Coming off a 22-11 campaign, second-place finish in District 6-4A and trip to the area round of the playoffs, the Brownwood Lions look to improve on those impressive accomplishments as Blake Sandford begins his second stint as head coach of the program.
With the regular season slated to begin at 6 p.m. Monday at San Angelo Lake View – the team Brownwood ousted in the bi-district round of the playoffs a year ago – Sandford has been pleased with what he’s seen in three scrimmages.
“The scrimmages have allowed us to look at quite a few kids, and that’s the main thing,” Sandford said. “You want to make sure the kids are put in a spot that they can develop. It’s still a work in progress, but everybody that’s participated in the scrimmages did a really good job. They bought into the hustle, the tough factor, and got some quality at-bats. We got to see a lot of pitchers take the mound and fire against live batters. Then when some things spin out of control a little, you have to learn how to stop that and put a tent over it and get it back to normal and where we want it to be, which is a championship level, and they’re learning that kind of style. And the style of play we’re trying to permeate through all the levels is aggressive and tough and getting after it and putting constant pressure on the other team. When we line up for real on Monday it will not be a new thing for them, it’s going to be something we’ve been doing now for several weeks.”
The Lions return nine members of last year’s roster who saw considerable playing time in senior pitcher/outfielder Gavin Brandstetter, senior catcher Logan Posey, senior pitcher/infielder David Turner, senior pitcher/infielder Cole Miller, senior outfielder Jordyn Nickerson, junior pitcher/outfielder Noah Gonzalez, junior infielder Antonio Ybarra, junior infielder Austin Wright, and junior pitcher/outfielder Jack Field.
Regarding what has stood out most from the Lions in the preseason, Sandford said. “I really like the senior leadership, they’ve really worked hard. They show up when they’re supposed to show up and they do extra and trying to lead by example, trying to take every step at a fast pace so the young guys can see it. When it’s time to do the duty list they’re roll up their sleeves and do work. Our skill level on the varsity level right now is at a pretty good spot and I’m really impressed with that. The seniors are really doing a good job of playing at a high level.”
After opening the season at Lake View, the Lions host their portion of the Brown County with five games Thursday through Saturday at Morris Southall Field. Brownwood also competes in the Graham and Boyd tournament, along with playing Abilene High, before the 12-team District 6-4A slate begins, as teams face each other three times.
“To be honest I want to strike fear in everybody we face,” Sandford said of the pre-district goals. “They’re going to hear about this train that’s rolling and it’s not going to be an easy task taking on this baseball team. Even when it’s not going well, there has to be constant pressure, and what that means is not staying at first base taking base and putting themselves in position to score a lot of run. making routine play routine, we want to lead the region in double plays and that’s something we want to put out there that we want to do so that we’re working on it constantly.”
The Lions will attempt to upend district and regional champion Stephenville, while Glen Rose, Graham and Mineral Wells also look to be improved.
“I think we’re going to win it and if we don’t that’s not meeting our expectation,” Sandford said of the Lions’ district goals. “The teams are great and well-coached and it’s going to be a very tough district, but our expectation is to win it. If you can’t get into that expectation or mindset, you don’t need to be out there.”
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Brownwood Lions 2024 Varsity Baseball Schedule
| F19 | at San Angelo Lake View | 6 p.m. |
| F22 | San Angelo Lake View | 9 a.m. |
| F22 | Perryton | 11:30 a.m. |
| F23 | Jacksboro | 7 p.m. |
| F24 | Canyon | 11:30 a.m. |
| F24 | Andrews | 7 p.m. |
| F27 | at Abilene High | 6 p.m. |
| F29 | at Graham Tournament | TBA |
| M1 | at Graham Tournament | TBA |
| M2 | at Graham Tournament | TBA |
| M5 | Mineral Wells* | 7 p.m. |
| M7 | at Boyd Tournament | TBA |
| M8 | at Boyd Tournament | TBA |
| M9 | at Boyd Tournament | TBA |
| M13 | at Graham* | 7 p.m. |
| M14 | Stephenville* | 7 p.m. |
| M19 | Gatesville | 7 p.m. |
| M22 | Glen Rose* | 7 p.m. |
| M26 | Mineral Wells* | 7 p.m. |
| M28 | at Mineral Wells* | 7 p.m. |
| A2 | at Graham* | 7 p.m. |
| A5 | Graham* | 7 p.m. |
| A6 | Godley | 1 p.m. |
| A9 | Stephenville* | 7 p.m. |
| A12 | at Stephenville* | 7 p.m. |
| A15 | at Alamo Heights | 6 p.m. |
| A23 | at Glen Rose* | 7 p.m. |
| A26 | Glen Rose* | 7 p.m. |
*District 6-4A Baseball Game