To be the best, you must compete with the best.
Mexico baseball believes playing better competition will help the program progress to even greater heights this season. After finishing just below a …
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To be the best, you must compete with the best.
Mexico baseball believes playing better competition will help the program progress to even greater heights this season. After finishing just below a 500 record for two seasons, the Bulldogs are coming off a 15-10 season that ended with a tight 6-5 loss to North Central Missouri Conference rival Fulton.
Head coach Daniel McCarty said the team’s pitchers recorded 171 innings for a 3.10 ERA last season to go along with 5.7 runs per game and much of that production is coming back. He said Class 4 Mexico has nine games scheduled with Class 5 or Class 6 schools and four games scheduled with Final Four teams, including Class 4 fourth-place Marshall, Class 4 champion Southern Boone and Class 3 champion Father Tolton.
“I believe in playing better competition to make us better,” McCarty said. “If we consistently see great competition, then we consistently get better every day. My ultimate goal is to get our team ranked this year and compete in the state championship with this squad.”
McCarty is confident Mexico’s pitching will be even better this season and will be led by reigning first team all-conference senior Jack Wilburn.
Among the other pitchers to join Wilburn on the staff are sophomore Austin Maxwell and Sam Ryan, who had respective records of 5-1 and 3-1 last year and Ryan finished with three saves. Senior Landyn Kleinsorge was 2-1 a season ago and threw a no-hitter in a 10-0 victory at Centralia.
Kleinsorge also hit .306 last year, and Mexico’s offense will also have a pair of all-district infielders in seniors Andrew Runge and Tyler Thoenen. McCarty said Runge provides speed and power along with a .406 batting average from last year while Thoenen batted .368 while hitting for power. Senior Ty Sims is also another power source after hitting .324 last year.
“Our defense is also our strong suit on the field,” McCarty said. “Leadership and communication are what keeps our defense together.”
McCarty said this year’s Bulldogs feature college-bound players beyond the already committed seniors Runge and Matt McCurdy, who will play for NAIA school Central Methodist University.
Following its six seniors, the Mexico program has no juniors but 16 sophomores and 14 freshmen.
Mexico hosts Paris at 5 p.m. Friday prior to facing Marshfield at 12:30 p.m. and Excelsior Springs at 2 p.m. Saturday in Excelsior Springs.
