As the winter sports season comes to a close and warm weather approaches, the spring sports season kicked off at Kent County High School Monday, March 2nd.
The Varsity baseball team introduced Mike Iseman as the new head coach for the 2020 season. Iseman formerly coached the team for several years, but relinquished his duties following the 2016 season, when his oldest son, Josh, was a junior on the team.
Iseman now has another son on the squad. Noah Iseman, first baseman and Bayside leader in batting average last season as a sophomore, committed to play Division 1 college baseball at Radford University over the offseason. Senior outfielder and pitcher Peyton Taylor joined Noah in commitment since last season, announcing he will attend Division 3 Cabrini University.
The Radford commit will miss some time to start the 2020 season due to a hand injury. Coach Iseman says 4-6 weeks is the likely time frame for a return.
The injury creates a hole in what should have been a crowded infield for the Trojans. Senior Kenny Fowler will anchor the shortstop position, but the rest is up for grabs. Senior Buddy Welch and junior Dean Sipe will split time at third base, but both could also be used to fill in for Iseman at first base. Both Welch and Sipe are also among the Trojan’s best pitchers, which gives the coaching staff limited options on what to do at both corner infield spots.
Second base is another question mark, with potentially five players competing for the starting spot. The likely choice is sophomore Connor Dean, who spent most of last season in the outfield but did impress in short stints at second base towards the end of last season. Some other options include sophomore Collin Futty, who played mostly third base for the Junior Varsity team as a freshman, and senior Logan Cannon, who is coming off a hand injury of his own suffered during the basketball season. Two longshot options are senior Brendan McColigan, who looks to make a return to baseball having last played his sophomore season, but may look to compete for the 4th outfield spot instead. Junior Cameron Troup has also gotten looks at second base, but will most likely serve as Fowler’s backup at shortstop.
The Trojans outfield is less confusing, with three options distancing themselves from the rest. Junior Gary Emory is essentially locked in at centerfield due to his speed and range, and seniors Peyton Taylor and Taylor Lyons will man the corner outfield positions. Junior Ian Walters may also see some time in the outfield, but the bulk of his work will be behind the plate.
Kent County’s pitching staff looks to be the strongest it has been in years. Taylor, Welch, and Sipe headline the rotation, followed by relief options such as Walters, Emory, Futty, and Cannon. Coach Iseman has also stressed that underclassmen have a chance to earn a spot on the Varsity team if they can provide quality innings on the mound.
The Trojans kick off their season at Pocomoke March 20th, and play their first of nine home games March 23rd against Snow Hill.
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