2008 Pre-season Top-10

High School Baseball Teams in

Northwest Indiana

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

4-01-2008

LaPORTE (4-01-2008) - We are in a time of change in high school baseball playoffs. The sectional rosters changed this year and the format changes in 2009. The sectional reorganization that hit basketball drifts down to baseball now as teams begin the season with a different end game. As Crown Point found out in basketball, the sectional has now become an unpredictable marathon of school night games and long bus rides.

In Class 4A, the Bulldogs have become a perennial sectional champion in this decade, but that's not going to sit well with eight-time state champion LaPorte, the dominant Indiana prep baseball franchise of all time. The Bulldogs and Slicers are now in the same 4A Sectional and the eight-team grouping with Hobart, Valparaiso, Chesterton, Merrillville, Michigan City and Portage. It's going to make for a great sectional, but nobody's happy about it.

One (or more) very good program is going to have a short post-season run every year. And LaPorte and CP can look forward to three on-field meetings almost every season under this format.

In Class 2A, Boone Grove used to have to deal with Bishop Noll at the sectional level, but that's been shuffled, too. The Wolves face Culver, North Judson, Hebron, North Newton and Winamac in Sectional 34 and it's going to be very hard for anyone, with the possible exception of the arch-rival Hawks, to give Boone a game at sectional time.

This is not a great year in NW Indiana baseball. 2007 saw two NW Indiana schools (Boone and CP) reach the top of the state polls. The DAC and NWCC will be slightly down from their 2007 peaks.

The new battle ground will be in the Porter County Conference where Boone Grove, Hanover Central and Washington Township will have sectional championship potential. This is the shortest season there is in high school team athletics. Baseball is truly a sport where you really need to play 75-100 times under the sun to find your true value. Boys, you have eight weeks in bad weather. The stage is yours.

1. (4A) LaPorte (22-9)
25-6 (2006), 30-5 (2005), 25-7 (2004), 22-10 (2003)

LaPORTE: I know this sounds strange, but LaPorte had a sub-par 22-9 season in 2007. They will want to make up for it this spring. After eight state titles, no one takes the Slicers lightly and most Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) foes will see either Ian Neilsen (8-2, 2.52 ERA in 2007) or lefty Neal Hackett (8-2, 3.05 ERA) in DAC games this spring. Second baseman John Gakle batted .422 last year, but the real strength is among the outfield with senior Adam McIntyre (.324, 24 RBIs), junior center fielder Kyle Rosenbaum and sophomore left-fielder Dustin DeMuth, the football quarterback, who will also make his pitching debut. The Slicers have won at least 20 games for 41 years in a row and that's with a schedule that's tougher than most NW Indiana squads. LaPorte finds out where they stand immediately with the traditional March 27 opener inside South Bend's Covaleski Stadium against sometimes bitter rival Penn. But the big change this year is that LaPorte joins Hobart and six other DAC teams in 4A Sectional 2. If the sectional host site has been announced, I haven't heard it. LaPorte (0-2) lost its first two games last Saturday... 5-0 to New Prairie and 11-3 to Penn. But put that aside due to the weather twisted nature of week one.

MERRILLVILLE: I'm uneasy not ranking Andrean No. 1, because they will put a very solid team on the field every day in 2008. Junior Adam Norton (.385, 5 HRs, 36 RBIs) is the pure No. 3 hitter that most teams lack and fellow juniors Thomas Polus (43-of-86, .500, 30 runs scored), Mike Pokers (.418, 30 RBIs) and catcher Kevin Franchetti are back. Norton (7-4, 2.01 ERA) leads the pitching staff, which will decide how far Andrean can go. Andrean hits the highway for the Brebeuf tournament in Indianapolis on April 25-26 and the Elmhurst tourney in Fort Wayne on May 3. New to the schedule in 2008 are Lemont (May 7), Northwood (May 22), Marian Catholic (April 15) and Hanover Central on May 6. The pitching here is the question because the lineup and batting order are excellent. The 59ers are primed for another sectional championship season and they should be the winner of the first Northwest Crossroads Conference baseball race. The Niners host the sectional, which now includes league rival Griffith.

3. (4A) CROWN POINT (29-3)
22-9 (2006), 21-12 (2005), 17-11 (2004), 23-10-1 (2003)

CROWN POINT: Here's one of those situations where its misleading to dwell on who is gone and not to focus in on who's now here. It will surprise some to find out that the Bulldogs return the region's deepest pitching staff led by lefty Blake Mascarello (6-2, 2.90) and right-hander Mike Kozlowski (4-0, 3.00 ERA). Seniors Eric Clayton (4-0, 0.73 ERA) and Mike Hernandez complete a group that, along with senior veteran catcher Nick Hladek (.385, 31 runs scored), who will play in 2009 at Central Michigan University, should be able to carry CP through a very elaborate schedule. The question is: How much will the Bulldogs hit? Kozlowski (.429), a shortstop, will be a dominant player while Hladek and Mascarello (.372, 3 HRs) are veteran hitters. Football star Russell Chick will get his chance in the outfield as will Jim Donley, a big right-handed hitter with power. There are several good sophomores who may not see the varsity field until 2009. The Bulldogs' junior varsity was 27-1 last year, but that's misleading because they have a lot of juniors (most schools have sophs and freshmen) on the junior varsity. Crown Point has eight seniors and nine juniors on the varsity and, for the foreseeable future, they will have large classes like that. Nobody has as much pitching as CP does, but they have questions on offense. CP hosts the rain-delayed season opener Thursday against Highland but the weather suggest it won't happen.

4. (2A) BOONE GROVE (25-6-1)
26-4 (2006), 24-7 (2005), 17-12 (2004), 21-7 (2003)

PORTER TOWNSHIP: Boone spent some time as the No. 1 Class 2A team in the state in 2007 and that will happen again in 2008 largely because top pitcher Kyle Ferber (11-3, 1.49 ERA) and catcher Josh Cobb (.440, 33 runs scored, 32 RBIs) both return. Add shortstop Zak Ursitti (.320, 25 RBIs), veteran 2B Drew Kidd (.320, 18 stolen bases) and junior center fielder Nick DiMarco (.350, 12 stolen bases). Boone's never going to go undefeated because they seek to play all the top teams including Munster, Crown Point, Griffith, and anybody else who will schedule them. Ferber pitched a two-hitter in a 6-2 win over Marquette on May 25 to start the year, a game in which Cobb drove in three runs. Boone is not considered to be a perennial power only by those who do not see them play regularly. Remember, the basketball team had seven varsity sophomores including four starters. Basketball leading scorer Wayland Roach, who is reportedly a very promising left-handed pitcher, is one of them, and he will get a regular turn in 2008. The Porter County Conference (PCC) is getting better, but this is clearly the top squad. And with the Wolves no longer in the same sectional with Bishop Noll, Wheeler and Hanover Central, chances are good that Boone Grove will reach regional championship play this spring.

5. (4A) LAKE CENTRAL (16-12)
19-10 (2006), 28-3 (2005), 24-7 (2004), 23-6-1 (2003)

ST. JOHN: It's a little risky to pick a team that does not have a top starting pitcher returning, but Lake Central is a special case. LC was a surprise sectional winner in 2007, but it would not be a surprise if they repeat. Every player who started in the regional loss against Crown Point is eligible to return, including speedy outfielder Kyle Kaluza (30-of-82, .366), veteran infielder AJ Doyle (33-of-84, .393), infielder Joey Kawa (22-of-72, .306) and clean-up batter Ryan Boss (28-of-85). There are several here who can pitch and will now get a chance. But 6-foot-8 basketball center Eric Summers and 6-foot-4 defensive end Danny Manick (5-3, 2.95 ERA) are two intimidating choices and basketball's Kyle Scheffel will also get a chance. LC could have a .500 regular season again if the pitching gets bombed, but I'm guessing it won't. Munster is ranked ahead of LC in the state pre-season poll, but LC has potentially the best team in all of NW Indiana if the pitching comes through. Lake Central should be a 6-runs-a-game team that has the potential to be regional champ. LC beat Morton 2-0 in nine innings to start the year as Eric Summers pitched five scoreless innings.

HAMMOND: The Pioneers have put together five 20-win seasons in succession and 2008 should be number six with senior pitchers Trent Howard (5-4, 3.36 ERA) and Jon Carpen (3-1, 3.64 ERA) pitching to catcher Craig Fruth (.289, 16 RBIs). Basketball center Nick Curosh (.289) returns at first base. I do not know the schedule, which certainly changed when the Lake Athletic Conference broke up, but I hope they kept Mt. Carmel and LaPorte. The Pioneers need to play tougher teams because they may win the Hammond city league and 3A Sectional 17 without much trouble. I still think Clark is better than Munster even though Clark lost 8-7 in eight innings in the season opener. I have a lot of admiration for this team winning as many games as they do because nobody's going to debate that they play on the worst playing surface in the state. Lord knows what they could do if they got a real baseball field at Clark. The Pioneers lost 8-7 to Munster and beat East Chicago 13-3 to start the year.

MUNSTER: The Mustangs lost half their starting lineup so it may take a while for Munster to reach peak form. But pitchers Blake Platt (5-0, 2.80 ERA) and Brandon Miller (5-2, 3.14 ERA) plus converted third baseman and new catcher Brett Keeler (.466) give the Mustangs a core that will keep them in contention for league and sectional titles. The ponies don't have the depth of Lake Central or the offense of Andrean, but the Mustangs have more proven pitching to begin the season than either one. Keller drove in fours runs in the May 25 season opening 8-7 win over Clark. Senior Jack Standley scored twice. The Mustangs (4-0) went to Terre Haute, got away from the rain, and won three times. Plat struck out 13 in a 5-2 win over Terre Haute South and Keeler had three hits in an 8-7 win over New Haven. One thing is certain: You don't move an all-area player off a key position (third base) unless you KNOW you've got it covered. If the pitching stays healthy, another 20-win season here is a certainty.

HAMMOND: The Governors have a good returning player group led by SS Mike Flores (.315, 11 steals), 2B Justin Faught (.354, 17 stolen bases), plus pitchers Jesse Tomich (5-1, 1.91 ERA) and Kyle Weddington (2-0. 4.34 ERA). Faught had five homers and 36 RBIs as a sophomore. Morton will face more changes than graduating some good 2007 players. The Governors will now battle Gavit, Clark and Hammond for the Hammond Athletic Conference (HAC) title and they will also jump to 4A and face Lake Central and Munster at sectional time. Morton can't be fooled by regular season success, because they have a very large hill to climb in June. The Governors (1-1) lost 2-0 to LC, but beat East Chicago 4-3 to start the year. The good news was that they played errorless ball in both games.

GRIFFITH: The Panthers will rely on pitchers Tim Cooper (7-3, 3.41 ERA), Kyle Lidster (2-1, 4.20 ERA) and Jake Terpstra (2-1, 4.20 ERA) and that should mean a winning season. But against a tough schedule, Griffith is going to have to show they can create runs. The Panthers now face Andrean at the sectional instead of the regional and that's not going to work for them this season because they don't have the one dominant hurler to throw against the 59ers. But Griffith rarely has a team that can't hit and I suspect this one will find a way to score. Tim Cooper struck out six in four innings of a 2-1 win over Merrillville.

10. (1A) Washington Township (21-8)
19-10 (2006), 15-14 (2005), 15-14 (2004), 15-14 (2003)

WASHINGTION TOWNSHIP: The Senators won five playoff games last year before losing 8-1 to eventual state champion Lafayette Catholic at the Kokomo Semistate. Josh Biggs (8-2, 1.76 ERA), who pitched a two-hitter in the regional championship game against Marquette, returns to lead the staff. The double-play team of 2B Casey Goodman (.290) and SS Glen Handzlik (.369, 19 RBIs) returns with Biggs (.333) at first and Danny Walters (.305) in at first or LF. Catcher Steve Redmon (.232) also returns. Boone Grove and Hanover Central are set to have good years, but Washington Township may keep both of them from winning the Porter County Conference. There's a good chance that Washington will meet Lafayette Catholic again at the semistate in June. Washington had all games postponed in the first week.

(2A) HANOVER CENTRAL (14-13)
13-15 (2006), 15-11 (2005), 0-0 (2004), 17-11 (2003), 9-19-1 (2002)

CEDAR LAKE: The defending Porter County Conference (PCC) champions have a chance to be sectional champs now that Boone Grove is in 2A Sectional 34, leaving HC and Bishop Noll in Sectional 33. HC returns a solid core of players led by pitchers Jesse Hernandez and Dale Sjoerdsma plus top position players in shortstop Andrew DeYoung (21-68, .309), catcher Brian Jager (22-53, .415) and first baseman Jordan Rizo (27-71, .380). Junior Cody Howarth might be a breakthrough young player to watch as HC needs better outfield play, especially on their large home outfield. But Jager won't play until mid-April and Rizo and DeYoung are basketball regulars so this team won't reach its peak until May. The Wildcats will eventually be in the Top-10 but they are not there right now. HC had two games postponed early and maybe they'll play on April 5 at the Steelyard in Gary.