Wildcats again feature a good blend of youth, experience

By the time you read this, the Kentville Wildcats senior baseball team will have played its first game, with three more to come within 24 hours this weekend.

The Wildcats should once again have one of the better teams in the Nova Scotia Senior Baseball League in 2008, with a good blend of youth and experience, talent and depth.

A year ago, Kentville stumbled to a 3-12 start, something they will be looking to avoid this time around as they set their sights on a top-two (or better) finish in the standings.

They successfully righted the ship in the second half of the 2007 schedule and were arguably the league’s hottest team in the second half - not only making the playoffs but reaching the league final, for a second straight year, before losing to Dartmouth.

One main reason the Wildcats have been able to stay competitive over the past several years is a strong core of veteran (and young veteran) players, most of whom are returning for at least one more season, combined with an infusion of youth at several key positions.

Mike King has retired, and his veteran leadership - not to mention his hitting skills and keen batting eye at the top of the line-up - will be difficult to replace. At the same time, King’s replacement in centrefield, Rob Shepherd, should provide a boost defensively and, playing full-time, has the potential to mature into a decent all-round, senior-level player.

The departure of head coach Chris Salsman after three successful seasons (in which he was NSSBL coach of the year twice and tied for the award the third year) will also be a loss. I personally felt Salsman did an admirable job, especially last season, when he engineered a torrid second-half run to secure a playoff berth.

Jeff Lockhart takes over as head coach this season. The eldest of three baseball-playing brothers, Jeff, like Salsman, has a keen baseball mind, and has served notice he will be a firm but fair leader, a necessary trait when coaching former teammates. Unlike Salsman, who was forced to retire as a player due to injury, Lockhart is still able to play should the occasion arise, thus improving the team’s overall depth.

Veterans like Luke Smith, Ian and Mike Lockhart, Ian Mosher, Les Berry, Curtis Falls, Jason Pleasant-Sampson and pitcher Kevin Nichols all know how to win.

Younger players like Nick Hill, Ryan Pearl (back after a year’s absence), Ryan Brothers (scheduled to rejoin the team in July), Kevin Benjamin and Brad Steadman, an impact player the past several seasons in Hantsport; are all capable all-round performers.

In Nichols, Falls, Corey Kent, Mike Sponagle, veteran Kevin Daurie and newcomer Lee Spares, the Wildcats have six capable pitchers. Help, if needed, is just a phone call away in Hantsport, with which Kentville is affiliated, in the persons of Jeff Bishop (who may split time between the two teams) and Matt Lloy; to name just two.

Jason Shepherd, if available to play, and Alex Tufts, when he is home, are also capable pitchers and can play other positions as well.

In today’s NSSBL, it’s not always necessary to have great pitching depth given the length of the league’s schedule (29 games) but, on the flipside, it’s often hard to maintain good continuity without regular work.

As well, the weather is always iffy, especially early (and late) in the season and, every so often, the schedule gangs up on you with six games in nine days - like the Wildcats have to start the season.

There is added incentive for the Wildcats in reaching the league final for a third straight year. With Dartmouth hosting nationals in 2009, both teams in this year’s final will earn berths at nationals, which couldn’t be any closer unless they were in Kentville.

It remains to be seen how the Wildcats will perform in 2008 but, on paper at least, all the pieces seem to be in place for a successful season. Of course, as any serious baseball fan knows, games are played on grass, not paper.