DUFUR – As one of four seniors on a roster of 16 players, 2016 all-state recipient Kolbe Bales is using his last year to help bring the underclassmen along.
Of course, he wants to win, but exhibiting leadership qualities is high on his to-do list.
“Having this being my last year of high school baseball is going to push me to do whatever it takes to get the team where it needs to be,” Bales said. “I just want to come in as a leader and help the younger kids every day, whether it’s hitting, fielding, or pitching. We can’t win with just a few guys it takes a full team to get the job done.”
Last season, the Rangers posted a 12-15 overall record, and advanced to the Blue Mountain Conference championship, earning a state berth.
Dufur lost to eventual state champion Burns in its playoff opener, but that performance, coupled with the return of all-state winners Bales, Connor Uhalde, and Bailey Keever, fuels this team for bigger and better things in 2017.
“The team is really hungry and we have been waiting for this time to come,” said senior Connor Uhalde. “We have to come out and prove that we are one of the top contenders, not only in the league, but in the state. I see a look of determination in their eyes and that is very comforting, because I know they are going to give it their all.”
The No. 3 hitter on the Ranger roster last year, Bales had a .466 batting average with 19 runs scored, a 47 RBIs, and added 10 doubles and a home run.
On the mound, Bales tossed 32 innings and allowed 14 runs, four earned, on 17 hits with 68 strikeouts and 13 walks.
Opposing hitters managed just four extra base hits against him and had a .145 average.
Uhalde, a 2016 second-team all-state winner, posted a batting average of .494 on the season with 40 hits in 81 plate appearances. Uhalde led the Rangers in runs scored (43), drove in 16, popped eight doubles, three triples and swiped 37 bases on 37 attempts.
In his 99 official at-bats, Uhalde walked 14 times, had an on-base percentage of .576 and a slugging percentage of .667.
Keever hit .391 overall with 41 runs scored, 40 RBIs and 20 stolen bases.
He led the team with two home runs, added 11 doubles and tied for the team lead with three triples.
Keever also led the team in walks, with 16 for an on-base percentage of .538 and a team-leading slugging percentage of .724.
Added to that trio, the Rangers have outfield depth in Josh Brown, Joe Turk, Cayton Sinay, Tanner Masterson, Louis Red Cloud, Mercedes Waters, Seth Harvey and Jake Dollarhide.
Hagen Pence will see time at catcher and infield, Trevor Phetteplace is penciled in for first base and designated hitter, Tabor McLaughlin will pitch and play infield, and newcomer Russell Peters gets the majority of time behind the plate and on the mound, as Dufur could throw eight pitchers at any time this season.
“We have a lot of pitchers,” said Dufur coach C.S. Little. “We had to throw a lot of kids last year and that gave them experience on the mound in varsity games. That will go a long way, especially with this pitch count thing. We will be more of a pitch-by-committee team, more so than we have done in the past. We will do more of that, this way we can have quality pitching available in league games. It changes the dynamic, but I think we are prepared for it.”
Last year, Dufur scored 196 runs and ranked in the upper third of the 2A classification, surpassing 10 runs or more 10 times.
With Uhalde, Keever and Bales making up the top-3 hitters, the rest of the batting order is expected to drive in runners and put some runs on the board.
“We will need to continue batting practice and get consistent with our swings and hopefully it pays off this season,” Keever said. “This team has a lot of potential this year with Hagen back from his injury and all of our starters returning with skill and maturity.”
The 10-team Blue Mountain Conference should be very competitive this season, with Sherman, Pilot Rock, Weston-McEwen, Dufur and Grant Union fighting for the top spots.
Culver, Elgin, Heppner, Union and Wheeler will also figure to be threats during the regular season.
“Our league is super competitive this year and there is no clear favorite,” Bales said. “Our mentality going in to every game should be that we are going to play to the best of our ability in every game. If we come in with that mindset, we should succeed.”
Coach Little and his assistant coach Dean Dollarhide know the talent is there, and that the potential is limitless.
Little is not going add any pressure, however, as his goal is to get his team playing at their highest level in May.
“I never try to put the monkey on their back with expectations,” Little said. “I just try to see how we can improve and be the best that we can be. We don’t really talk about that this is our year or whatever because, quite often, there are a lot of things that go into that, beyond baseball even. We don’t go to that approach. We just try to improve our game each and every day. As the season progresses, typically, if you improve, you do well.”
Dufur heads to 3A Riverside for a game starting at 4 p.m. on Monday.
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