West Potomac baseball coach Jim Sullivan isn’t concerned about his lineup. In fact, offense will likely carry the Wolverines in 2010.
"Top to bottom," Sullivan said, "this is the best hitting lineup we’ve ever had."
Pitching, however, is a question mark for West Potomac. The Wolverines have four starting pitchers, but no one has emerged as the staff ace.
Right-handers Will Andrews (junior), Jacob Glaser (junior) and Sean Trenchard (sophomore), along with left-hander Jayme Murray (freshman) comprise the Wolverines’ rotation. Who throws in what spot has yet to be determined.
"Stick a name in a hat and pull one out at the moment," Sullivan said. "Pitching is going to be our biggest issue this year in terms of how [we] stack up against the Patriot District."
Glaser pitched four innings of no-hit baseball during the team’s opener on March 19, a 14-0, five-inning win over Stonewall Jackson. Murray followed with a scoreless fifth. But against South County on March 25, pitchers struggled to keep the ball down and the Wolverines were on the losing end of a 13-3, five-inning contest.
"We just need to throw strikes and rely on our defense," Trenchard said. "We don’t have any pitchers that are going to blow it by people."
Senior catcher David Burns, one of four returning starters, said pitchers need to keep the ball down. He’s confident in the team’s ability.
"I think we’re actually going to surprise a lot of people," Burns said. "We’re young and we’re actually a lot more focused than we have been in the past. We’ve got a lot more desire to win."
Sophomore second baseman Casey Hagan, sophomore right fielder Jack King and Trenchard are the other returning starters.
Offensively, Trenchard, Murray and King will hit 3-4-5 for the Wolverines.
"All three are big kids, at least by our standards," Sullivan said. "They’re very strong. They’ve all been playing baseball since they could walk. They live for it. They don’t want to do anything else."
Burns and King are team captains.
West Potomac hosts the Alexandria City Championship tournament, which runs through April 3. The Wolverines return from spring break to host Annandale at 6:30 p.m. April 7.
"We plan on surprising good teams," Trenchard said. "We plan on beating West Springfield and Lake Braddock. We’re going to beat South County the next time we play them."