Baseball: Junior Shortstop Fueling Panthers' Offense

Pikesville High School baseball coach Joseph Kramer came into the season knowing he was going to need a big year from junior shortstop Tete Obot, and Obot has more than delivered.

While the Panthers’ 3-7 start hasn’t been quite what Kramer had hoped for, Obot, Pikesville’s cleanup hitter, is batting .438 with seven extra-base hits (six triples, one double) and a team-high 16 RBIs. He has also struck out just once in 32 plate appearances.

“Every day, he’s consistent,” Kramer said of Obot. “He seems to go out and get two or three hits every game and is constantly driving in runs. When we get our [top of the order hitters] on, he’s always knocking them in. That’s just the way that he is."

The junior is also an asset in the field.

"He plays very good shortstop and has some pretty good range to him," Kramer said. "He, a lot of times, will save runs just by the way he plays defense.”

Obot hit .520 en route to second-team all county honors as a sophomore last year, yet Kramer believes Obot has actually taken a noticeable step forward since last season and is making an even bigger impact on the team this year.

Whereas last season he would periodically swing at pitches out of the strike zone, Obot has improved his plate discipline as a junior, which, according to Kramer, has allowed him "to drive the ball more."

As a result, Obot, who batted mostly toward the bottom of the Panthers’ lineup last year—primarily hitting sixth or seventh—has been able to settle in as Pikesville’s cleanup hitter and primary run-producer this season.

“I’m more relaxed in the batter’s box,” said Obot, who also plays soccer at Pikesville. “I’m more comfortable with each pitch coming in. Before, I’d be very tense coming up to the plate. But I just feel good up there now.”

Kramer credits much of the improvement to Obot's work ethic and coachability, along with his natural feel for the game, describing him as a "smart ballplayer."

"You don’t really have to teach him as much because he does a lot of things naturally out of pure instincts for the game," Kramer said. "But even in practice, and going through batting practice, you can see him really concentrating on what he’s doing and making sure his mechanics are correct."

And Obot asks questions if he feels off that day, and he’s willing to be corrected, Kramer said.

Despite the improvement and the individual success, Obot hasn’t been satisfied with the season thus far.

“We shouldn’t be [3-7],” Obot said, adamantly, noting that record isn’t indicative of the team's talent level. "We’re just not clicking on all cylinders. Some games, our pitching will be off, but we’ll be hitting well. And then other games, our pitching will be on point and our hitting isn’t there. But our goal is to still win as many games as we can.”

And Obot is determined to help the Panthers do just that, not only this year but next year as well.

“Our team is very senior-heavy this year so we’re going to be losing a lot of talent next season,” Obot said. “But I’m just hoping we can create a winning tradition here at Pikesville by the time I leave."