By Chris Parker
Reeds Spring baseball will look to bounce back from a four-win season behind four returning full-time starters and five lettermen.
Leading the team will be senior Luke Justice along with juniors Blake Siege and Jaxon Gregg.
Justice, an all-conference and all-district selection last season, will catch and play in the outfield. He hit .297 with a .395 on-base percentage scoring 11 runs and driving in seven more. He will hit in the middle of the order and bring great energy and leadership according to Reeds Spring head coach Jason Reinsch.
Siege will be the team’s top pitcher and hit at the top of the lineup. He brings plus command with good breaking pitches to the mound according to Reinsch. Siege threw 43 innings with 49 strikeouts last season. When not pitching, Siege will be at shortstop.
Gregg is a corner infielder who will hit in the middle of the order and be relied upon to drive in runs.
Juniors Aiden Walker, Brack Cuzzort and Kash Myers will be other key pitchers for Reeds Spring. Walker is a competitor who will keep the team in games with his strike-throwing ability.
Cuzzort, who will be at third base when not pitching, brings a good three-pitch mix on the mound.
“Brack moved around for us a lot last season, and was in and out of the line-up,” Reinsch said. “This season he looks to be a mainstay and will be a key to our success.”
Myers, who will be in right field when not pitching, has developed well over the summer and will provide strong innings this season.
“Kash really just started pitching seriously last summer, and he made great strides in pitch development as well as command,” Reinsch said.
Freshman Izek Hays will catch or play in centerfield.
Reinsch will look for his team to do all the little things right in an effort to improve on last season’s record.
“For us to be successful, we will have to really work at being fundamentally sound,” Reinsch said. “Nothing we do is flashy, and we won’t hit the ball out of the park, so it will be imperative that we move the ball on offense, run the bases extremely well, throw a ton of strikes and consistently make routine plays on defense.”
Reeds Spring opens the regular season on Mar. 15 at home against Forsyth.
“Our goal is simple: we want to play harder than our opponents every day,” Reinsch said. “My hope is that we can continue to move the ball forward and continue to build a foundation of fundamentals so we can find long-term sustained success.”
