Weiser baseball returns three seniors

Spring sports are a crazy thing. In baseball, one day you are fielding grounders on a hardwood gym floor and the next you are outside working on the field. 

 The Weiser High School baseball team began practice Friday, Feb. 22, and has seen snowy days, rainy days, and finally some days of sunshine.  

 Weiser baseball has just three returning seniors, but they are tenured, strong baseball players. Jayden Mink, Brody von Brethorst, and Logan Wood will lead the team this year on their way to hopefully playing in the state championship.  

 There are a lot of athletic kids on the team this year and many have the capability of playing in multiple positions. 

 “We have some strong athletes who will see different positions at different times during this year. It is actually really exciting to see the athleticism this year and we may have some kids who swing from JV to varsity,” head coach Bowe von Brethorst said.  

 Pitching is always something that Weiser is looking for and again they will be relying on a couple of those seniors to get the job done. Jayden Mink is a seasoned pitcher for the Wolverines, traveling down from the Tri-Valley area.  

 Mink is expected to have strong command of the mound and be a consistent threat for the Wolverines. Brody von Brethorst will also spend time on the mound this year. Although von Brethorst has spent most of his time in the last few years catching for the pitchers, his arm will be one that the Wolverines will also count on.  

 “The pitchers have some strong arms and a lot of flexibility this year. We have some solid fast ball throwers and a couple who can throw some dirty curves. We just have to make sure we are consistent throughout the year,” von Brethorst added.  

 Logan Wood will have command of centerfield again this year and with his speed and agility he will be a fun one to watch, especially against some of the more powerful hitting teams in the league.  

 Homedale and Fruitland are teams to watch for this year, but von Brethorst doesn’t count anyone out. 

 “You never know what the baseball gods are going to bring, so we just have to go out and do our best each and every game. I am excited this year to see what this group of young men can do. It is always an exciting time to have athletes that have great athletic ability, can play multiple positions, and are coachable.  We also have some under-classmen that will be able step up for us in some tight situations,”  the coach said.

 Weiser looks to open their season this Saturday against New Plymouth.  Varsity will be traveling to New Plymouth for a double header and JV will open at a home double header against New Plymouth as well. Both games start at noon.