Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season

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  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
  • Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
    Cordell’s Boys Of Summer Looking For Surprising Season
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After graduating five of nine starters last year, the 2020 season looked to be a rebuilding year for Cordell baseball. But the rapid development of some of his younger players and the addition of new blood to the team leaves Coach Bobby Blackburn thinking Cordell’s boys of summer might just surprise a few teams this season.

Blackburn’s team has four returning starters, all juniors this year, and all of whom the coach expects to make tremendous impacts on the diamond.

Dane Corbin and Brady Reimer, the team’s speed demons, will anchor the outfield, just as they did last year.

“Brady is picking up right where he left off last season,” Blackburn said. “He’s running down everything in the outfield. He’s one of the hardest working kids you’ll ever find and now he’s stepping up and showing leadership out there.”

“Dane is a three-year starter for us, is there much else to say?” he added. “He’s had some shoulder trouble, but he thinks he’ll be able to play through it.”

Ryan Neeley will resume his post on first base while sharing duties on the pitching mound.

“He’s a lot smoother and more relaxed now,” Blackburn said about Neeley. “he’s more mature, more confident. He’s a left-handed pitcher, which helps us a lot. He’s also very versatile at the plate.”

The last returning starter is Raydon Kuehne, who will anchor the infield at short stop while also tackling pitching duties.

“What do you say about Raydon? Whatever you’re doing he’s going to give it the best he has,” Blackburn said. “His pitch control looks great. He’s a very intelligent pitcher and while he starts at short stop he can play anywhere.”

Juniors Adden Zanghi and Parker Johnson are also returning to the Blue Devils lineup after taking a year off to pursue other activities. Blackburn has also added junior Bode Gallagher to the team, listed as a first baseman on the roster.

In addition to the juniors, the roster also includes eight sophomores and a freshman, giving Blackburn a deep dugout to rely on during this year’s packed schedule.Of those 17 players, Blackburn has eight or nine he expects to spend time on the pitching mound.

The Blue Devils have 17 games on the schedule, excluding tournament play at the Shortgrass Conference Tournament and the Hinton Tournament. Fourteen of those games are against conference opponents, which impact the standing of the team when it comes time for the playoffs.

Under a new format, the class is divided into eight eight-team districts. For the playoffs, each district will be paired with a neighboring district and placed in a power-protect three-game series. The top finisher in each will play three games against the bottom finisher in the partner district, number two will play number seven, and so on. The top four seeds will host the three-game series. The winners advance to the next round.

While it’s still a bit early to be talking about the playoffs, Blackburn said he’s really excited to see where his team goes this season.

“They’ve got me fired up,” he said. “We’ve had nothing but great effort from everyone. Everybody is involved in everything, they’re really unselfish and working for each other. It sounds cliche, but I’m excited. The attitude the kids came in with is contagious. Everything’s falling into place much quicker than I expected, they’re working their tails off. I think we will compete with everyone on our schedule. I’m not saying we’re going to win every game, but I see us surprising some people this season.”