High School baseball playoffs begin Wednesday

The regular baseball season for GHSA schools has ended and several area teams will begin postseason play Wednesday. The only team playing at home this week will be the Worth County Rams, who finished second in Region 1-AAA behind Cook County.

The Lee County Trojans finished fourth in Region 1-AAAAAA and will also play Wednesday, but they will be in the Metro Atlanta area for the best of three series.

Baconton Charter and Pelham also made the playoffs out of Region 1-A. Both teams earned first round byes.

The Rams of Worth County (22-4) will host Rutland High School out of Macon today in Sylvester. The two teams will play two games Wednesday with the first pitch set for 4 p.m. The second game will follow shortly after, and if the third game is needed it will be played Thursday.

Rutland (9-15) brings an experienced team into Sylvester, with 10 seniors who won their last two games by a combined score of 35-0.

“They definitely have some pop in their bats and they are aggressive at the plate,” Worth County head coach Will Smith said. “It is important for us to get on the board early and then use smart pitching and good defense.”

While the Rams lost to Cook County last week, Smith pointed out it wasn’t because of the defense. The Rams did not make any errors during the doubleheader that decided the region title.

“Our defense was strong,” he said. “We had some good hits too,” he said, “but they just didn’t fall. That is a testament to the defense Cook County played as well.”

Junior right-hander Jeremiah Reddell is scheduled to start Game 1 for the Rams.

After dropping a season-ending doubleheader to Valdosta last week, the Lee County Trojans (15-15) will travel to Stone Mountain this morning to face off with Stephenson High School in the AAAAAA bracket. The Jaguars boast a 19-5 overall record and finished their region slate with a 14-2 mark. Stephenson has nine seniors on their roster.

“It won’t be easy going into their home field,” Lee County head coach Brian Trivette said. “Our guys are looking forward to the challenge. I have to give our guys credit, they have been through adversity but continue to buy in and play.”

One of the challenges the Trojans will face is the pitching staff of the Jaguars.

“They have three strong arms, including a Tennessee commit,” said the coach.

The Trojans and the Jaguars will start Game 1 at 1 p.m., with the second game to follow. Senior Matt Cooper is the likely starter for Game 1 for the Trojans. Game 3 will be played Thursday if necessary.

Class A uses a power ranking system to determine playoff standings and the top eight teams in the power rankings earn a first round bye. That means Baconton (3) and Pelham (8) earned first round byes. Baconton will host the winner of the Bowdon-Charlton County series on May 2 and 3 in Baconton. Pelham will play the winner of the Commerce-Crawford County series on those same dates in Pelham. The Baconton Blazers finished the season with a 22-5 record and the top spot in Region 1-A with a 17-1 region record. The Pelham Hornets completed the season with a 20-6 overall record and 14-4 in the region.

Joe WhitfieldBy Joe Whitfield

By Joe Whitfield