As incredible as the numbers put up by Ozark’s Rylan Sutton and Glendale’s Brady Yates have been going into this week’s Class 6 District 6 tourney, they actually could have even better stats, if not for both having been intentionally walked by opponents.
Yates, in particular, has not been allowed to swing his bat in numerous plate appearances. He has drawn a total of 37 intentional and unintentional walks.
When Sutton has received a free pass, he’s not let it frustrate him, feeling confident teammates Luke Baer, Stanley Brice, Jared Dalton or Caden O’Donnell will bring him home.
"If I don’t get to swing the bat during an AB, I’ve got to keep the energy up,” Sutton said of an intentional walk. "It’s an opportunity. You can turn one bag into two and two bags into three. I can steal a base and get myself into scoring position for the guys behind me.”
In Sutton’s second at-bat against Nixa two weeks ago, the Eagles chose to put him on base with a runner on second and first base open. Two batters later, Brice belted a three-run homer and the Tigers went on to win 5-4.
“Nixa put me on and Stanley hit a three-run jack,” Sutton said. “So, you can pitch around me if you want, but it’s not going to help. I think (an intentional walk) motivates the guys hitting behind me.
"This is a team I don’t have to do everything myself," he added. "If I’m not at my best, my teammates are going to be at their best. We’re always looking out for each other and playing for each other.”
“Rylan plays with so much confidence and is so talented,” coach Justin Sundlie said. “His great year has elevated the guys around him.”
Springfield Central, of all teams, didn’t give Yates a chance to hit at all during Glendale’s 15-0 rout of the hapless Bulldogs.
Central likely would have done the same to Sutton, but he didn’t play in Ozark’s 20-0 romp of the Bulldogs so he could attend his sister’s college graduation ceremony.
Yates and Sutton have numbers that already rank among the state’s best hitters all-time.
Yates has a .456 batting average with 14 home runs and 57 RBIs. The MSU commit is chasing the state’s single-season RBI record of 63
Sutton has collected 11 home runs, 10 triples and six doubles. His 27 extra-base hits are in the top 10 statewide all-time. The state record is 33.
Sutton arguably is enjoying the best season any Ozark hitter has ever put together.
After an injury-plagued sophomore season, it’s been a fulfilling junior year for the left-hander and Ole Miss commit.
“This is what I've been working for since I was a little kid,” Sutton said. “To be able to play like this for a team like this is something special."
Ozark;'s new turf field wasn't enough to keep today’s four first-round games from being pushed back to Wednesday due to rain.
The Joplin-Ozark matchup could pit two future Pitt State pitchers against each other in Baer and Joplin’s Brecken Green.
The Tigers also have O’Donnell as a viable option to start on the mound.
“We have two good options,” Sundlie said. “I’d be pleased to put either one of them out there.”
In Baer’s last two starts, Ozark beat Nixa and Springfield Catholic.
Green was part of Joplin’s District championship team a year ago. He was the winning pitcher in the Eagles’ 4-1 first-round victory versus Neosho.
Wednesday's schedule calls for Branson-Nixa at 11 a.m., Joplin-Ozark at 1:30 p.m., Republic-Glendale at 4 p.m. and Neosho-Kickapoo.
Interestingly, the starting times for Branson-Nixa and Republic-Glendale were flip-flopped from the original schedule, even though semifinals were originally scheduled Wednedsay afternoon.
Semifinals are now on tap at 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Thursday and the championship game at 5 Friday.
Class 5 District 6 soccer semifinals will also be held at Ozark on Thursday, with Nixa and Kickapoo playing at 4 p.m. and Ozark and Glendale meeting at 6 p.m.
