Journal prognosticator Matthew Fabian likes the Rangers in six.

There is honestly no other feeling like the one of late October baseball. The chill in the air, the leather in the defender’s hand, the pine tar on the slugger’s bat. No one else played harder than the St. Louis Cardinals and the Texas Rangers this long baseball season. But, only one team can call itself champion.

The last ten years of World Series baseball has not provided lasting series, with only four of them going past game five, and only two of those series went the full seven games. This year’s World Series looks to be a long one. Both the Rangers and the Cardinals match up well against each other in this series. But it won’t be pitching that wins this series (both teams had an ERA close to 9.0 in the LCS); it will be an offensive explosion this year that takes home the prize.

The man leading the charge for the Cardinals is Albert Pujols. He hit two homeruns and 10 RBIs in 11 games this postseason.  One of Albert’s compadres that is seeing the ball well is thirdbaseman David Freese. He has four homeruns and 14 RBIs through the first two series of the postseason. A big reason Freese is hitting so well is because of the middle of the Cards lineup (Pujols, Berkman, Holliday). Teams pitch around these three and then get to Freese. They send a pitch right down the middle, and Freese takes advantage. He will be the X factor for this series; based on how well he does, is how far the Redbirds go.

The Rangers can counter the Cardinals with hitters, as well. Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz had six homeruns in the LCS and 13 RBIs. He has the hot hand and looks to feed off of the Cardinals’ pitchers Chris Carpenter, Jamie Garcia, and Edwin Jackson, all with shaky performances in the LCS. Another Rangers outfielder who usually comes up in big situations is Josh Hamilton. Hamilton hasn’t found his power stroke yet this postseason, but will hit a sac fly and get an RBI single when the team needs it most. But the hitter who the Rangers need most is Michael Young. He has a slim batting average of .209 so far in the playoffs, but every time Young gets a hit, the Rangers seem to win. Keep an eye on Young in this series, his play may determine the series.

Clearly, each team is even offensively and both teams will score a lot of runs. The world champion will end up being whoever has the better bullpen in this series. St. Louis only has one great tail-end bullpen pitcher. Jason Motte is the Cardinal’s closer and has a fastball that tops out in the high nineties. He has allowed one earned run in this great playoff display. He is only one guy, though. The Rangers have the following great pitchers in their bullpen: Neftali Feliz (1.17 ERA), Alexi Ogando (0.87 ERA), Mike Adams (2.84 ERA), and Michael Gonzalez (0 ERA in five games pitched): five guys who will shut down the Cardinals long enough to win a game.

With that advantage, the Rangers find a way to win in St. Louisand and take away home field advantage. Rangers win the series in six games.

Artwork by Kiera Classen

The Major League Baseball postseason will have a hard time topping what happened at the end of the regular season this year. Each postseason team played a meaningful final regular season game. Most games were extra inning, late night affairs that were won off of clutch hits by players much like Evan Longoria. The postseason will be filled with great pitching matchups with Justin Verlander (Detroit Tigers) going with CC Sabathia (New York Yankees), and Roy Halladay (Philadelphia Phillies) hurling against Chris Carpenter (St. Louis Cardinals). But, the important part is, who will make the World Series?

To get to the Fall Classic, a team must win in the League Championship Series. This year’s League Championship Series has the following matchups; in the ALCS is Detroit Tigers vs. Texas Rangers. Then in the NLCS is the St. Louis Cardinals vs. the Milwaukee Brewers.

Detroit Tigers vs. Texas Rangers: These are the feel good teams in the AL. The Tigers were a bad team last year, and found a way to be great this year. One reason they are so good is the pitching of Justin Verlander. He had 24 wins and is unhittable at times. Verlander may actually become the MVP of the AL, as a pitcher. Unfortunately for the Tigers, he only plays once every four nights. Someone who does play every night is the Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre. He knocked 32 balls out of the park, and drove in 105 runs. He and his friend Josh Hamilton will kill this Tiger rotation, right out of Arlington. Since it’s stupid to predict a sweep, the Rangers win in five games. (4-1).

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Milwaukee Brewers: This will entail the greatest NLCS we might ever see. Will it be Albert Pujols’ final series in a Cardinals uniform? Can the Brewers keep Prince Fielder away from the Cardinals if Albert leaves? Drama and rivalry will fill the air for seven hard fought games. Who wins? The Brewers have the pitching. Yovani Gallardo (207 strikeouts, a .245 batting average against) will strike out any Cardinal that comes to the plate, and the Brewers defense will shut down any kind of baserunners the Cardinals get. Then the Brewers’ John Axford (46 saves, 1.95 Earned Run Average) will come out of the bullpen and the close the game in any situation. But, why would anyone ever doubt “The Machine” Albert Pujols? He gets the big fly when no one else does. He is the beating heart of the St. Louis Cardinals. This is a tough choice, but the Brewers win a hard fought series, that no one wants to see end. (4-3).

Photo by Mia Nogueira

After a successful season of big wins, broken records, and unfaltering supremacy within their division, the Spartans finally met their match in Pueblo West on Monday, May 16th with a season ending losing score of 8-7.

The Spartans came into the 4A State playoffs with the overall #4 seed and first played the 29th seeded Longmont Trojans to elevate them into their second round game against Pueblo West. In this game, the Spartans continued to have difficulty finding the gaps and getting hits as has been only a recent trend for the team. The Spartans had only three hits in this game, notably a triple by Senior Austin Hearne who was brought home with a hit by Evan Walter.

In the end, which has been the case for many games for the Spartans this year, it was Senior Ace Kyle Freeland’s unassailable pitching that saved the day for the Spartans. Freeland threw a nearly perfect seven innings, allowing only four hits, one run, and adding 15 additional strikeouts to his already phenomenal total for the season. At the end of the 9th inning, the Spartans pulled out the “W” with a final winning score of 2-1.

Next, the Spartans faced their unforeseen demise in their final game against the Pueblo West Cyclones. In this game, the team went to Senior Joe Sedig on the mound in hopes of establishing a two-pronged pitching attack of Sedig and Freeland in this year’s playoffs. The team started off the game on fire and had a fantastic first inning, driving in four runs and holding the Cyclones to only two of their own. However, the Spartans fell apart in the third inning and, as Senior Grant Maloney puts it, “[We] had one of our worst innings of the season at the worst time,” giving up four runs and allowing Pueblo West back into the game.

The Spartans’ spiraling fall into a loss was mostly due to self-inflicted wounds of errors in the infield, and the inability to put a cap on the rising momentum by the Cyclones. In the end, the Spartans’ quick lead wasn’t enough to secure the victory, and the game, and season, ended in a close final losing score of 8-7.

The end of the 2011 season comes hand-in-hand with the end of the Senior class of 2011′s time as members of the team. The Seniors look back on the season and the past four years on the team with nostalgia and with great memories of being a Spartan Baseball player.

“Playing on the team this year was the highlight of my Senior year. I will never forget this season and all of my teammates I got to play with. I’m really going to miss all of this,” said Senior Miles Mercer.

Senior Grant Maloney also said, “It was a fun year and we did have a good run throughout the season. I am going to miss all of my teammates and coaches and hope future teams will be able to continue the success of the program.”

Even though the team will miss this class of seniors and the success and standard of excellence they brought to the squad, they have high hopes for the future with many returning players. Returning starters for next year in Evan Walter and Brandon Gonzales will be an integral part of the team’s success and leadership, and returning young players like Freshman Samuel Reed and Cooper Bowermaster, and Sophomores Zach Robinson and Tyler Moehlman look to bring a bright future for the Spartan Baseball program.

Photo by Mia Nogueira

The letter “K” can stand for many things when it comes to Freeland. Simply put, it is the first letter of his name, which is Kyle. To a non-baseball fan, this may seem like the only significance that a single letter of the English alphabet may embody to a person. However, to baseball players and enthusiasts around the world, the letter “K” is of the utmost importance. As any good scorekeeper would know, in baseball statistics the letter “K” is the symbol for a strikeout. With 136 K’s and counting, Freeland is without a doubt a player who is very familiar with this particular stat in pitching.

Coming into this season, it was difficult to anticipate just how much Kyle could accomplish individually and for the team this season. Of course it was common knowledge within TJ’s walls – and in the state of Colorado as a whole – that Kyle Freeland was a very talented baseball player. “I’ve played with Kyle for many years and he has always been a guy that stands out above the rest. Even from a young age, it was easy to see that Kyle’s drive and natural talent would take him far in baseball,” says TJ Catcher Grant Maloney. However, Kyle’s accomplishments this year have more than met any goals coaches and teammates could have set for this talented player.

Kyle’s pitching ability is a skill that many baseball players admire, desire, and aspire to have. This season, Kyle has smashed through records and any ill-informed low expectations with authority. He has completely dominated on the mound, and has not only lead at the helm of the Spartan pitching lineup, but is also one of the leaders in many important pitching categories in the state of Colorado.

As previously stated, Kyle Freeland has recorded 136 strikeouts this season. To put that outstanding number into some perspective for what an achievement it is, here are some comparative statistics. Kyle’s 136 strikeouts leads the state in all leagues. He is not only the leader of this category this year; he owns it. It is safe to say that this fact holds indisputable standing in the strikeout statistic without competition, with his total more than doubling the second highest K total (67). With this many strikeouts, Kyle’s biggest achievement might lie in the fact that his standout season will forever be remembered in Colorado pitching history books when he passed the state K record and set a new bar for the most strikeouts ever recorded by a pitcher in a single season. Kyle’s 8 wins this season is also the highest in 4A baseball, and his season ERA of 1.39 in over 65 innings pitched is almost unheard of and unbelievable at his age.

All of the accomplishments that Kyle has delivered on the mound this season somewhat overshadow the other parts of his game; however, his success at the plate cannot be ignored. This year, Kyle is not only a formidable force on the mound against opposing batters, but he also is a terror to opposing pitchers with the best batting average in 4A (.631 avg). This makes him a great asset to the team in the offensive part of the game as well. Kyle notably has one of the top slugging percentages in Colorado with a 1.185% and also ranks within the top 10 among players in 4A for stolen bases, doubles, triples, and home runs. “Kyle is the type of player that can simply do it all. It’s great to be able to play with this type of guy because you know he will always come through for the team,” says teammate Sean Gonzalez.

Coach Robby Bales also adds, “Players like Kyle don’t come around very often. He can hit for average and power, he runs well, he’s a good defender and he can obviously throw.”

Kyle possesses many traits that makes him one of the best student athletes that TJ baseball has ever had the honor of calling one of their own. Not only does he have a heap of natural talent and ability, but he also possesses character traits that compliment his skills and make him the outstanding athlete and teammate that he is. These character traits that help to make Kyle a great baseball player and teammate are those of leadership, dedication, and an unquestioned work ethic. “Playing on the same team as Kyle is something that I will miss most about playing TJ baseball. When you see a guy pushing himself to be the best he can be, it makes the rest of the team – including myself – want to match his intensity and passion for the game,” said Senior Pitcher Joe Sedig.

Of course, much of Kyle’s success comes from personal determination and striving to be the best, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been helped a long the way and supported by many influential people to get where he is today. “Much of what I have been able to accomplish so far in my baseball career is due to support from my family, coaches, and teammates,” says Kyle. “I’d have to say my Dad [Don Freeland] has always been a helpful force, pushing me to be the best possible player I can be and helping me to perfect my game. Also Coach Maloney [Former TJ pitching coach and father of Catcher Grant Maloney] has always been someone who really understood the game and could show me how to hone my skills and work to my strengths to have success on the mound,” Kyle added.

In the future, Kyle hopes to continue his baseball career in college and inevitably strives to play professional Major League Baseball. In the fall, he will attend the University of Evansville (a top D1 baseball program) located in southern Indiana, on a full-ride baseball scholarship. “Hopefully, as long as I keep my health and continue to work hard, I will attend the University of Evansville where I will play ball for several years and work on my skills and train with the coaching staff there. Then if all goes as planned, I hope to move on to the major leagues [MLB] and find a home playing professional baseball somewhere in the country,” says Freeland.

Kyle’s success and bright future in Baseball is one that many people not only hope for, but anticipate for this young man. As TJ Head Coach Robby Bales puts it, “The thing that makes him [Kyle] good is his work ethic; he’s a natural leader and leads by example. He’ll get a chance to play at a very high level. Maybe we’ll see him play on TV one day.  The sky is the limit with Kyle Freeland.”

TJ Pitcher Joe Sedig throws five strong innings against the Hawks. Photo by Mia Nogueira

The Thomas Jefferson Baseball team played the defending 4A Champs, the Mountain View Lions, on Tuesday, May 3rd and lost 2-0, and then took on the Prairie View Thunder Hawks on Saturday, May 7th in another close game with a winning score of 5-4. They also dominated against Stadley Lake on Monday, May 9th with  final score of 10-0.

In contrast wto how they have performed for the entire season, the Spartan Baseball team had a very difficult day at the plate with only a single hit by Senior Kyle Freeland, who threw a no-hitter himself in last week’s game against George Washington. The pitching by defending 4A champs Mountain View was very impressive against the Spartans in this game, but most of the team’s demise was due to self-inflicted wounds of errors and the inability to get a ryhthm going at the plate. “It’s always unfortunate to lose a game like that. We simply had a bad day and need to bounce back before playoffs,” said Freeland.

Next the Spartans went head to head against the Prairie View Thunder Hawks and almost suffered another loss in a close game. Senior Joe Sedig had a noteworthy game, going 2 for 3 at the plate with 2 RBIs and also started off the game on a positive note for the Spartans, pitching five innings and giving up only two runs and striking out five Hawks batters. This one ended in a close, winning score for the Spartans of 5-4.

The Spartans finally got back on track and gained a burst of energy going into the first round of playoffs with an outstanding win in their last regular season game against Standley Lake. The Spartans went back to their basic principles of relying on good pitching and solid play with the bat to win this game. Kyle Freeland took the mound for his final regular season game of the year and showed why he is one of the most impressive pitchers in the state this season. Kyle struck out 11 Gator Batters, ending the game early in only five innings. Evan Walter and Miles Mercer both went three for three at bat and drove in six runs between the pair.

Next up for the Spartans is the 2011 4A State Playoffs. With an impressive regular season record of 15-3-1 and a perfect conference record of 8-0, the team looks to return to their old glory days of State Titles and hope that this year’s team can make as much noise in the playoffs as teams of years past. Their first game is TBA.

Photo by Mia Nogueira

On Friday, April 29th, The Spartan Baseball team demonstrated their pitching prowess and their arsenal at the plate in a 10-0 victory against George Washington High School.

The team has been on a rampage through the Denver Prep League, with an 8-0 conference record and winning most games by more than 10 runs. This game against George was no exception for the Spartans, who continued its success in league play. Senior Kyle Freeland has been nearly perfect all season on the mound. In over 45 innings pitched, Freeland has one of the lowest ERAs in Colorado (1.84) and has the most strikeouts in Colorado (92) and is creeping up on beating the state record for Ks. With six nearly perfect starts under his belt, it was only a matter of time  before he would get the no-hitter like he did against George Washington.

Completing a no-hitter is one of the rarest accomplishments for a pitcher in baseball, and was done by your very own Kyle Freeland on Friday against GW. “It felt great to come away with a clean sheet and no hits. It doesn’t happen very often at this level, so it gives me a sense of pride that I am one of few to accomplish it,” said Freeland.

Good pitching absolutely helped the Spartans to their victory, but a team can’t win games if it doesn’t score runs, and the team certainly didn’t disappoint in this area either. Senior Mitch Mankoff had an impressive day at the plate with three hits, two runs, and one RBI. Also notably, Junior slugger Evan Walter hit one out of the park in the 2nd inning and drove in three runs.

Next up, the Spartans take on the Mountain View Mountain Lions today, May 3rd at 4:00 p.m. The game will be at Mountain View, so make sure to wish the team good luck as they head up to Mountain View in hopes of continuing its winning streak.

Photo by Mia Nogueira

The Spartan baseball team seems nearly unstoppable at this point in the season and looks to be in top form with only three regular season games left. In the rivalry grudge match against the East Angels, the Spartans proved their dominance and displayed for all of the state to see that this year’s team is one to be reckoned with.

As has been the case throughout the season, excellent pitching was the key to the Spartans’ victory. Senior Kyle Freeland pitched an absolute gem in this one, allowing only two runs in six innings and racking up 12 strikeouts against a tough East batting lineup. With these 12 additional strikeouts, Kyle is now only 13 strikeouts and three games away from passing the State record for strikeouts in a single season, which would be a momentous accomplishment for Kyle and TJ Baseball. The final score for this game was a TJ win at 15-2.

In the game against Eaglecrest, the story of the win comes from the Spartans’ work at the plate instead of on the mound. The team came up big early, driving in 9 runs in the first inning alone. Seniors Kyle Freeland and Austin Hearne were each responsible for three of the Spartans 19 total runs and both hit one out of the park to seal the deal against the Raptors. Also, Freshman standout Cooper Bowermaster had an impressive game at the plate, with two runs and two RBI’s. This one ended early with an absolutely commanding final score of 19-9.

“It feels great to be winning this big against two very good 5A teams. It just means we need to continue to work hard and prove our worth for playoffs, so the game against GW [George Washington] is certainly a must-win,” said Senior Mitch Mankoff. The game will be on Friday, April 29th at 4:15 pm. With only three regular season games left, it is important to catch the guys in action before the season is over, so be sure to see this one.

Photo by Karl Gehring/The Denver Post

On Friday, April 15th The Spartans took on the North Vikings and won the game with a score of 16-6 and again won against Lakewood the following day with a final Spartan wining score of 4-0.

The Spartans have been very hot in league play of late. In fact, so far this season the team is undefeated in DPL and have even 10-runned most of their opponents with dominant winning performances. This undefeated streak in league play continued on Friday against North. Pitching this game was Junior Brandon Gonzales who allowed six runs in the game on only seven hits. The Spartans at first fell behind in this game, but came up big in the 6th inning with nine runs, which won the game for the Spartans by the 10-run mercy rule. The Spartans won this one with a score of 16-6.

On Saturday, the Spartans kept up the winning momentum with  great defensive performance against Lakewood. The Spartans again got a top-notch performance from Senior Kyle Freeland who pitched the entirety of the game and allowed only seven hits and no runs. The defense for the Spartans also played well and led to the shut out win by the Spartans.

With this win, the Spartans have now cracked the Top 10 in Colorado 4A, being listed as the 6th best team in the league. Also notable is that Kyle Freeland leads the state in strikeout count with a total of 69, and also leads 4A in ERA with a low 2.42. Next up, the Spartans take on long-time school rival in Denver East. “East is a big game every year. We just have to keep playing the way we have been and hopefully in the end we’ll be on top,” said Senior Joe Sedig. The game will be on Friday, April 22nd at East and the first pitch will be thrown at 4:15 pm. Make sure not to miss this rivalry game, Spartans.

Photo by Karl Gehring

On Wednesday, April 6th, the Spartan Baseball team definitively shut out the Lincoln Lancers with a final score of 5-0.

The Lancers came into the game with a perfect undefeated record of 11-0 and scored an average of over eight runs per game (and sometimes even more than twenty runs/game)  during the first 11 games of their season. The TJ baseball team brought the Lancers back to Earth after this impressive streak and proved the strength and worth of this Spartan team with a win over the lancers of 5-0. “Being able to beat good teams like Lincoln and Ralston Valley really puts us on the map and proves that we aren’t hype and we do have a solid team this year,” said Senior Sean Gonzalez.

Kyle Freeland pitched a nearly perfect full game, giving up only 2 total hits and keeping the Lancers from getting any runs in the entire game. Kyle also threw 11 strikeouts, which raises him to the number one pitcher in Colorado 4A for most strikeouts thrown. The Spartans’ hitting also put in work this game, driving in five total runs against a tough Lancer defense. With this win, your very own Spartan Baseball team is currently ranked 8th in 4A and have their sights set on climbing the ranks of some of the best teams in Colorado.

The team can be seen in action Friday, April 8th at 4:15 pm against Kennedy High School. The game will be at Kennedy so make sure to catch this game.

Photo by Mia Nogueira

On Friday, March 25th at 4:15 pm the Spartan baseball team took on the Cowboys of West at home and won with a definitive final score of 11-1.

The Spartans came into the game against West running off of high momentum after a solid performance and win against the Ralston Valley Mustangs who were currently ranked #8 in Colorado 5A. The team rested ace Kyle Freeland who threw an ace against the Mustangs and instead pitched Junior Brandon Gonzales against West, who performed at the top of his game. He threw for four total innings, only allowing one hit and striking out seven of the Cowboys batters. Miles Mercer came in as the relief pitcher at the end of the game and closed out the last two innings, only allowing West one earned run.

The Spartans continued to have success at the plate, driving in 11 total runs and ending the game early because of the CHSAA mercy rule. Most of the runs came from Evan Walter, Joe Sedig, Miles Mercer, and Kyle Freeland who each had 2 runs respectively. “We are really getting into a good groove so far this season and hopefully we can continue to build on our success and momentum throughout the rest of the season,” said shortstop Austin Hearne.

Next up the Spartans take on the Lincoln Lancers on Wednesday, April 6th at 4:15 pm at Lincoln. The Lancers are undefeated on the season and the Spartans are looking to hand Lincoln their first loss of the year so make sure to catch this game.