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Cardinal Stritch baseball coach Greg Christian has no issues playing small ball.
The Cardinals, he said, will bunt in the first inning. They'll bunt with their No. 1 hitter, their cleanup hitter or their No. 9 hitter if it advances base runners and scores runs.
For the most part, that strategy has worked for Stritch this season. Through May 3, the Cardinals were 9-6 and 3-2 in the Toledo Area Athletic Conference due in large part to a .411 team batting average.
“We try to score a run an inning,” Christian said. “We'll bunt any time, in any situation, especially early. I expect everybody on our team to get a bunt down, if its the ninth man or the fourth man. Our program philosophy is, little things win big games. We're hitting the ball pretty good right now.”
This year's squad only has 11 players and just two seniors in Matt Guy and Tim Langlois. The Cardinals don't hit for power; in fact, sophomore catcher Cody Kuch has the team's only home run this season.
“Our (player) numbers are really small this year, but the kids are working really hard,” Christian said. “We have some big wins over some bigger schools. Our team is mostly made up of sophomores and they're getting thrown right into the fire.”
Stritch has conference wins over Ottawa Hills, Danbury and Emmanuel Christian and two TAAC losses to Toledo Christian. The 17-13 win over Ottawa Hills on April 7 was especially sweet for the Cardinals, according to Christian.
“We haven't beaten them in probably five or six years,” he said. “That was huge for us. Ottawa Hills has a great facility with a great program and a great coach. It was a big eye-opener for us, and it might have been for them, too. We had 17 hits and we were down four runs twice in that game.”
Junior center fielder/pitcher Mike Blazevich leads the team in hitting with a .479 average, with 19 runs and 11 RBI. He is also 8-for-9 in steals.
“He's fearless on the bases,” Christian said. “He's got great speed and great instincts on the bases. He's not afraid to take the extra base on you. Hitting-wise, he's been on lately. He had a couple of great doubleheaders on Saturdays. He was 5-for-7 against Rogers and Rossford, 3-for-5 against Woodward and 5-for-6 against Waite.”
Kuch, who hit .327 last year as a third baseman/DH, is hitting .476 with 12 runs and a team-high 17 RBI.
“This is his first year going behind the plate,” Christian said. “He wasn't real crazy about doing it at first, but he's doing a nice job. He still has some learning to do, but he's doing a great job learning. He's a baseball player. He is always thinking about a situation - how to get a runner over or get a run in.”
Guy, who is 1-0 on the mound, is hitting .437 with 16 runs, 12 RBI and four stolen bases.
“Matt's a pretty versatile kid for us,” Christian said. “He's played second, short, third and pitched a little bit. He came in and got some big outs in the Ottawa Hills game. He's a heady kid. He'll always do what you ask of him and he thinks about the team first.”
Sophomore right-hander Robbie Beiker is the Cardinals No. 1 pitcher. He is 3-2 with a 3.13 ERA in 29 innings, with 26 strikeouts and four walks. Beiker is also hitting .400 out of the No. 9 spot.
“He's got the potential to be a very good pitcher before he leaves here,” Christian said. “Robbie is tall and lanky and he's all arms and legs right now. He's got three pitches, but his fastball doesn't overpower you. The thing I like about him is he throws strikes. He's not out there to nibble. He's got a good curveball and an excellent knuckleball and he gets a lot of ground ball outs.”
Langlois, a DH who also pitches and plays first and second base, is hitting .418 with 13 RBI, 12 runs and four steals. Langlois played left field last season out of necessity, Christian said.
“Tim is a slap hitter who makes great contact and is an excellent second-hole hitter,” the coach said. “We don't have a whole lot of power, so we have to do the little things.”
Junior third baseman Derek Scott, who transferred from St. Francis de Sales two years ago, is also having a solid season. Scott is batting .341 with 10 runs and eight RBI.
“He's been playing an excellent third base for us,” Christian said. “He has a great arm over there. Overall, he's been doing a great job.”
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