Sports
Learning to Win, Pinellas Park Baseball Team Hopes Hustle is the Answer
The sophomore-laded squad is coming up on the short end of a lot of close games but hustle and hard work is putting the team in position to win the same games.
A two-run loss has seemingly been the norm for Pinellas Park High School baseball's squad this spring. It happened again Friday.
Playing at St. Petersburg, the Patriots fell victim to a defensive lapse in the bottom of the third when the Green Devils scored three unearned runs which allowed St. Petersburg to win 5-3.
"We've lost a lot of games like this," said Pinellas Park coach Bill Ruttencutter. "We've lost six of our last nine games by two runs or less."
Ruttencutter is quick to point out there are no excuses, but he has a point in that his team is so young. All but three players are sophomores or freshmen. The vast majority of his starters are sophomores.
"No excuses," Ruttencutter said. "But the kids are learning how to win."
Learning how to win is hustling, which is a big philosophy of Ruttencutter. He believes if players put out their best effort, good things happen. This premise proved itself in the bottom of the first.
With St. Petersburg having a runner in scoring position, a blast down the left field line was foul and looked to be out of play.
"Even the umpire gave up on the play," Ruttencutter joked.
But Patriots sophomore left fielder Jeff De Trano didn't give up. He ran and ran and ignored the fast-approaching batting cages and dove for the ball and caught it for the second out.
Alertly, De Trano jumped up and fired the ball to the infield to hold the runners.
Like so many times, a good defensive play carries over to the next winning and the Patriots scored two runs in the top of the second to take a 2-0 lead.
"It saved a run, maybe two, and gave us momentum," De Trano said. "It helped get us going and helped the team score a couple of runs."