Baseball preview: Streator forced to reload, but still looking good for ’24

The 2024 opening day lineup for the Streator baseball team will not look quite as expected.

If things come together the way seventh-year Bulldogs coach Beau Albert (76-66) hopes, it might still look pretty good by the end of the season.

Through a mix of graduations, injuries and former players choosing not to come out for their senior seasons, all three of the 2023 Bulldogs’ Times All-Area first-team selections and half of their four second-team/honorable-mention picks are not suiting up this spring from last year’s 21-12 Class 3A regional champions.

The players who are suiting up this spring, however, have a proven track record of success on the field at various levels, including returning varsity starters such as senior 1B/P Landon Muntz, senior OF Noah Camp, senior UT/P Zander McCloskey and junior presumptive ace Jacob Hagie.

“One [senior]’s not out this year, and we knew that going in ... and a couple of other surprises, guys not coming out, doing other things,” Albert said. “But the group we’ve got, they’ve been practicing hard every day, and I like the kids we’ve got.”

“One [senior]’s not out this year, and we knew that going in ... and a couple of other surprises, guys not coming out, doing other things. But the group we’ve got, they’ve been practicing hard every day, and I like the kids we’ve got.”

—  Beau Albert, Streator baseball coach

That starts with the four core returners.

Camp, a regular in the outfield and the back half of the batting order, returns as a proven contributor, while McCloskey was last season’s second leadoff/No. 9 hitter and “is really a guy who can play any of the eight positions besides catcher for us,” according to Albert, moving with pitching changes to keep the Bulldogs’ best nine on the diamond.

Muntz and Hagie were even larger factors in the team’s success last spring. The right-handed Muntz hit .255 with 14 RBIs and added a 4-2 pitching record with a 3.47 ERA over 40 1/3 innings. Hagie was called up to pitch only and made a splash, working 43 innings with a 4-1 record and 2.61 earned-run average.

The two both earned second-team accolades to The Times All-Area Baseball Team and appear likely to be the conference starters on a southpaw-heavy pitching staff that will also feature McCloskey, juniors Carson Shinkey and Landon Cook, sophomores Cole Winterrowd (a standout in the preseason) and Clay Christoff (impressive in spot varsity starts late last year) and possibly freshman Colin Byers.

“We’ve got a lot of possibilities there, a lot of arms,” Albert said. “We’re not sure what the pecking order is going to be yet.”

The pitching staff will primarily be working with precocious freshman catcher Jerrod Clark. Winterrowd will also see time behind the plate in addition to manning third base. Muntz, fellow senior Brock Minkler and Byers will compete for time at first base. The middle infield will be patrolled by McCloskey, sophomore Keegan Angelico and/or juniors Luke Bemont and Blaize Bressner. In the outfield, it will be some combination of Hagie, Camp, McCloskey, Byers, Shinkey and senior Aubrey McKinnie.

Albert is putting an extra emphasis on defense with most of last year’s batting order – including the 1-4 hitters – not stepping into batter’s boxes this season.

“The focus is going to be on our defense,” Albert said. “Maybe I’m 100% wrong, and I hope I am, but I don’t think we have a proven 1-9 here that can come in and hit the way we did last year necessarily. But we’ve preached from Day 1, everyone 1-9 has to be able to bunt the baseball. Everyone 1-9 has to be able to take an aggressive lead to swipe a bag.

“Because I really think, if we pitch the way I think we’re going to be pitch and we have good defense ... and we can have good at-bats, get guys on, move ‘em around and get a timely hit here or there, I think we can be pretty successful.

“Maybe they surprise us and hit like crazy, but the focus is going to be on defense and manufacturing some offense.”

The Bulldogs are scheduled for a Wednesday afternoon opener against old NCIC rival Hall at Spring Valley’s Kirby Park.