HAMLET — Summer baseball in Richmond County officially starts this weekend with the Hamlet American Legion Post 49 junior baseball team.
Returning for its second season, the Hamlet junior baseball team will be under the direction of first-year head coach Robert Smith. An assistant last season, Smith takes over for Anthony Hailey, who coached the team back from more than a decade-long hiatus last summer.
Meeting at Post 49’s lodge Tuesday, the junior Legion team’s coaches and players gathered for a pre-season meeting and meal. Players also received their uniforms.
The Hamlet junior team, which is scheduled to play 22 regular season games, is represented mostly by players from Richmond County. Players in the junior league range from 14 to 17 years old.
“We’re excited and we’ve got a good group of guys this summer,” Smith said. “We may be on the younger side this year, but there’s a lot of talent we want to develop to be successful.
“Our job is to coach these young men and make them better ball players and individuals,” he added. “We’ll find success on the field if we play and grow together. We want to continue to grow the future of baseball in Richmond County.”
Representing the junior 49ers this summer are several varsity players from Richmond Senior High School who played this spring, including rising juniors Drew Gause, Tristan Chavis and Jakob Trexler, along with rising senior Jake Veach.
Returners from last season’s junior team are JB Bowden, Colton Brown, Cooper Gainey, Colton Nelson, Colson Smith, Noah Stubbs and Jaxton Watson.
Newcomers include Dean Cottle, Nate Culbreth, Wallace Herring, Sam O’Neal, Jackson Parsons and Jake Smith.
Smith said “there are still a few positions to be filled” on the team and that the program will continue to seek players until the roster is filled.
Helping assist the team this summer will be Scott McInnis, back for another season, as well as Jared Gainey, Brian Baucom and Kevin Stubbs.
“As coaches, it’s our responsibility to piece together our players to give us a chance to win,” Smith said. “Some are bulldogs who just pitch, other guys will be everyday players, others are strong on defense. We’re going to give everybody a chance to be successful.
“We are a defensively stout team and that’s the foundation we’re going to build on. Our expectation is to win our first game and go from there.”
The junior 49ers will start their season Saturday at home against Davidson County Post 8. The game will be played at Richmond Senior High School and start at 12 p.m.
The Richmond Observer will publish a season preview for the Hamlet Post 49 senior baseball team later this week.
Below is the Hamlet Post 49 junior baseball team’s complete schedule:
