“I can give a better indication now since we’ve been together for a week,” 26-year Saints head coach Phonsey Lambert said. “I’m very optimistic of this group of seniors. This is a great group of guys with a lot of leaders and veteran players who really know how to play the game. It’s as strong of leadership as I’ve seen in years, probably since the 2011 team.”
2011 was the last time the Saints won the sectional title when they handed Cairo-Durham an 11-1 loss at Joe Bruno Stadium in Troy before making it to the state final four. Seniors John Natale and Sean Hart are the lone links back to that season.
“They know the winning ways,” Lambert said. “They know what it takes to get to that level. They know the commitment of being a together group as opposed to being a bunch of individuals.”
The 10th annual trip to Florida and fifth consecutive year playing games at Disney’s Wide World of Sports helped the group mindset, as the Saints played five exhibition games, finishing 3-2.
They were also recognized by Disney’s Wide World of Sports as a member of the Fabulous Five. Being part of the pre-season tradition for the fifth straight year earned them an invite to the Atlanta Braves final spring Training game against the Houston Astros where they were able to walk out onto the field to accept the award.
But what the trip really provided was a chance to see some live baseball before the defending co-league champs begin the Western Athletic Conference games.
“Overall, it’s been a tremendous lift,” Lambert said. “The guys got a lot of innings and played some good squads. Just to see the live pitching on the field for a week has been an advantage.”
The Saints’ No. 1 starter Jesse Winters will most likely take the mound in the season opener. Winters was 6-1 with 57 strikeouts to go along with a 2.27 ERA as a junior in 2012. He also batted .423 and is the team’s top returning RBI man (25).
“[Winters] is a gifted athlete,” Lambert said of the senior who hits for power to all fields. “He gets down the line as quickly as I’ve ever seen a kid at the high school level. He’s a lot more polished as a pitcher now. In years past I think he was more of a thrower. He has matured on the mound and just seems to be more efficient not wasting pitches.”
The all-around ball player leads a team that expects to steal a lot of bases this season. Hart, the team’s second baseman, has been moved to the leadoff spot, as Natale has swapped with his 2011 sectional counterpart to the five hole.
“[Hart]’s probably one of the best base runners we’ve ever had in the program,” Lambert said. “He just has great instincts on the bases. Our overall team is speed fantastic.”
Sophomore Liam Gibney and senior Cameron Coons will complete the infield’s corners at third and first base, respectively. Coons batted .469 last season, while Gibney has shown reliability at the hot corner and as a middle relief option.
The Saint’s No. 2 starter will be Jake Moline, who had two of the three wins down south and posted a 2.27 ERA last season. Sophomore Jake Van Patten and 6-foot-5-inch junior Michael Naughton will round out the rotation, which will be targeting the glove of Ryan Czarnecki.
Czarnecki was called up to the varsity level and earned playing time as a freshman last season.
Before the league games even start, Lambert has noted the bonding of the team “as a family” and the high quality knowledge of the game his team possesses – high praise from the head coach who has five sectional championships since 2000.
“Instinctively, we’ve got some good baseball players,” Lambert said. “These guys have all played a lot of baseball. They make good decisions on the field, so I think our overall baseball IQ is pretty high. I would be proud of all 12 of these guys if they were all my sons.”
The Saints scrimmage Greenville Saturday at noon before the season opener in Sharon Springs on Monday, April 8 at 4:30 p.m.
