Putnam County baseball opens up its season with high expectations this year after losing a lot of seniors last year.
One of Putnam’s main goals this season is to get back to the postseason and make some noise in Class AA state playoffs. But the team has a long way to go and needs to play well in the regular season to get back there.
The War Eagles lost a lot of key pieces from last season’s team to graduation in the offseason. However, head coach Mike Phiel feels his three seniors – BJ Ruff, Hunter Holder, and Mark Winslette – can lead the team.
“When some kids leave and others come in, it’s a new dynamic every year. There’s a lot of carryovers from last year,” Phiel told The Eatonton Messenger. “I’ve got three seniors that I have coached since they were freshmen. Those are great kids and really good leaders, but they also happen to be pretty good baseball players.”
Ruff is a versatile senior who plays first base and will also pitch for Putnam this season. Last season, he suffered a season-ending injury early in the year that greatly affected the War Eagles’ results.
Phiel acknowledged how Ruff has battled back from his injury and is ready to take the field for his final year.
“BJ pitched some early in the year, but he literally had a knee injury that took him out of our lineup,” Phiel said. “He couldn’t pitch. He couldn’t hit. He couldn’t play first base. He was another coach in the dugout for us, but he handled the injury well.
"Now, he is healthy this year, which is great. It’s great to have him back.”
Holder is another multi-skilled player that Phiel will use to the team’s advantage. He is a decent hitter, but a great pitcher who provided the War Eagles with some important innings on the mound last year in big games.
“He pitched in big games against Thomson when we needed him. Hunter also pitched five shutout innings in the playoffs,” Phiel said. “He’s dominant. He’s gotten quite a few offers from places to come pitch.”
The War Eagles also have many other younger players who are going to be used on the mound and at the plate, including sophomore Wade Johnson and junior Tanner Lukens.
“(Johnson) really came on at the end of last year,” Phiel said. “Tanner Lukens is another guy that can help us. He didn’t pitch very much last year as he struggled, but he played in other places. He played first base for BJ when he got injured, although he’s going to contribute a lot this year (on the mound). Wyatt Sims is another sophomore and Brannan Griffin is as well. So, we are going to rely on all of those guys this season.
Winslette provided a spark for the offense last season, batting .350 with 21 hits, 21 RBIs, and 19 runs scored. He and sophomores Jackson Dodd, Gates Lanzarone, and Wyatt Sims will lead the charge at the plate.
Regardless, the loss of Region 4-AA Offensive Player of the Year Jacob Grimes will affect the offense. But Phiel thinks his team’s offense returns enough to make it a problem for opposing pitchers to get his players out.
“We lost a lot with last year’s seniors. Jacob Grimes was the region’s offensive player of the year and was a three-year starter. He was so dangerous in all aspects offensively. The other three seniors were big offensive contributors as well. Tanner has looked well, and so has BJ (Ruff), and Brannan (Griffin) came on as a freshman. Jackson Dodd is another sophomore who started and hit in the two-hole last season,” Phiel said. “I don’t how many homers we will hit. We didn’t have many last year, but we scored a lot of runs.
"We will have a decent amount of speed and a good bit of contact hitters. Guys that can put the bat on the ball in play and hit in certain situations. We’ll be able to get a bunt down and get on base. That’s how we’re going to play.”
Putnam began its season on Wednesday at Athens Academy and will play Lake Oconee Academy in Greensboro this Thursday.
Next week, the War Eagles host Jackson (2/19), Social Circle (2/21), and Jasper County (2/22).