The expectations are always there. It’s Jesup, Gerogia, and at Bo Harmon Field the Yellow Jackets know how to play America’s favorite pastime. Wayne County has always thrived on the diamond; even so, Yellow Jackets head baseball coach Justin McDonald knows that his boys will get there between now and May.
“We have been struggling to put a complete game together,” McDonald said. “We are continuing to put the pieces together to have this thing fine-tuned come the month of May.”
You can’t accuse the Yellow Jackets of padding the schedule because they are going to play the best teams they can schedule early and late and pick up here and there in non-conference play.
Through nine games Wayne hit around .312 as a team and banged out 44 hits in 144 plate appearances. That’s not exactly power numbers, but McDonald knows the hitting always comes around. What really sticks out for Wayne is their staff ERA. Wayne’s pitching staff has a combined 2.08 ERA through nine games, which is impressive at any level for any pitching staff.
“Pitching has been one of our strengths this season,” McDonald said. “Coming in we thought there would be a lot of questions as to what this staff could do, but they have responded. I thought we have pitched well enough to win some of the games that we have lost. The only negative that we have is we are walking too many guys, and a lot of those are coming in crucial situations.”
Wayne took a pair of games from Long County with a 32-run differential. After run ruling Brantley the first time, the Yellow Jackets clung to a one-run victory. The losses have been to some strong teams. A pair of one-run losses to Jones 7-6 and Savannah Christian 3-2 were tough to take. Camden County shut out Wayne 5-0, and Effingham beat them 6-1.
“Offensively, we have a few guys that are carrying the load and producing,” McDonald said. “Mason Robertson and Ford Townsend are carrying the load right now. However, we have to continue to work in this aspect of the game and put together a lineup that is going to be competitive top to bottom.”
Wayne has played a gritty schedule during the first nine games of the season, and in one of the games McDonald got his 100th win as head baseball coach at Wayne County High School.
“I don’t look too much into winning 100 games because I am a small part of those wins,” McDonald said. “It takes great players and a great coaching staff to achieve these milestones. However, I could not think of another place that I would like to accomplish that goal other than Wayne County.”
The focus right now for McDonald is getting his squad to the point of playing a complete game of baseball at the plate and on the mound. He also said that the team is still searching and developing the leadership that they will need in region play and down the stretch in the post season.
“Leadership is something that we are still trying to develop and gain,” McDonald said. “We have some great people in that locker room that have a vision as to what we are about and what we want to accomplish. We have to continue to trust the process and be playing our best ball in the end.”
Over the next week or so, the Yellow Jackets will start to close out the first half of the season and get ready to play the second half and a region schedule.
“The goal is always to win every game and compete at a high level,” McDonald said. “We have to continue to work and get better each and every day to be sure that we are ready for region play and the state playoffs. Region play is going to be tough. South Effingham, Ware County, and Statesboro all have competitive teams. It is going to be intense throughout these games and a fight to see who comes out on top.”
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Written by: John Wood
Pitching to Be the Strength for Yellow Jackets This Season
