Jun 12, 2007 - 04:08:30 CDT
Even if it weren't for his love of the game, BrandonCoyle had two strong motives tugging him back to Legion baseball this year.Coyle's return to the Mandan Chiefs this season affords him the opportunity to finish his baseball career with an injury-free season. It also gives him a chance to defeat the BismarckGovernors for the first time.
"I've played theGovernors as a Chief 11 times. ...We're 0-11 and that gets really old," Coyle said during a break fromMonday's practice. "... Last year we played them four times during the (regular)season ... and we played them at state. We lost to them and that ended our season."
Coyle will be in left field tonight for a 12th crack at the Governors.
Mandan stands 2-2 after dropping a doubleheader to Jamestown on Saturday. Bismarck is 1-1 after splitting a season opening twin bill at Minot on Monday.
Prior to heading for North Dakota State University last fall, Coyle concluded a Legion baseball season that was far from satisfying. The Chiefs went 25-33 and finished fifth in the state. Coyle played the whole season at semi-full speed following January surgery for a broken ankle suffered in basketball.
All in all, It wasn't a satisfying experience. Coyle, who batted leadoff last summer, said he felt part of his game was missing when he couldn't run full-speed. He stole just one base in two tries.
"Hopefully I'll be able to do more for the team on the bases," Coyle said. "I'm not going to have the recurring ankle problems I had last year. ... Last year Iwas probably one of the slower guys on the team but now I'm 100 percent.Jared Muth is the only guy who can beat me (in a sprint) and he's really fast."
Coyle hit .325 last summer with precious few leg hits and posted a .474 on-base percentage. He scored 43 runs.
CoachLen Stanley sent him to the mound six times for 21 1-3 innings. Coyle was 0-2 with a 6.56 ERA.
That will change this season. Coyle, who has played every position on the diamond except catcher and center field during his Legion career, can count on going to the mound more frequently.
"(Stanley)told me I was going to have to throw a bunch of innings," Coyle related. "Ican't just say 'I just want to play left field and hit.' I'm just going to have to go in there and be competitive because I'm not a lock-down pitcher."
He got his first opportunity to pitch on Saturday, working two innings in relief. He walked one, struck out four and gave up three hits and one run, none earned.
Coyle, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound right-hander, is confident he can eat innings as a pitcher. He just can't guarantee the results.
"Ihave a pretty durable arm. I just have to be consistent," he said.
Tonight's clash between the Governors and Chiefs is the first of four nine-inning single game matchups. Bismarck plays at Mandan July 3 and 4. Mandan returns to Bismarck July 24.
This is Coyle's third year with the Chiefs following three years with the A's, Mandan's Class B sub-varsity Legion team.Plus, he was a three-year starter in baseball at Mandan High.
In 2005, his first year with the Chiefs, Bismarck swept six games - four during the regular season and two in the Western Division tournament.
Coyle said it's important for the Chiefs to turn around the series with the Governors for other reasons than the across-the-river rivalry. With just six teams in the WesternDivision, the Chiefs can ill-afford what amounts to a forfeit against one of their opponents.
"The laws of probability state we're going to see three opponents in the WDAtournament and we only have five potential opponents," Coyle observed. "... If we have the mentality that we're not going to beat (Bismarck) we might as well just leave the diamond. ... We've got to be able to beat every team."
"We've beaten a Minot and we've beaten a Williston and that feels great,"Coyle continued, "but Idon't know what happens against Bismarck. ... Last year Ithink we blew two leads."
That brings up another reason Coyle would like to right the ship against Bismarck. "Ihope we can win some of these close games because at the end of the year that's what it comes down to," he noted.
sir wrote on Jun 13, 2007 11:27 AM:
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