If there is a team across the 2A/1A baseball landscape that is primed to take steps forward, it is the Dufur Rangers.
During the 2014 campaign, Dufur went 23-7, had five players post batting averages of .400 or higher and scored the state’s fourth-highest total of 327 runs.
Added to those accomplishments, for the third time in program history the Rangers earned a spot in the quarterfinals and had their second state victory.
Head coach C.S. Little is hoping his squad can continue its momentum.
“We have five returning starters out of the nine returning players,” Little said. “We have had several reserves from last year mature into good ball players. This group is intent on keeping pace with the high standards of our program.”
Looking to duplicate last season’s numbers will be a tough chore, as Blue Mountain Conference Player of the Year, Cole Parke and all-leaguers Josh Keyser and Nathan Duling are gone.
However, Nick Little, Connor Uhalde, Trever Tibbets, Bryson Caldwell and Jake Kortge represent a formidable offensive group.
Tibbets had a .433 average with six home runs, 12 doubles, a team-high four triples, a team-high 52 RBIs and 38 runs scored.
He finished with 10 stolen bases and enjoyed a .798 slugging percentage, second on the team.
Kortge enters his senior campaign coming off a .350 batting average with one home run, seven doubles, 32 runs and 36 RBIs.
The catcher walked 13 times and went 9 of 10 on stolen bases with an on-base percentage of .439.
Nick Little hit .266, scored 23 runs, drove in 24 and smacked three home runs, and Caldwell, a shortstop, added a .392 with 38 runs scored and 30 RBIs to go with 13 doubles.
In 102 plate appearances, the senior struck out five times and went 9 for 9 on stolen bases. He also had an on-base average of .492.
Uhalde, a second baseman, had a .345 average with 15 RBIs, 20 runs scored and an on-base percentage of .435.
In addition, Bailey Keever, Curtis Crawford, Hagen Pence, Kolbe Bales, Ben Anderson and seniors Zach Knapp and Brent Sumner are expected to make all-around contributions to the Rangers’ efforts.
As in any sport, teamwork is critical to long-term success on the diamond.
“We have the philosophy that it takes a total team effort to accomplish great things into the postseason,” coach Little said. “No player is greater than the whole.”
With a pitching staff that surrendered 82 earned runs during the season and had an earned run average of 3.05, Tibbets and Caldwell will likely shoulder the bulk of the innings from the mound.
Tibbets is coming off a season in which he had an ERA of 2.78 and gave up 45 hits in 55 1/3 innings.
He struck out 50, walked 19 and 22 of the 37 runs allowed were earned.
Caldwell had a 2.19 ERA and he struck out 32, walked 10 and gave up 12 earned runs in 38 1/3 innings pitched.
As many as five others are also available to throw, so there is no shortage of arm depth, Little added.
Although Dufur is without its senior trio, Pence and Crawford are two freshmen who can play several positions.
Coach Little is impressed by what he has seen.
“They both have solid arms and great work ethic,” coach Little said. “Pence has proven to be useful at a number of positions, which would allow us to use him as a utility player.”
Helping Pence, Crawford and the other four underclassmen along will be six seniors, so the veterans will be within reach to aid in the acclimation process.
“We are in the business of annually replacing our senior leadership and this year is no different,” coach Little said. “We have six seniors to provide this.”
Every year, the Blue Mountain Conference is loaded with talented teams such as Pilot Rock, Weston-McEwen, Heppner, Irrigon and Sherman.
Coach Little anticipates the same thing this season.
Last year, Weston-McEwen lost to Monroe 2-1 in the state title game.
“Sherman County returns a large number of players and I expect them to do well,” coach Little said. “Culver has now entered our league. Irrigon, Pilot Rock and Heppner should all battle on the other side.”
Regardless of who does well during the season, coach Little has his attention placed on what his team does.
“With seven pitchers on the roster and a host of solid sticks, we intend to field a highly competitive lineup with no holes in it,” the coach said. “Focus on improving each day will be paramount in reaching our goals.”
Dufur heads to Riverside for a non-league tilt at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
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