A Successful Season

The Dysart Demons had many successes and achievements this season. The team ended their season with a winning record of 10-7. They were placed 2nd overall in the 4A Black Canyon region with a record of 8-2. This is a big improvement from previous seasons. Last year, the Demons had a record of 4-14-1. In their old region, 4A Southwest, they placed last with a record of 0-10. Players improved their playing ability like Avion Bailey, an outfielder. Another achievement was Easton Carleton earning his 100th career strikeout when he pitched against Cortez High School. Throughout the season, Dysart competed with teams that were as competitive as them.

 

The Dysart Demons won their scrimmage against Glendale High School on Friday, February 17th. The Demons scored 13 runs within the seven innings they played, scoring five runs in two of the innings. The team collected multiple hits throughout the game which contributed to their score. Dysart’s pitchers were also able to live pitch before their first game against Mohave High School. Jacob Moreno, one of Dysart’s pitchers at the time, said “I feel really good about my pitching. My arm feels good and I threw strikes.” Dysart’s defense was spot on as they made no errors and caught every fly ball, which is an achievement compared to last season.

 

Head coach Kevin Carleton had a bright outlook after the team’s performance in the scrimmage. “It was very positive. Guys were moving where they’re supposed to,” said Carleton. Everything the team had talked about before the game, one of the points being communication, was accomplished. Carleton added on, “We swung the bat, we were aggressive, hit the ball hard and stayed relaxed.” After the performance in the scrimmage, the Dysart Demons displayed their improvement in skill level and ability to play this season. 

 

“They look a lot better than last year,” said assistant coach, Mike Kuhlin.

 

There was an addition of the pitch clock in high school baseball in Arizona. Pitchers now have 20 seconds to pitch and if they violate the rule, it is an automatic ball to the batter. If the batter violates the rule, it is an automatic strike to the batter. Teams also only have a limited amount of time to warm-up. One of the umpires, Larry Myers, at the scrimmage against Glendale said the purpose of the rule was to speed the game up. According to Myers, he umpired games that lasted two to three hours long.

 

Despite the region change and the pitch clock addition, some traditions from last year stayed. For each win, Carleton did the griddy, a viral dance from TikTok. This means that Carleton did a total of 10 griddies this season. Kuhlin also has a tradition with the team. If a player draws a walk during the game, Kuhlin will give the player a Subway gift card worth $5. According to maxpreps.com, the site where Dysart uploads their data from games, the team had 84 walks throughout the season.

 

Another thing that never stopped was Carleton’s calls. Occasionally, you would hear him shout out “No, no, no!” This was to signal the catcher, Ian Anderson and sometimes Easton Carleton, whether a ball could potentially be caught for an out. Another common saying that was heard from Carleton was “atta boy!” This was usually used with the pitchers when they hit their spots or strike out a batter. 

 

Another aspect that stayed consistent with the team is their chemistry. Throughout the season, players cracked jokes and hyped up their teammates as they went up to bat. At Cortez High School, Easton Carleton, Ian Anderson and Tyler Giacoletti-Moody were talking about the Savannah Banana league. They mentioned one of the rules from the league, in which batters can steal first base. They said this to Avion Bailey to confuse him and watched him throughout his at-bat, laughing as Bailey never stepped foot out of the box. 

 

Some players teased the coaches with jokes. When playing against Coronado High School at home, Nate Morales Leyva tried to sneak into the batter’s box after he was substituted out due to the Demons’ big lead. Carleton chased him off the field once he saw him. Some players have nicknames. For example, Juan Anaya is known as “Chubbs” and Eduardo Carranza is known as “Lalo.” Some players joked with me as I was their previous manager for the last three years. For a few games, I ended up being the scorekeeper. The team continuously showed that they have strong bonds with each other. Their chemistry was their strength as the season went on.

 

With a winning record, achievements, and team chemistry amongst the team and coaches, we can anticipate how far they will go next year.

 

Written by Lexus Matos