A Hernando Youth League squad comprised of current and former Hernando High players competed at the Dixie Baseball Majors (age 17-19) All-Stars World Series late last month. Hernando went 2-2 in Ozark, Ala. at the tournament that ran July 25-29. The Brooksville-based club won its first two games, defeating Prescott, Ark., 3-2, and Monroe, La., 4-0.
But a doubleheader on July 27 saw Hernando fall to North Charleston, S.C, 9-4, and drop a rematch with Prescott, 9-4. Still, Hernando received some standout performances, particularly from a pair of pitchers who are about to start their senior year, Pierce Kimbrough and Travis Ritter.
“When we lost the doubleheader, that was just really hard for the team,” Kimbrough said. “But overall, I think we had a lot of fun. We went over there and played the best teams from 11 states. We played great competition and it helped prepare us for the high school season.”
“I think we did pretty good compared to what we were up against,” Ritter said. “We were one team, a high school team, a team from Brooksville; to do well against college players, I thought we did pretty well. It’s something I’ll never forget, that’s for sure. I’ve only been out of state once and to see Alabama was pretty cool.”
In the spring, Kimbrough made eight pitching appearances for the Leopards, six starts, going 3-2 with a 1.56 earned run average. That carried over into Hernando’s second World Series contest against Monroe. He got the starting nod and went 6 1/3 innings, yielding four hits and a walk while striking out four. “I had really good control,” Kimbrough said. “I was able to subtract speed on my breaking ball from my fastball. It helped that the team we were facing was free-swinging. I was able to control my changeup and curveball to help get them out in front to get groundballs and flyballs, just getting outs.” Kimbrough placed this in his top five pitching performances. “I’ve had some success the past two years, but I like competing against great talent and that team was very good,” Kimbrough said.
The final two outs against Monroe were recorded by Ritter, who induced a double play on his first pitch and got the next batter to pop out. Ritter filled the same closer role he did during the prep campaign. He made 13 appearances, going 3-2 with two saves and a 1.19 ERA. He struck out 35 batters in 29 1/3 innings. In the World Series he pitched three times, for a total of 6 1/3 innings. He gave up five hits, two unearned runs and walked none against eight strikeouts. “I’m very happy with how I pitched,” Ritter said. “My curveball was working and my changeup, they couldn’t hit it.”
“Ritter performed that role the entire 2015 for me,” said Hernando High head coach Tim Sims, who also guided the World Series team. “Ritter had a couple of starts in our program and pretty much came out of the bullpen, flying cover for all those pitchers we have. Whatever was best for the team is what he did.”
Ritter said he enjoys knowing he’s a “go-to guy” in tough situations.
Kimbrough agreed with Sims that Ritter provides a nice security blanket for the Hernando starters. “He’s a really hard pitcher to hit because of his curveball and how good his control is,” Kimbrough said. “He was our closer this past season. I think he kind of enjoys that role. He knows what to do and shuts them down 1-2-3… I enjoy whenever Travis comes in right behind me. He’s a pitcher you can always trust. It’s a pitcher’s job to throw strikes and he does a great job of that.”
Both pitchers have high hopes for 2016, though they each talked more about team goals. After this World Series, they’ll take some momentum into next spring.
“Those two young men can pitch,” Sims said. “They locate and they change speeds. They’re 17 years old. Three years from now they’ll still be the same type pitcher.
“This should give them extra, added experience and confidence that they can throw at the next level with what they have now. They’re the quintessential college targets. They do what they’re supposed to do on and off the field.”
