Chartiers Valley baseball leans on senior-heavy roster
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Saturday, April 14, 2018 | 12:06 AM
Like every other baseball team in the WPIAL, Chartiers Valley is behind in its development thanks to the persistent damp, wintry weather. Coach Curt Cairns isn't fretting, however.
Cairns, in fact, talks as if the playoffs are a given.
His confidence lies in a senior-heavy, playoff-tested roster. Two seasons ago, the current seniors were sophomores when the Colts captured the WPIAL Class AAA title. Last season, that same group came up one game short of getting a chance to defend the title, losing to eventual WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A champion Latrobe, 2-1, in the WPIAL semifinals.
“Once we push into the playoffs, we have all the tools and a lot of experience in the playoffs,” he said.
Until the season finally gets into a normal rhythm, Cairns will rely on the offense to buttress a pitching staff that, just three games into the season as of April 11, is still getting its sea legs.
Seven starting position players return: left fielder Steve Alauzen, center fielder Konnor Corchado, right fielder David Verduci, third baseman Caysen O'Keefe, shortstop Zack Pilossoph, second baseman Hunter Gordon and catcher Reed Bruggeman.
Jason Orzechowski has been seeing the lion's share of time at first, though, Cairns said, he has others capable of playing there if needed.
The pitching staff is led by junior Connor Barrett and senior Corchado. Barrett, who also plays outfield, figured to be part of the regular rotation last season but suffered a broken hand.
Corchado, meanwhile, is much improved after an offseason in which, Cairns said, he became a more complete pitcher. He added a changeup and curve to his repertoire, and though Cairns said Corchado still needs to smooth some rough edges, the makings of an effective pitcher are there.
“We worked a lot on his delivery,” Cairns said. “We wanted him to deliver more downhill and wanted to make the plane of the ball harder to hit. He comes a little more over the top.”
Jake Lindow gives the Colts another capable starter, something that will come in handy when games inevitably log jam as the team plays catch-up with the schedule. Cairns said the staff's depth likely will be tested in nonsection games but believes the top of the rotation will be reliable.
“We have good, young arms and some good senior arms,” he said, “but they're unproven. I hope as we get down the stretch, these arms will be proven by then.”
Colts pitchers have the luxury of savvy catcher Bruggeman handling them. Cairns raved about Bruggeman's work with the staff.
“He knows when to call timeout and when to talk to them,” he said. “He's constantly watching for errors in their mechanics. He's just a fantastic catcher defensively.”
The Colts (1-2 as of April 11) split their first two section games, losing to Moon, 7-1, on April 10, and beating Montour, 9-3, on April 6.
Cairns is being patient as he and his players wait for spring weather to stick around. Once they begin playing with regularity, Cairns said, everything should fall into place.
“You're forced to learn in your section games,” he said. “They haven't been out there enough to get that in-game experience. It's hit and miss right now, but I expect us to be more consistent as we progress through the season for sure.”
Chuck Curti is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at ccurti@tribweb.com or via Twitter @CCurti_Trib.
Tags: Chartiers Valley
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