South Broward Leaning On Veterans In 2014

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Mike Cohick and Kenny Rasor are the type of pitchers who want the ball at the start of the game and don’t want to give it back until the final out is recorded.

In 2014 the two seniors will have every opportunity to do just that for their South Broward team. Following the graduation of five hurlers from a year ago, the Bulldogs enter the season with less depth than normal on the hill. Fortunately for them, they return the two guys who are capable of shouldering the bulk of the workload.

“We’re going to go as far as Kenny and Mike go,” admitted Bulldogs manager Joe Giummule. “Their arms are very healthy and they are guys we feel confident can go deep innings. I really don’t like doing that, but we don’t have the depth. So this year we’re going to be that school that rides their two horses.”

The team graduated 12 players in all, and the numbers overall are lower than normal this season. While the program has traditionally been one that uses a four-man rotation, the lack of pitching depth has forced them to move away from their norm. The bright side to this reality is that they have two very capable arms to lean on for the year ahead.

Rasor has long been the team’s workhorse, a gritty thrower who has proven himself against the best in the county. His development this year has helped him gain more confidence to pitch inside and attack batters that like to crowd the inside of the plate. Cohick is a crafty pitcher with a lot of natural movement in his pitches, which has kept the coaches from ever tinkering with his mechanics. Both guys throw with confidence, and both receive plenty of confidence from their teammates and coaches.

“I don’t know how many pitchers in the county can say they beat St. Thomas Aquinas and Nova as underclassmen, like Kenny has,” said Giummule. “Kenny’s velocity has made a jump so now if he makes a mistake he can still throw it by most batters. Mound presence and control have always been good, and now the velocity has caught up to his body. Then Mike just has a great breaking ball, he’s very athletic and he fields his position well. He has so much movement on his pitches, and if you can throw strikes in high school baseball you will be very effective.”

The two right-handers have been friends for many years, and they both appreciate the honor to share the mound in creating a formidable 1-2 combination.

“Me and Mike grew up playing travel ball together since we were 12 years old, and I’ve just got a lot of confidence in him,” said Rasor. “We’ve just got to go up there and throw strikes and help our defense. Every time I go on the mound I try to throw a complete game. I know I can just go in and throw strikes and get some outs. Mike has a fastball with a lot of movement and he has a nasty hook that drops right off the table.”

Cohick appreciates that he has risen to become one of the guys the coaches can rely on. He knows the leash will be longer for him this season, and he hopes to be the guy who can go the distance virtually every time he takes the mound. The chance to share this responsibility with his best friend makes it that much more rewarding.

“I’m happy that I’m one of the guys this team can rely on,” Cohick said. “I want the ball every time we take the field and I want to be the guy to beat the great teams, just like Kenny does. It’s an honor to play on this team and all we want to do is win ball games. When I get on the mound I throw strikes and try to make them hit the ball and make my defense field for me. I’ll probably want some strikeouts too, but really all I want is to get outs.”

The defense is beginning to come together. The squad had to replace the majority of their infield unit due to graduation, but they return tons of experience in the outfield. Although the bulk of the guys are new to the starting lineup this season, they have all gained valuable playing experience during their careers.

“We had two people at almost every position last year, and it was basically a senior starting and a junior behind them,” said senior third baseman Dalton Harbinson, who is a fourth-year member of the club. “We’ll be playing with eight or nine seniors in the lineup this year. We have experience and we just have to come out here and play like Bulldogs.”

The Bulldogs have always prided themselves on their gritty and hard-nose style of play. From the coaches down to the players, it has long been a group who are not afraid to get down and dirty, to dive headfirst and make a play. This aggressive approach has created a team identity as a worthy foe which makes opponents earn everything they get.

The club has a tendency to play tight, low-scoring games. Oftentimes their ability to squeeze out a few extra hits is all the difference between winning and losing.

“We have to be fighting up there at the plate, going deep into counts and making pitchers work and make them fight harder than we are,” said Harbinson. “We have to try to get up there and control what they’re throwing to us by being smart and not chasing anything. We’re going to be a team that goes gap to gap, has sac bunts and sac flies. We’re going to play some Lenny Koch old-school baseball here.”

As a four-year starter who has played since his freshman year, Rasor is one player who understands how tough it can be for new guys to adjust to the speed of the game at this level. He understands the learning curve and he does his best to share this with his teammates. Since only three or four guys have seen extensive action on the field, the hope is that the rest of the guys learn the work ethic it takes and adjust quickly.

Most of these new starters have been chomping at the bit and eagerly waiting their turn for a chance to shine for this club. At the front of this pack is senior James McDonnell, a four-year member of the squad who has flourished in a reserve role for each of his first three seasons. After coming off the bench to fill holes as needed during games, McDonnell now finds himself slated for a starting position in the outfield.

“I’ve been playing in the shadows all these years, being rotated in and out. I would come in and play defense late in the games, but now it’s my senior year and it’s my time to shine,” said McDonnell. “It’s tough coming off the bench, but all the reps in the cage and the reps hitting off the tee is when that comes into play. It doesn’t really matter about the situation. It’s just you and the pitcher, you and the ball.”

Besides the opportunity to play regularly and be a major contributor, McDonnell has also been one of the leaders who have worked to guide the young guys into perfecting their roles as reserve players just as he has been in years past. With this being his last year, the senior has taken it upon himself to do whatever he can to help his team.

“I’ve been working harder than ever this year because I know it’s my last,” McDonnell admitted. “As a fourth-year senior I’ve learned a lot about this program. I’ve played all over the field, so especially with the younger guys I’m teaching them the right things to do. Making them learn early is really important.”

One of the big strengths for the Bulldogs is their self-awareness. The team knows what they do well and they know where they have to work harder to improve. Rather than make excuses or try to shy away from living up to their identity, it is a squad that understands who they are and how they must play in order to win. Bulldogs baseball is a gritty and scrappy style of play, fundamental baseball that earns everything through hard work and tons of determination.

South Broward plays in a tough district that includes two perennial powerhouses in St. Thomas Aquinas and Nova. Yet the team has always brought their best to these tough district games, and they understand that their success depends far more on what they do than what their opponents do to them. With so little experience on this roster, the key to their success will come in how quickly the new starters can learn how to play their tough brand of baseball.

“Guys are working hard and starting to separate themselves,” said Giummule. “But practice is one thing. When you step between the lines against another opponent things tend to change. So that remains to be seen.”

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