Larks move on without top hitter

8-5-04

By RANDY GONZALES

Hays Daily News

Losing his leading hitter for the National Baseball Congress World Series hurts, but Larks manager Frank Leo is counting on someone else to pick up the slack.

“Obviously, (missing) a guy in the middle of the lineup, contributing all year long,” is tough, Leo said of his shortstop. “... We're going to have to make do without. He helped get us where we're at.”

Hays (28-13) will play Seminole (Okla.) in a second-round game on Friday in Wichita. Game time is 7:30 p.m. at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

Kevin Russo was batting .377 to lead the team when he left Hays near the end of the regular season due to an illness in the family. Leo does not expect Russo — who had seven homers and 28 RBIs — back for the World Series.

What Leo does expect is for another Lark to step up. He's seen it before at the World Series, where Hays has had 10 top-10 finishes and three times was the runner-up.

“I thought we had a nice team effort this year,” Leo said. “Anytime you get to a tournament, you need somebody to step up. Billy Sharp, I thought, stepped up the first night.”

Sharp had two hits and three RBIs for Hays in Monday night's 7-3 win over Greenwood (Miss.).

Nolan Reimold leads Hays in home runs (10) and RBIs (39) and is batting .333 on the summer. Seth Fortenberry is hitting .346 with four homers and 24 RBIs, and Aaron Batlle is batting .331 with six homers and 30 RBIs.

Leo said the Larks had “opportunistic hitting” in Monday's opener, but it will be the club's pitching that will determine how deep Hays goes into the tournament.

“Pitching will be key every game for us,” Leo said.

Right-hander Chris Ofat, who pitched well down the stretch after coming off arm trouble in midseason, is the probable starter on Friday. Ofat is 4-2 with a 3.40 earned-run average.

If the Larks can get quality starts out of their rotation, they can go to an effective bullpen, led by setup man Matt Rainey and closer Stephen Marek.

Rainey (1-0, 2.93) has allowed 20 hits in 272Ú3 innings, with 18 walks and 32 strikeouts. Marek, who has a fastball clocked in the mid-90s, is 1-0 with an 0.54 ERA and has four saves. He has 27 strikeouts in 162Ú3 innings.

The nucleus of three straight Jayhawk League champions left after last summer. So did the league title, as El Dorado edged Hays for the crown by a half-game.

Now, Hays focuses on the World Series with an almost entirely new roster from last year.

“I feel like you get one game in, you get a feel for the atmosphere,” Leo said.

It's the way the tournament is run that poses a challenge for newcomers, he said.

“It's drawn out, over two weeks,” Leo said. “The level of competition gets better each round. (Players) need to adjust, keep focus.”

Sports editor Randy Gonzales can be reached at (785) 628-1081, ext. 130, or by e-mail at rgonzales@dailynews.net.