South Broward Looks To Ride Depth, Strong Pitching

South Broward manager Joe Giummule and his staff are probably going to have some tough choices to make in January.

It’s a good problem to have in this case.

Although some coaches may be unsure who’s going to start in the spring because their teams lack players, Giummule is unsure for quite the opposite reason: depth across the diamond and competition for positions.

Right now, there are no freshman or sophomores on the team, which includes about 14 seniors.

“I don’t know if that’s necessarily a good thing or a bad thing, but at least there’s veterans out there who have been playing together for the last three or four years,” said Giummule, who is going into his fourth year as South Broward’s manager.

“Our starting nine, no matter who it is, we have a strong bench,” said Ken Rasor, one of the team’s top hitters last season. “No matter who’s on the bench, they can come in and play any position. So we’ll be deep in the rotation, deep in the field, deep everywhere.”

The team is made up of players who saw a good amount of playing time last year. They’ve all had at least 60 varsity at-bats and the pitchers have thrown at least 20 innings.

“There’s no one who we’re flipping the ball to that hasn’t been out there playing against the St. Thomases, the Novas, the West Browards, the Flanagans,” Giummule said. “They’ve been there. You don’t have to worry about them being nervous or being scared. There’s no freshman that you kinda got to hold his hand and tell him you got to play here, you got to play there. All these guys should know what their responsibilities are and where they need to be. So as a coach, it kind of makes your job easier.

Giummule steps away from his team in the fall to prevent the team from getting tired of hearing him and allow the assistant coaches to provide the guidance and be a different voice. Giummule keeps tabs on their progress, so he remains in the loop.

“Come January, I want them hungry and excited about baseball,” he said. “I don’t want them burnt out.”

Along with the depth this year is strong pitching, which is the team’s main strength. There are five players who have the potential to be the ace this year and are battling for that top spot.

One of the players who Giummule is excited about is Colin Tindall, a senior who is a three-year stater.

“This is a kid who has great summers and a lot of interest from pro and college scouts but hasn’t necessarily been able to put it all together in a high school season,” Giummule said. “He’s the type of kid who can be a top-five arm in the county. I’d put his stuff up against anybody’s, but he hasn’t necessarily figured it out.”

Rasor, a junior, had the honor of earning one of South Broward’s biggest wins last year when he struck out 11 in a 4-3 win against St. Thomas.

“One of the best pitching performances I’ve seen from anybody, let alone a sophomore,” Giummule said. “He’s a big-bodied kid, and he’s been a starter since his freshman year. So we’re looking for him to make those jumps. We’re looking for him to improve on pitching and hit a couple of homers this year for us, and to be a leader. He’s been kind of playing as a leader as a freshman, but it’s hard to take on responsibility when kids are three and four years older than you. Now it’s passed on to him.”

Mike Cohick, a junior, said the win over St. Thomas “really boosted up our confidence last year. We were really happy with that win, but we think we’re going to do it a lot of times this year because we have a better team.”

Rasor also expressed confidence in the team’s chances to have a good mark in its district.

“Last year, we beat St. Thomas by 1,” Rasor said. “I believe we can do it again this year no matter what, no matter who’s on the mound. As long as we play as a team, we can beat anybody. You have to go into every game the same as if you’re playing St. Thomas any game or Nova every game because anybody can beat anybody on any given day. It doesn’t matter who it is. They’ll find a way, and we’ll find a way.”

Rasor also was a top hitter last year, batting .339 with 13 runs.

Brothers Matt and Mike Cohick and Cody Behr also will be top arms this year.

“[Behr] pitched outstanding last year,” Giummule said. “We really didn’t help him much. He gave us a chance to beat St. Thomas. He gave us a chance to beat Chaminade. We just didn’t play well in those games. It’s nice to have a left-handed arm that has experience. He’s been on the varsity for three years.”

Makana Gilliand is a player whom Giummule has seen progress each year and has the potential to play at the next level with some Ivy League schools showing an interest. Giummule said he’s a player who has “a lot of tools.”

John Magginis, who led the team in hitting last year with a .373 average, is going into his second year as catcher, yet another position where there’s competition.

Brian Mugione, a catcher/first baseman/designated hitter, is going into his fourth year on the varsity team.

Giummule said there will be no change in how he and his team approach district games this year — or any game for that matter.

“As a coach, I’m going to approach it the same way: When I step on the field, I expect to win,” Giummule said. “I expect our boys to be prepared and ready to go. If you play the game the right way, we’ll have an opportunity to win the ballgame. So I’m going to approach the games the same as I did last year as I did the year before as I did the first year I coached. The difference between this year and last year is that they’re older now. They have the experience now. They’ve playing in tight games with the St. Thomases and the Novas. There should be no reason to be nervous or scared. Seeing a guy who throws 90 is nothing new. They’ve experience that already.”

Tindall said the team is focusing on the mental aspect and maintaining a positive attitude about its situation.

“This year, we just have to grind it out and know we’re going to win,” Tindall said. “I think we can beat all the teams in our district this year. I think we have the experience.

Although pitching and defense are strengths this year, the team needs to step up its offensive game. To help bolster that part of the game, the Bulldogs are working hard in their new hitting facility that allows up to 15 hitters to take swings at once. The facility wasn’t done in time for the start of last season, but Giummule said having it this year should mean there’s no excuse why the team isn’t hitting well.

South Broward isn’t much of a power team, so small ball and the little things hitters can do to be effective are some of the things the team is working on this fall.

“We’re going to scrap it out,” Giummule said. “Our goal is to get 10 guys on a game via walk, hit, getting hit or a base hit. If we get 10 guys on, we’ll manufacture runs. We work on the little things. Your team dictates your coaching style. I don’t have one particular coaching style. It’s easy to sit back and wait for a three-run homer. The dynamics of our team, it’s not that. I can’t expect a three-run homer. If I expect a three-run homer, it’s going to be a long time coming.”

Instead, the team focuses on ways it can lay down a bunt, get a hit-by-pitch, work a pitcher deep in the count and get the pitcher to throw extra pitches.

“What we don’t have is selfish hitters here,” Giummule said. “We don’t have guys who are trying to hit home runs and it’s all about them. We’re going to have a group of guys who are going to fight and battle for each other. It’s not a team of superstars. It’s hard-working, hard-nosed, blue-collar guys who come to work every day. And they know if they’re not doing the job, someone else is going to do it for them.”

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