The Post 15 Indians had a chance to show off their skills on the diamond in front of a former Major League Baseball Gold Glover and Silver Slugger on Thursday against Fort Scott at Riverside Park. They rose to the occasion.
With the recently retired Adam LaRoche in attendance to watch his son, Drake, play for Fort Scott, Iola players were eager to show their talents.
“He comes down to watch his son play and he was there when we played in Fort Scott, too,” Iola coach Rick Vink said. “We are now 4-0 when Adam LaRoche is around.”
Derek Bycroft took the mound for Post 15 in game one and was very aware of who was sitting next to the visitor’s dugout.
“You always try to do your best in games anyway,” Bycroft said. “But when someone like that is watching you, you try to do more.”
Bycroft used the extra motivation to throw his best game of the season for the Indians. He held Fort Scott to no runs and just one hit in his five-inning, complete game. Iola cruised to an 8-0 win.
Bycroft returned to the Iola rotation after missing most of the last two weeks worth of American Legion games. The Iola High sophomore says the rest helped him and he had a chance to work on his mechanics over the break.
“I finally found out what was wrong,” Bycroft said. “I started finishing my pitches and coming down going towards the plate. That helped me throw strikes. I finally got my fastball working.”
Another Indian that has made some adjustments and is looking to finish the season strong is Keanen Badders. The speedy eight-hitter has been working on shortening his swing and making contact at a higher rate.
“I fixed my swing in the cages yesterday,” Badders said. “I worked on shortening my stride and getting my hands through. I felt more comfortable than I have all year.”
Vink credits assistant coach Scott Riebel with helping Badders improve and the hard work paid off with a 4-for-4 day at the plate on Thursday.
“I’ll give Scott the credit on that after he worked with him in the cage yesterday,” Vink said. “Keanen has been close and they just tweaked one little thing and he hit the ball well for us.”
With Badders’ perfection at the plate, the Indians rolled to a 9-3 win over Fort Scott in game two.
Isaac Vink pitched well for the Indians in game two by throwing four innings and only allowing three runs on four hits.
The wins push Iola’s record back up to 11-11. They will take a week off before returning to action next Thursday in Osawatomie.
