- April 16, 2024
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Call it interval training.
After Flagler Palm Coast dropped a sloppy 6-1 decision at Mandarin on March 4, the Bulldogs reported to the warning track for an hour-long debriefing. The bus idled, and the Mustangs' coach waited for the visitors to vacate so he could shut off the lights.
“They ran, I yelled, they ran, I yelled, they ran, I yelled,” coach Jordan Butler said. “And I think that was kind of the turning point of our season.”
An offense that sputtered and struggled to produce just a few hits per game early on exploded for 13 in a 9-5 win on March 28. A pitching staff that lost its ace to injury in February has a 2.70 ERA. The Bulldogs (7-11, 1-3 District 1-8A) haven’t commited an error in three games.
“There’s no 'I guys' out here — we used to all be 'I guys,'” senior Kicen Gardner said. “Everybody was just focused on going to college, nobody really cared about how our team was, how our record was going to be. But since (the Mandarin game), everybody’s changed, and we’re trying to make a big turnaround.”
Offensively, FPC has adopted an aggressive streak at the plate. With opposing pitchers’ emphasis on pounding the strike zone, there’s no point in looking for walks, said Butler.
“Our philosophy is ‘on or out in three,’” outfielder Zach Ellis said. “We want to either be on base with a hit or get out in three or less pitches.”
That approach will be especially important if the Bulldogs run into Florida State recruit Sean Reid-Foley in the district playoffs. Reid-Foley — whose fastball flirts with 95 mph — one-hit the Bulldogs on Feb. 18.
Ellis estimated that it would be the sixth time FPC faces the flamethrower.
“The majority of us aren’t scared of him,” he said. “He could be throwing 100 or throwing 60, but you go up there swinging.”
At practice on April 2, players wore an even mix of baseball pants and green athletic shorts. Tom Petty’s “Refugee” pumped through the stadium speakers. Butler chose two players — instead of coaches — to bludgeon fungos at the infielders, a first on the season.
All the measures were designed to make practice more fun and less like work, Butler said.
Austin Coffman -— a talented junior third baseman — put his bare knees on the line to come up with a diving catch. A few grounders later, he sailed a throw well over the first-base target net and off the top of the fence. Butler took notice.
“How many throws to first base have you made today?” he asked Coffman.
“A lot, sir,” the junior replied.
“And how many did you throw like that?”
“Just the one.”
“You stepped into it, threw it 100 mph, and it just took off," Butler said. Then he asked, "Or did you baby it?"
“No."
Satisfied with that, Butler said, “Well, then that’s all I care about."
