Nw4a preview

No Hype

No Hype, No Doubt, He is all that...The Real Deal!!!

 

Too late, I already did and he is mad. However, It could be because I didn't give him lunch money again . I used to hear on School House Rock that knowledge is power. We know Messer.

 

Never miss on the lunch money!

Nothing worse than having to be at school all day. Except being there with no lunch money!

Good luck to all the teams this year. Its going to be alot of fun as usual. And the best part is its right around the corner.

 

As far as I can see, and from what I've read, Jimmy is the real deal. I've never seen him pitch before but I've talked to people that are around him all the time. This kid is blessed by God beyond reason. He is head an shoulders above any pitcher in the NW4A conference, possibly even the state. He is highly ranked by BA and many other associations in the USA. He is a bulldog on the mound that comes with more fight than the previous outing...oh. And he is going to UNC. Tar Heels are getting a GEM.

With all that said, the league is going to be licking its chops to get a crack at him so they could possibly say, "We figured him out." Everyone better come with their best shot because he's going to come with that and more.

Undoubtedly the best pitcher in the league: Jimmy Messer.

WATAUGA
MCDOWELL
ALEXANDER
EAST BURKE
SOUTH CALDWELL
AC REYNOLDS
FREEDOM

Best players from each team
WHO? WHY? and anything else.

We know where we think everyone will stack.. most of the assumptions, predictions etc etc are identical. Who will make the most impact on those standings?

 

Freedom - They will be carried by Washington. He's about the only kid that stayed at Freedom instead of moving to Patton. Unless they can pull off some major upsets, theyre probably looking at last place this year.
Conf. Record Prediction: 1-11

AC Reynolds - Alexander Wall will be their key player this year. I believe he's a pitcher and first baseman. All the upcoming jv's will have to help this team out. I think this will be a rebuilding year for them and will probably end up 5th or 6th in the end.
Conf. Record Prediction: 5-7

South Caldwell - Messer and Chavis will be the dominant players on South. Messer is definately going to have a strong year pitching and Chavis will probably be one of the top hitters in the NW4A when the season ends. They are the team to beat this year.
Conf. Record Prediction: 9-3

East Burke - Rhoney and Chiz are their top players. Rhoney is a shortstop and pitcher and Chiz plays third base. They will hit it this year and they will have to put the team on their backs if they want to finish high in the conference. They will be the team that shakes up the standings this year.
Conf. Record Prediction: 4-8

Alexander Central - All I know about them is that they return Josh Russell who is a very good catcher. He will definately be an all-conf catcher in my opinion. One thing about AC is that they will always scrap for a W. They will come to play this year and I think will look at a 3rd or 4th place finish.
Conf. Record Prediction: 7-5

McDowell - Behind the pitching of Jeremy Freeman, they will be an underated team. They have a lot of young talent up on varsity and will give a lot of teams a run for their money this year. SS Eli Miller, a sophomore, will be a key player for them and will probably hit leadoff. If they can play like they're capable of, they will finish in the top 4.
Conf. Record Prediction: 8-4

Watauga - They are a young team this year with only about 2 seniors starting, however, they brought up a heck of a jv team to join the varsity this year. Pitching is the only unsure thing about this team. They will hit it no doubt, but the pitching has to be conistent. They will be looking at a top 2 finish if their pitching and defense shows up.
Conf. Record Prediction: 10-2

 

I know this for a fact. While everybody is celebrating SC's success (and deservedly so), I know there are a bunch of talented players up in Boone that read everything that is said on this board and posting bulletin board material as we speak. They are being quiet, but they are getting ready to roar as the season is about to get under way.

 

I agree that McDowell will be the surprise team. From watching Post 21 Legion Ball this past summer McDowell had some good younger ballplayers on that team, and look fo rthe m to make a big jump in the standings. Freedom lost alot to Patton as everyone has said and East Burke lost the lefty pitcher Mcdaniel. Don't know alot about the other teams except what the others have said in here. I do know it seems to always be a competitive conference with your traditional powers South, Watauga, Alexander, and Reynolds the past couple of years, but there always seems to be an upset or 2 along the way.

 

I hope that is the case with McDowell. I never have understood why they aren't perennial contenders. They play some great baseball in that area at the youth and AAU level. For them to be strong only makes the conference stronger.

 

I am more worried about WHS hitting than pitching. We return an ace type guy in Moore, a pair of young starters and some solid relief. While on the hitting side we return just 3 players with alot varsity at bat experience. Hopefully the young hitters can adjust to varsity pitching but it will be something to watch early.
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for clarification - Wall hasn't played 1B at the varsity level for ACR (if he did, it might have been a very few single innings) - last year he played 3B and shared LF and RF time with seniors. He has had only limited innings pitching at the Varsity level as well and plays football in the fall, so no real pitching time since his 2 years as a JV player.

Matt Overbey will be a key player for ACR as well, don't know why he's always left out of the mix, and TJ Fussell will be a solid pitcher for the Rockets too. It will be a "young" team after graduating so many seniors last year. The conference play will be challenging for the Rockets this year.