season. We look at these challenges as an opportunity to grow as a team and individuals to better prepare ourselves for district play. We want to be playing our best baseball come May.”
Marshfield opens its season at home Saturday, March 21, with a double-header against Mexico and Excelsior Springs.
