By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
With an 18-9 record, Logan-Rogersville enjoyed a successful 2019 baseball campaign.
The Wildcats were co-champions in the Big 8 Conference East Division and fell to Springfield Catholic in the district quarterfinal round.
For head coach Casey Ledl, the Class 4 District tournament featured a gauntlet of quality teams gunning for postseason berths.
“We were beaten in the district by a very solid Catholic team in one of the most competitive districts top to bottom in the state for Class 4,” Ledl said. “Our kids played hard, but we were also inexperienced.”
A quartet of Wildcats depart the program due to graduation, including Caleb Cassanova (.347 BA, 12 RBI, 10 SB, 3-1, 2.14 ERA), Caleb Ashley (.300 BA, 7 RBI, 1 HR), Nathan Salinas (.213 BA, 10 RBI, 1 SB) and Austin Hall (4-1-2, 2.98 ERA).
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Salinas and Hall — both all-conference and all-district selections in 2019 — will continue their respective baseball careers at Hannibal LaGrange University.
With five returning starters and a deep senior class, Ledl believes Rogersville’s experience and leadership could play big roles this season.
“We return many kids who got innings or at bats and feel very strong going into this year’s season, especially at the plate,” Ledl said.
Seven seniors return to lead the team including a trio of college signees in pitcher/infielder/outfielder A.J. Craft (.416 BA, 17 RBI, 1 HR, 12 SB, 0-1-2, 2.57 ERA), pitcher Reed Metz (.338 BA, 34 RBI, 9 HR, 1 SB, 1-2-1, 3.44 ERA) and pitcher/infielder Thomas Kane (.378 BA, 30 RBI, 2 HR, 13 SB, 3-1, 3.15 ERA).
Craft, Metz and Kane are set to attend Pittsburg State University, the University of Tennessee and Saint Louis University after graduation.
“A.J. is our most versatile player,” Ledl said. “He was all-conference and all-district as an outfielder but may make some switches to the infield as the year progresses. Reed is our power player, and he’s a huge threat in the middle of the lineup. Thomas is one of our most consistent players — a high-average, low-strikeout guy in the middle of the lineup who consistently grinds out great at-bats.”
Infielder Drew Kennell (.500 BA, 1 SB, 1-0-1, 0.00 ERA), infielder Seyth Miranda (.250 BA, 1 RBI, 3 SB), pitcher/infielder Trey McDaniel (.250 BA, 16 RBI, 3-1, 4.00 ERA) and catcher Owen Christian (.240 BA, 7 RBI, 1 SB) round out Rogersville’s returning senior group.
Junior Gaviin Nally, junior Drew Cornelison (.214 BA, 13 RBI), junior Parker Thiemann (.314 BA, 5 RBI, 1 SB) and sophomore Tanner Petersen also return for the Wildcats.
Varsity newcomers who could make an impact in the lineup include Jack Williams, Hunter Wray, Tristan Voss, Colten Burney, Colin Archer, Clay Palen, Calvin Chainey, Hunter Lewis, Blythe Blakey, Curry Sutherland, Noah Carrow and Logan Taylor.
“This year’s team should be very competitive,” Ledl said. “We have several key returners and some young talent that should keep us in the upper tier of programs in the area. We have several underclassmen who return with a lot more experience than they had going into last year and who competed in some big game atmospheres for the first time.”
While Rogersville has a host of available arms on the roster, many are inexperienced at the varsity level.
Ledl believes his staff is talented enough to overcome early-season question marks that are common to developing inexperienced arms.
“Our pitching will be a little inexperienced behind Thomas Kane, but very talented,” Ledl said. “If we can get some solid innings out of those kids we should be very tough in the conference and district.”
Rogersville’s strength will likely be the number of quality bats in a lineup that should feature power, average and speed.
“I’m very excited about our hitters,” Ledl said. “Our kids have worked hard in the weight room all off-season to get bigger, stronger, and faster. We return several kids who had many at bats for last year’s team. We have both quality and quantity, making us a difficult team to match up against late in the year.”
Ledl also believes Rogersville’s challenging schedule will have the Wildcats well-prepared for the rigors of late-season runs into postseason play.
“Our schedule, including ten Class 5 teams and numerous state-ranked Class 4 teams in our conference and district, will once again be difficult but should make us better prepared to compete come district time,” Ledl said. “I anticipate us having a lot of success but our ultimate goals will always be getting into the playoffs and try to make a run.”
Rogersville opens its season Saturday, March 21, against Webb City in the Lael Leadoff Tournament.
