Change in approach is a hit

Font Size

Email

Bookmark

Black Text

White Text

Naperville Central is attempting to pull off the neat trick of winning now while building for the future.

At Central, the sophomores aren't treated like airport skycaps - they're not supposed to just carry the bags. Rather, they're expected to anchor the middle infield and drive in runs.

And that dovetails with the program's new hitting philosophy. Ideally, offensive drills will be the same for a freshman on his first day of practice as a senior captain approaching his last.

"It's not rocket science," Redhawks assistant coach Mike Stock insisted. "We're not doing things real different than anybody else. I just think we're trying to be as consistent as we can."

Less than two years removed from a state championship, and after an 18-18 season that saw the Redhawks hit .252 as a team with a .348 on-base percentage, Central's coaching staff gathered this winter to talk hitting and change the approach.

"Instead of doing a million different little drills," Stock recalled, "we all agreed on 'What do we think are our core drills that we want to work on?'"

The process, which lasts for 35 to 45 minutes, is broken down into stations in the gym - hitting off a tee, short toss where a ball is flipped forward to the hitter, and batting practice in a cage. Entering Wednesday, the Redhawks were collectively hitting .275 with a .381 on-base percentage, and scoring roughly one more run per game than last season.

While these changes aren't radical, it does help, Stock admitted, that Central's younger players aren't used to a certain routine or inclined to question why practices are now run this way.

"At first it seemed like everyone was in a slump and it just continued the whole season," senior catcher John Holm said of 2007. "We still hit in the morning, but it wasn't the same way. We weren't attacking it like we (are now). It kind of seemed like there wasn't much competition at each position as there is this year. This year we can feel that - at no matter what position, if someone gets hurt or someone's not doing well, we can take him out and put the next guy in, and he can compete just as well."

The results have come quick - the Redhawks (7-4, 3-2 DuPage Valley Conference) have already notched signature nonconference victories over Neuqua Valley, last season's Class 2A champion, and Stevenson.

And everyone is being pushed by the class of 2010.

Monday's game against West Chicago began with sophomore Marc Mantucca on the mound, classmates Nick Linne and Matt Soria at first and second base, and only three seniors in the starting lineup.

Mantucca went on to allow only one unearned run across 5.1 innings, and reached base on all three of his plate appearances, as did Linne. The three sophomores ultimately scored five of Central's runs in a 7-1 victory.

Mantucca ended the day with a .464 batting average - getting on base better than 53 percent of the time - while Soria was at .323 and .400 in those categories.

"You don't even know they're sophomores with our team. You come and watch a practice, you have no idea," Holm said. "We look like we're all the same age. Everyone has to carry in equipment."

So far there's good chemistry, and the young players have progressed ahead of coach Bill Seiple's schedule.

"There's only X-amount of things that you cover and you hope that, you know, kids that are sophisticated and understand the game fill in the gaps on their own," Seiple said. "Maybe they make a mistake here, and then they make two or three plays here that you didn't even think about, that even a veteran didn't make."

But in the same conversation Seiple stressed that youth can be a built-in excuse, and emphasized that while he's optimistic for 2009 and 2010, he's excited for this team to play tonight, tomorrow and the next day. In theory, those should all look similar to Central.

"It's a struggle as these games pile up and pile up and pile up," Stock said. "You spend that first month just 'Drill! Drill! Drill!' and then all of a sudden it's: 'Hey, let's just throw a little BP and say good luck guys.' We're trying to stick with the routine. And if was important again the first day, we want it to be important every day."

pmooney@scn1.com nbsp;