By Chris Parker
Warsaw returns six starters and nine lettermen from last season’s 16-win team. The three graduated players were all all-state players, so the Wildcats will need new players to step up and replace the production.
“Most of our team has made big improvements since last year especially in the weight room,” Warsaw head coach John Eierman said. “We are excited to see how some of these competitions for playing time play out.”
The pitching staff will largely be comprised of juniors including Josh Bunch, Garrett Ferguson, Kendall Bagley, Jayce Depriest and Reece Maxwell along with sophomore Ryan Fajen.
Bagley earned second-team all-state honors as a utility player last season. He hit .418 with a .461 on-base percentage last season. He also drove in 24 runs and scored 24 more. As a closer, he had five saves and 16 strikeouts.
Bunch posted a 2.70 ERA with 47 strikeouts. Fajen had a save with 34 strikeouts and a 2.10 ERA. Ferguson had a 4-3 record with 34 strikeouts with a .271 batting average and .416 on-base percentage. Depreist was 2-0 with 19 strikeouts and hit .265 with a .412 on-base percentage. He also stole 17 bases.
There is a competition behind the plate at catcher after the graduation of two-time first-team all-state selection Nick Bagley.
The catching competition features Logan Gemes (junior), Brody Burnworth (sophomore), Brennen Slavens (sophomore) and Noah Seibert (sophomore) along with others.
Gemes hit .317 (.451 on-base percentage) with 13 runs scored.
Joining Bagley on the infield will be Ferguson (third base/shortstop), Drake Murrell (second base), Fajen (second base) and Devon Boul (first base).
Boul hit .310 with three doubles and 14 RBI last season.
Eierman identified Boul as one a senior leader for the Wildcats.
“Strengths of this team will be our pitching staff and returning starters,” Eierman said. “We return a good group with some wide-open spots, so we are excited to see who is going to win a starting spot this spring.”
Warsaw opens the season on Mar. 15 at Cole Camp.
“Overall expectations this year are high. We want to win our conference and win our district and take it game by game after that,” Eierman said. “I want the identity of this year’s team to be the hardest playing team on the field. Simply play harder than the other team every night and see what happens.”
