The Helias Crusaders enter the season ranked No. 5 in Class 4 by the Missouri Baseball Coaches Association.
That's nice, Helias coach Chris Wyrick said, but
"It's always good to get recognition like that," Wyrick said as the Crusaders prepare to open the season today in Westphalia against the Fatima Comets. "I think that may be a little high for us right now, but it's good."
Wyrick said he hasn't talked about the state-ranking much with the Crusaders.
"I might have mentioned it once," he said. "And that was only because it puts a bit of a target on our backs. People will be coming for us and we need to be ready to play if we want to be up there at the end."
The Crusaders advanced to the quarterfinals last season and getting back there or even further in the postseason is a possibility.
"If we can play the way I believe we are capable of playing, we should be in every game, no matter who we're playing," Wyrick said. "We should be putting a competitive team on the field.
"If we can battle like we did last year, we will have a chance to do well."
There has been a lot of competition for starting positions in the preseason.
"The chances are there to earn a spot," Wyrick said. "There's nothing guaranteed on this team, you have to earn your playing time. It's up to the players to earn that spot they want.
"Everything they do in practice determines who I put on that lineup card."
With the unusually good weather, the players have had their share of chances to impress.
"We've only been inside once," Wyrick said. "It's been cold a couple of days, but there are things you can't do inside and we battled through it. We got our work in, we got some reps.
"Once we get outside, I hate to go back inside because it can mess with your timing and things like that."
Austin Fennewald, a junior who started about a third of the games last season, returns at catcher.
"He's got a a good arm and he's more comfortable back there because he's worked hard and has earned that job," Wyrick said.
Matt Dampf, a senior, will start at first, with junior Parker Schnieders getting the nod at second.
Trevor Austin, a freshman, will be the starting shortstop.
"He's good or I wouldn't have him there, freshman or upperclassman," Wyrick said. "He's handled everything we've thrown at him, handled it well."
Drew Boessen, a senior, will start at third base when he's not pitching. Jeremiah Heckman, a junior, will be at third if Boessen is on the mound.
Zach Stiles, a senior, returns for this third season on the varsity and will start in center field.
"We're looking for a lot of leadership out of Zach and I think he's very capable of doing it," Wyrick said.
The corner outfield spots will be manned by a combination of senior Cole Fennewald, juniors Koby Kerr, Alex Buschjost and Brandon Ferguson, along with sophomore Zach Woehr.
"We have to find two guys that can play good defense, catch it and throw it to somebody where they can catch it," Wyrick said. "Playing defense is the No. 1 priority."
Buschjost will be a jack-of-all-trades this season for the Crusaders.
"Alex is going to have to pitch, catch and play outfield," Wyrick said.
Helias also has not settled on a designated hitter.
"It will be whoever is hot, we have to ride the hot bat and that could be any number of people," Wyrick said.
The Crusaders enter the season with a slew of pitchers, including Boessen, Buschjost, Ferguson and Cole Fennewald.
Also in the mix on the mound are senior Tyler Cassmeyer, juniors Connor McKenna and Jacob Hartman, along with sophomores Nick Brandt and Zach Davidson.
It's a group that has some talent, but needs to show it can do it in games.
"We have a lot of work to do, but that's what everybody else has as well," Wyrick said. "We're tinkering to see who can get it done, who can throw strikes and allow the defense to make a play.
"I'd like to get three guys who I know are going to be starters and plan the other starts around them."
That's because of the new MSHSAA regulations regarding pitch counts. In the new system, a senior/junior is maxed out at 105 pitches per day, while sophomore/freshman pitchers are at 95. There are also mandatory rest days depending on the number of pitches thrown.
"The idea of saving arms is good, we've tried to do that here," Wyrick said. "I don't ever remember having a player throw more than 100 pitches and not giving them four days off."
The Crusaders are already trying to figure out the best way to follow the regulations.
"We're going to have to work on figuring who's on call that day, who still has to have a day of rest," Wyrick said. "It's going to be something we have to stay on top of throughout the season."
There will be a pitch-count on a new scoreboard for Helias home games at the American Legion Post 5 Sports Complex, Wyrick said.
Helias will open its home season Wednesday, March 29, against Kirksville.