Starting new, again

By Brad D. Bates
C & G Sports Writer

Madison Heights Madison baseball looks forward with new roster, rivals

For the second straight year, the Madison Heights Madison baseball team is starting fresh.

After taking over as coach a year ago, Bill Pittman returns a roster with limited experience to compete in a league full of new rivals.

“We’re starting out just like last year, where we used the non-league games to learn what these guys can and can’t do, ” Pittman said, adding that he has only two seniors with limited experience back on the roster.

While the circumstances are similar to how the Eagles started last year, if the results are even close to those they enjoyed a year ago, when they won the Macomb Area Conference Silver crown, Pittman will be very happy.

“We are going to take our lumps for a few games,” Pittman said. “But if you take that and learn from it, we’re going to be better for it.”

One area Pittman hopes his team can make strides in is pitching.

Madison returns only one hurler in junior Steven O’Keefe, who spent his sophomore campaign learning from the MAC Silver’s Most Valuable Player, James Hawkins.

“A lot of guys can throw hard,” Pittman said. “It’s one thing to throw hard against 14- or 15-year-olds on JV, but on varsity, you’re facing 18-year-old men that you can’t throw it past.”

O’Keefe could be key to teaching his teammates what it means to pitch at the varsity level, as he has the ability to change speeds and locate his pitches.

“He loves it,” Pittman said of O’Keefe’s affinity for the art of pitching.  “He thought he should have done a lot more of it last year, but we had too many good seniors in front of him.

“He loves it, and it’s good, because he’s going to do a lot of it for us this year.”

An inexperienced pitching staff will be aided by a solid defense led by senior shortstop Tyler Turner, junior center fielder Aaron Purdy, junior second baseman Tony Olsen and the Eagles’ lone returning All-Conference honoree, Josh Matiyow, at first base.

While Madison returns to defend its MAC Silver title and try to extend last year’s 12-0 run through the league, it faces an entirely new host of league rivals.

All the other teams in the Silver a year ago — Clinton Township Clintondale, St. Clair Shores South Lake, Warren Fitzgerald, New Haven High, Warren Lincoln and Mount Clemens High — are now in the MAC Bronze.

The Silver is now home to Madison, Sterling Heights High, Roseville High, St. Clair Shores Lakeview, Center Line High and MAC newcomer Clawson High.

Madison and Clawson are the only schools in the league with an enrollment of less than 1,000 students, but Pittman believes that if he can develop a team similar to the one he had last year, school size won’t matter.

The biggest thing is, if you have a dominant pitcher, it doesn’t matter how big the other school is,” Pittman said. “If you have a guy that can pitch and get guys out consistently, that’s all that matters.”

You can reach C & G Sports Writer Brad D. Bates at bbates@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1029.