Sinclair baseball coach Steve Dintaman couldn’t complain too much after watching his team win 11 of its first 12 games.
“We knew we were playing a very tough schedule,” Dintaman said. “With the sophomore leadership we have and the good freshman players we have, we knew we were capable of winning all of those games.”
Dintaman still sees weaknesses and addressed the areas he still feels the Pride need to work on to improve.
“Base running has been OK at best-reading pitchers and stealing bases,” he said. “We know we could do better at that, as well.”
Dintaman acknowledged the obvious production the Pride has given with their bats, but the second-year coach said Sinclair’s starting pitching contributed to the Pride’s fast start.
“Starting pitching has been phenomenal,” Dintaman said. “That has been by far the best thing I’ve seen. With a younger staff and only about two or three guys with experience in college, I expected that to be one of our struggles early on.”
Pitching coach Ryan Hill has helped improve the younger players, Dinataman said.
“He’s really done a phenomenal job with the staff,” he said. “Yeah, we score a ton of runs. But you can’t say enough about what (the pitching staff) has done so far. Most of the credit goes to coach Hill.”
Tough weekend for the Pride
Sinclair had a hard time continuing its winning ways in Gallatin, Tenn. The Pride lost their first three games of a five-game set with Volunteer State Community College. Sinclair came back and took the final two games, outscoring Volunteer State 17-7.
All-American out
Sinclair catcher Corey Throckmorton will miss the remainder of the 2009 season after tearing his ulnar collateral ligament in his shoulder last month, according to Dintaman. Throckmorton earned an All-American nod last season after hitting .368 with 5 home runs and 35 RBI’s in 38 games.
Catcher John Lydic has stepped in Throckmorton’s role with ease. Through 11 games, Lydic hit .472, drove in 11 RBI’s and is second on the team in total bases with 24. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Kent State transfer has also spent time at first base and designated hitter.
Lydic transferred to Sinclair during winter break and has blended in nicely with the team chemistry, Dintaman said.
“I expect a lot from him since he played in the MAC (Metro Athletic Conference) as a freshman,” he said. “He’s an easy going guy who the guys like a lot.”