Making the turn
- Updated: March 25, 2023
Recent struggles have young Ohatchee looking to clean up errors with key area series against Glencoe and Westbrook Christian looming
By Joe Medley
East Alabama Sports Today
OXFORD — Blake Jennings’ latest Ohatchee baseball team has sticks. Devin Howell hits the cover off of the ball.
The Indians have arms, several who’ve pitched in varsity action.
They also have youth, and that was on display again Saturday as Ohatchee committed six errors in a 13-2 loss to Class 6A Calera in the Oxford Spring Experience at Choccolocco Park.
Jennings’ message after the game? It’s about April, time for youth to grow.
“It goes back to a mindset with these guys,” Jennings said. “We’ve got some guys that don’t believe in themselves.”
The Indians are 7-9. The loss to Calera was Ohatchee’s fourth consecutive loss.
Three of those losses came in the season’s first Class 3A, Area 11 series, with Hokes Bluff. The Indians committed 10 combined errors in those games … the two counters and the tiebreaker game.
Early season hiccups come with a young team. The Indians have three seniors, four juniors and one sophomore
Losses 2022 include catcher Brent Honaker, one of the Indians’ top bats, and Carson Tittle, now playing for Cherokee County, where his dad is principal.
“Because he didn’t play (for Ohatchee), three other guys didn’t play,” Jennings said. “I went from five 10th-graders to one.
“That’s my goal at Ohatchee. Can we have four or five guys in every group. If we do, we’re going to be competitive every year when they’re seniors. When you only have on kid playing in a great, it makes it real hard.”
It didn’t help that Xavier Luna took a line drive off of his (right) pitching forearm in the Hokes Bluff series. He’s expected to be out for a week, or until swelling can go down.
More than anything, Jennings said, they players he has just need to play like they can.
“That’s the biggest thing is these kids having confidence,” he said. “Some of them just don’t have the confidence to go make the play.
“They’re good athletes. They’ve just got to go do it. Play this game like they’re a little kid again instead of putting so much pressure on themselves.”
On the positive side, Ohatchee can score runs. Howell is batting .550.
He went 0-for-3 against a Class 6A opponent Saturday but nearly tied the game with a liner to right-center field with runners on second and third base.
“He’s got 24, 25 hits on the year,” Jennings said. “He’s been crushing it. Today, he barreled up three just right at them.”
Bryce Noah has provided vocal leadership to go with his production on the plate and mound, Jennings said.
Ohatchee is also far from out of the playoff picture. The Indians still have area series with Glencoe and Westbrook Christian.
“We’ve got to come ready after spring break and come ready to play Westbrook,” Howell said.
The needed fix is obvious.
“Just clean up our errors, in the infield and in the outfield, too,” Noah said. “We just need to clean up all of our stuff. …
“The mental and the errors in the field will get cleaned up as people get more experience.”
Cover photo: Ohatchee’s Devin Howell follows through on a swing against Calera on Saturday. (Photo by B.J Franklin/gunghophotos.smugmug.com)
You must be logged in to post a comment Login