Winless a year ago, Cervetto has Dublin off to startling 5-1 start

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Tim Teten takes takes his lead off at third base in front of head coach Kellen Cervetto, who has guided the Lions to a 5-1 start to the season. || Courtesy Tammy Cortez Teten

By BRAD KEITH

TheFlashToday.com

(March 5, 2016) — There are two ways to look at taking on the type of position Kellen Cervetto did when he was promoted to head baseball coach at Dublin.

One perception – you’re banging your head into a wall fighting a losing battle.

The other – there’s nowhere to go but up.

Thankfully for Dublin, Cervetto chose to take on the second approach. And he’s shared that with his team.

Incredible what a little bit of belief will do.


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BC, or Before Cervetto, in Dublin baseball terms – the Lions were 0-18 last season and the previous two head coaches combined for just six total wins.

Six. That’s also the total number of games the Lions have played under Cervetto.

The difference? They’ve won five of them.

“Dublin baseball has been beat down for so long that I just told the kids if you want to achieve things you’ve never done before, you have to do the things you’ve never done that get you there,” Cervetto said. “You have to lift weights in the morning, field extra ground balls, take a few extra swings in batting practice, do things right whether the coaches are watching or not.”

That’s it. No stellar new baseball philosophy, no influx of move ins – though there is one who is making a difference – and no flukey late-inning comebacks to question.

Just a team that believes and is playing well enough to win.

“We have a lot of young kids who are playing real good baseball right now,” said Cervetto. “They’re real hungry, they want to have some success and they are playing real well as a team.”

The youth movement has been by design. Cervetto coached the junior varsity team last year, when Dublin elected to be patient with a talented freshman class. Now, the top three spots and four of the top five in the varsity batting order are held down by sophomores.

It’s the middle of the lineup that is particularly daunting.

Anchored by senior cleanup hitter and first baseman Justin Ricks, the 3-4-5 spots in the Dublin lineup are, between them, hitting about .342. Ricks is batting .417 with a home run and eight runs driven in through just six games. Sophomore Josh Hanes bats .310 with six RBI in the three-hole while playing left field and also pitching, and sophomore catcher Race Jackson is hovering around the .300 mark as the No. 5 batter.


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“I’m blessed to have kids who were taught well at the younger levels, like youth leagues and select teams. A lot of them played JV last year and were pretty successful at that level, which was good for us as far as program building was concerned,” said Cervetto. “Now they’re still young and they’re doing it on the varsity level, so there are a lot of bright spots for us right now.”

Hitting isn’t enough. To win consistently, a team must have consistent pitching, something Cervetto believes won’t be a concern for the Lions as the season goes on.

“Jeremy Yarbrough is a senior and he’s our ace, but what’s great about it is he was gone taking the SAT (Saturday) and Bryson Fowler pitches a complete game,” said Cervetto.

A complete game with six strike touts, only two walks and just two earned runs in a 7-4 Dublin win over Comanche.

“We also have a couple good sophomore pitchers in Josh Hanes and Tim Teten,” Cervetto added.

Morgan Johnson, the lone move in, came to Dublin from Florida and is an anchor for the defense in centerfield, Cervetto said.

“He’s good, he brings a lot to the team and knows the game. We’re blessed to have him,” he said.


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Johnson is one of four seniors, joining Yarbrough, Ricks and third baseman JC Loredo, who are leading the way for the young talent.

It’s all added up to more wins through six games than Dublin has experienced over its previous few seasons.

Combined.

“We have seniors who have bought in and are providing good leadership and a bunch of young guys who haven’t figured out yet that Dublin isn’t supposed to win in baseball,” Cervetto said. “Lets hope they never do.”

Kellen Cervetto
Courtesy Tammy Teten

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