YATES CENTER — Yates Center High’s baseball squad features a tantalizing blend of experience with new talent in 2025.

“We’re going to have our ups and downs, especially with our kids who are inexperienced,” noted Jarrod McVey, entering his third year at the helm. “But we tripled our win total last season, and we’re hoping to take more strides this season.”

Returning from last season’s six-win campaign is first-team All-Three Rivers League catcher Kaiden Rutherford, who hit at a .415 clip in 2024 with 22 hits, 18 RBIs and 23 runs in 21 games.

“It helps having somebody like him behind the plate,” McVey said of the returning senior.
But he’s not the only player who showed great improvement last season.

Evan McVey wasn’t far behind Rutherford in terms of offensive production. As a freshman, McVey hit .383 with a team-leading 223 hits with 18 RBIs and a team-high 27 runs.

On top of their offensive production, Rutherford and McVey will anchor the pitching staff, alongside junior Blake Morrison.

The trio handled the bulk of the pitching load for the Wildcats last spring, and will likely do the same this year, Coach McVey predicted.

“Throwing strikes will be the key,” he said. “We struggled at times last year to find the strike zone, which in turn led to shorter outings.”

More control also will aid Yates Center’s defense.

“We’re focusing on doing the little things, playing defense and smart baserunning,” he said.

On top of the six wins, Yates Center had another half-dozen games in which the Wildcats led until the middle innings, before the other team rallied to take the lead.

“But even then, we didn’t just roll over and die,” McVey said. “We showed grit and fought back each time, but we just couldn’t finish.”

The defensive lineup will largely be dictated by who’s pitching, McVey noted.

Versatility will be key.

“There’s some good baseball coming out of the Three Rivers League,” McVey said. “Colony is still gonna be right up there, and Pleasanton and Southeast both have strong teams. Uniontown lost a lot to graduation, but they’re always strong. Bringing Central Heights to the league will help, too.”

That said, McVey is cautiously optimistic Yates Center can make some noise in 2025.

“Our goal is to win league, and it’ll be our goal every year,” he said. “I told the boys that we just have to prepare, no matter what happens. Then we’ll see where we are and where we need to improve.”