Veteran Bearkats focused on additional push
9/8/2016 2:42:00 PM | Baseball
HUNTSVILLE – At 211 degrees, water is hot. At 212, it boils. One degree is the difference in creating steam and powering a locomotive.
The Sam Houston State baseball team is focused on that extra effort as it opened fall camp this week looking to follow up its Southland Conference championship season and NCAA Regional appearance by taking things another step further.
“Last year, we were 210 or 211,” third-year head coach Matt Deggs said. “Now, it's time to take that extra step and get that extra degree. We need to hit that boiling point. Once you do that, all things are possible. That's at the front of our minds every day. We want to check every box and make sure we deserve to win.”
The Bearkats return 21 players including a majority of their starters from a squad that captured both the Southland regular season and tournament title. That unit rattled off a 35-8 record after starting 5-12 to reach the NCAA Lafayette Regional and eclipse the 40-win mark for the third time in five seasons.
This go-around, 10 new freshmen will look to leave their marks. The incoming group was touted as the top recruiting class in the Southland by Perfect Game, marking the second consecutive season in which the Kats have been bestowed the honor.
“Anytime you return the majority of your team it's a really good feeling, especially when you return a successful team and a team that has a lot of room for growth,” Deggs said. “I thought we added 10 really talented freshmen. Some of them have a chance to jump in and contribute. I think the biggest thing is those guys learning to mesh together and play together.”
Among the 10 freshmen, six are pitchers including three left handers. The newcomers are expected to play a strong role in a bullpen that graduated three seniors including closer Greg Belton who logged 14 saves and was selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.
“We've got some good arms down there,” Deggs said. “It's good to see Seth Ballew out there today who redshirted for us last year after coming off Tommy John. We're going to need four or five of them to jump in and contribute right away. We'll be able to get in and do that as the fall goes along.”
In the starting rotation, the team welcomes back Southland Conference Tournament MVP Heath Donica and Freshman All-American Riley Gossett. Entering his sophomore campaign, Gossett looks to be a guide for the wealth of new pitchers while noting the differences in entering his second season.
“I think being more comfortable would be the best way to describe it,” Gossett said. “You still have to come out here and grind and work hard every day to maintain that status. Improvement this year would definitely be a secondary pitch. Last year, I was real satisfied with the way I competed. This fall, I hope to command a second one.”
During the fall, sophomore Andrew Fregia has made the move to shortstop from third base, allowing for competition at the hot corner. Among those vying for the potential spot is fellow sophomore Jordan Cannon who split time at catcher and pitcher a season ago but played third during summer ball.
“This year you see looking back on the season where all the circles, the hills and the logs come into play,” Cannon said of the hard-nosed camp. “They all mean one little thing. Last year (as freshmen) we had no clue; we were just out here grinding. You see in the season you where it comes into play.”
During their first scrimmage Tuesday, the squad played error-free while Deggs harped on the importance of winning on the day to reach the 40-win plateau – even during the lingering summer heat in early September.
“These guys are self-motivated,” Deggs said. “There is competition out here any day. If you take time to look in the rear view mirror, someone will take your job. They're a band of brothers but they're highly competitive with each other. It makes our job easy from a standpoint of playing hard. We have great leadership. Those guys understand where the standard is and live above it.”
