BonnerSprings.com

Nick Bates

Staff Writer

No matter if a baseball player is in little league, high school, or the major leagues, the weeks of practice leading up to the first pitch can be agonizing.

That first pitch, the crack of the bat and the thumping of leather as the ball hits the glove help slam that final nail in the coffin that is known as winter.

Preseason practice is a time when coaches aren't sure of what they have, but they do know they have a clean slate and are zero games out of first place.

The preseason is a time to be optimistic -behavior accepted in baseball more than in any other sport. This emotion can galvanize a team allowing it to perform beyond the players' wildest expectations.

That is what Bonner Springs baseball coach Rick Moulin wants out of his team this season.

The Braves will have their work cut out for them in the Kaw Valley League, a league that routinely produces college players and state champions.

The last time BSHS won a KVL title was 1997. The team won its last regional title in 1995.

While history might not be on their side, Moulin is excited about his team. The team is young, but experienced.

"We have a lot of returning lettermen this year," Moulin said. "We only lost two seniors from last year, and have only two seniors this year. That leaves us with a lot of juniors and sophomores that are experienced."

As he assesses the team and looks forward to the first games of the season, he wants the players to not have any regrets when the season is over.

"We talk about this every year," Moulin said. "We don't measure our success on wins and losses as much as if we did everything within our power to put ourselves in a position to win a baseball game."

BSHS senior Kevin DeVore is focused on that approach.

"We need to make improvements to be better than we were last year," he said. "We are working together as one. We're really bonding."

Chance Crawford is one of the Braves' top returning players. He was a second team All Kaw Valley League selection last season and said he has a little more responsibility as a junior this season.

"I need to be more vocal this year, more of a leader," he said.

The team is focusing on fundamentals in practice, which will help it compete this season, Crawford said.

"Last year we practiced really well, but that didn't always translate over to the games," he said. "We are working really hard. I can't wait to play."

Younger players on the team are learning from Moulin the importance of playing hard and sticking with a play senior Ryan Bush said.

"(We need to) take little steps to make sure we are playing our best baseball at the end of the year," Bush said.

Bush is another Braves' player who is eager to play a game.

He is returning from an ankle injury that he suffered last baseball season that sidelined him for several months. Now, he is back and ready to go for this season - so ready that he stayed late Monday night raking the infield dirt in an attempt to get it dry enough for practice.

Bush's hard work and a little sunshine allowed for the field to dry enough so the Braves could take infield practice Tuesday.

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