After a disappointing end to the season last year, the Tigers will look to make the leap and get to the Region tournament. They finished the 2015 campaign 11-15 and second place in the regular season. Gordonsville was exceptionally young last year as 7 underclassmen played important roles throughout the year. However, the Tigers youth and injuries hampered them in the post season. Gordonsville was three outs away from advancing to regional play for the first time in 15 years. Hopefully with a year of experience under their belts, the 2016 Gordonsville Tigers will be able to make that trip to the Region tournament in May.
The 2016 Gordonsville Tigers have great potential, but will they be able to live up to this hype? Coach Petty had this to say about the Tigers, “We must learn to work harder than everyone, and pay attention to the small details. If we take care of the little things, the big things will take care of their self. We must learn to compete under pressure every single day in practice, I feel one of our downfalls over the past years has been our inability to handle the pressure of the tournament. We feel like the strength of our team this year will be our pitching depth and defense. We have several pitchers who we feel have the ability to throw effective against anyone we face and give us a chance to be competitive. We have 16 players throwing bullpens at this time and 8 of them we know can be effective and the other 8 we will need to see in more of a live situation. We will return the bulk of our infield as only our third baseman graduated, and our outfield, which was probably our deepest area last year, as we return 6 players who got valuable experience last year.”
The 2016 Tiger coaching staff will consist of Mac Petty, Davy Baker, and Jacob Woodard. Head Coach Mac Petty begins his 15th season at the helm of the Tigers. “Coach Davy Baker will be in his 5th year helping the Tiger program. He is in charge of the outfield and has done a tremendous job of working the young men and getting them in the right position” stated Petty. “Coach Jacob Woodard is a former player and senior at Cumberland University, where upon graduation he will be a certified athletic trainer. He has overseen our pitching staff during the offseason and works daily with the pitchers and catchers to help with fundamentals and arm care. Jacob brings a lot of energy and enthusiasm to this team, which will be needed if they look to make the jump to the Region tournament” Petty concluded.
When asked about his assistants Coach Petty responded, “Coach Baker and Coach Woodard are both volunteers, and their help each and every day helps out our program tremendously. The fact that they are all willing to do so without any compensation shows how much the program and the players mean to them. There is no way that I could do so without their help.”
The 2016 Tigers consists of 20 players, all looking to compete for a starting position. With District 8-A being tough once again, the amount of talent on this roster will play to the Tigers’ strength in 2016. Below are Coach Petty’s thoughts on each of the young men.
Gordonsville Baseball Seniors:
#8 Jack Pitman Senior IF: “Jack played second base and was a Designated Hitter (DH) most of last year. Jack had some huge clutch hits as he had three game winning hits early in the year. We will need Jack to be a positive leader for us this year, and we will need a good year at the plate out of him.”
#9 John Taylor Johnson OF/P: “John Taylor has fully recovered from Tommy John Surgery that took place during the middle of last season. John Taylor was having a strong season on the mound before his injury, as he was 3-0 with a 0.95 ERA before his injury. We are hoping John Taylor can pick up where he left off last year. He will also compete for a spot in the outfield this year.”
#25 Jake Pierce OF: “Jake was a huge surprise for us last year. He led our team in almost every statistical category, making First Team All-District and TBCA All-Region (All Classes). Jake batted .429 last year, and his aggressive defensive play was a huge asset to our team. We will need Jake to be a positive leader this year both on and off the field if we are planning on improving as a team.”
#33 Lake Underwood IF/P: “Lake has all the tools to be exceptional. He had a strong finish last year earning First Team All-District where he batted .360. Lake has been solid on the mound for us as he consistently throws strikes and gives us an opportunity to win by not walking people. We will need a big year out of Lake both offensively and defensively, and he will need to grow into more of a leadership role.”
Gordonsville Baseball Juniors:
#2 Justin Vaden C: “Justin was hampered with ankle injuries for most of last season. Justin has a strong arm and gets rid of the ball very well. He has worked on controlling the game and the pitchers during the off-season. Last year Justin batted .322 and was named to the TBR Super Sophomore Team. We will need Justin to have a good year defensively behind the plate and offensively for us to take the next step.”
#5 Luke Blackburn IF/P: “Luke took a line drive off the hand while pitching early in the year last season. I felt his confidence was shaken somewhat. Luke has a solid glove…if he gets to the ball, it is usually caught. Luke will compete in our infield and could play third, second, or short. We need Luke’s bat to improve, but defensively we feel very confident in him.”
#6 Bobby Parliment 1B/P: “Bobby was hampered with injuries last year as he was unable to bat for most of the season, but still was able to be named to the TBR Super Sophomore Team. Bobby understands the game and has a tremendous skill set. We will need Bobby to be healthy this year, and we will also need him to provide some innings for us on the mound.”
#28 Devin Goodwin OF: “Devin is a good outfielder with good speed. Devin has worked extremely hard this off-season and will compete for an outfield spot this year, and I feel confident about Devin’s abilities. He is working on his hitting and is getting much better. Devin has a strong work ethic, and I believe that is one of his best traits.”
#42 Mitchell Kirby OF: “Mitchell played centerfield most of last year, before suffering a wrist injury a few days before the District Tournament. Kirby made the TBR Super Sophomore Team last year as he batted .308. Mitchell takes good angles at cutting balls off, but we need him to be a little more aggressive and trust his speed this year.”
Gordonsville Baseball Sophomores:
#3 Hunter Davis OF/P: “Hunter has had a great summer and fall, and he has really improved. At times last year, Hunter pitched exceptionally well, we just need him to relax and trust his ability once he gets on the field. Hunter will compete for an outfield spot. He also has the stuff to be in the top of our rotation.”
#4 Nathaniel Hall IF/OF/P: “Nathaniel has plus speed and a ton of ability. Once he learns to work on improving his tools, he could become special. Nathaniel played in the infield some for us last year and also pitched. He had some strong outings on the mound and could also push to get into the top part of our rotation. Defensively he could play many positions, we just need to see where he will best help us.”
#14 Britt Dillard 1B/OF/P: “Britt has gotten stronger since last year. His arm has improved, and he is hitting the ball much better. Being left handed, Britt is limited in the spots he can play. We plan on seeing how well he can move in the outfield, and how well he can pitch to see where he can help us the most. However, Britt is going to have to work on his speed in order to be able to contribute.”
#18 Leith McKinney IF/P: “Leith improved on the mound. He has a strong arm, and once he learns to use his lower half we will see huge improvements in his velocity and control. Leith will compete for time on the mound as we look for him to emerge as a reliever and a late week starter. Right now, Leith’s biggest holdback is his confidence and putting the past behind him.”
Gordonsville Baseball Freshman:
#10 Brady Hunt IF/P: “Brady has a good foundation. His mechanics are sound, and he possesses a good understanding of the game. He will work in the middle of our infield, and as Brady develops physically, we are looking for big things out of him.”
#11 Jim Anstis IF/P: “Jim has very good command on the mound and has worked extremely hard on developing his secondary pitches. We feel like Jim can give us some quality innings of relief work and some weekend starts this year.”
#16 Hunter Mann OF/P: “Hunter showed the ability to be a solid pitcher last year in Junior High. He has a good presence on the mound. As he continues to speed up his delivery, we feel like he will be able to provide us with some quality innings on the mound.”
#21 Logan Hawks IF/P: “Logan comes to us from Lebanon. He had some arm problems last year, but he is coming along well. We are looking forward to seeing Logan get on the field and see where he will best help us.”
#22 Adam Goolsby C/P: “Adam is one of the most fundamentally sound players I have coached in any sport. He has a good baseball IQ and handles the pitching staff extremely well. We look forward to seeing him perform and grow in the program.”
#23 Joey Parliment IF/P: “Joey started at shortstop the majority of last year as an 8th grader. He has good speed and understands the game extremely well. We will need Joey to have a good year for us this year, as with a year’s experience under his belt, we expect big improvements this year.”
#34 Matthew Thompson OF/P: “Matthew had a good year in Junior High last year and transitioned into the outfield well. He has gained considerable speed and has a good bat. We feel as if Matthew will grow into a good ball player for us.”
