Hunter ParkerPatience and persistence may be the watchwords for the Chattanooga State baseball Tigers this season.
They have precious little experience at the college level.
All but five guys on the roster are freshmen, and only two of the sophomores played regularly for the Tigers last spring. Those are left fielder Nate Schmal from Cumming, Ga., and center fielder Hunter Parker from East Hamilton.
Sophomores Noah Karst from Canton, Ga., and Grant Sane from Dalton share third-base duties. Otherwise freshmen will be playing when the Tigers open their 2016 season Saturday against Southern Union in Wadley, Ala.
"I feel like we have a lot of talent - a lot of young talent," said Schmal, who batted .331 with 36 RBIs and 25 runs scored in a sophomore-dominated lineup last year. "But you never know how people are going to react when you throw them into the fire, and college baseball is a lot different than high school."
Said Parker: "We've got a bunch of hard workers, that's for sure, and I think they're getting used to this level of ball."
First baseman Nico Lares from the Miami area has stood out among the newcomers.
"The other players think pretty highly of him, and though he's a freshman he's pretty mature," coach Greg Dennis said.
"Nico definitely should help us in the middle of the order," Parker said. "And Matt Wood (from Knoxville) at second base has speed and a pretty good glove, and he swings it pretty well."
Connor Morrow from Canada will start at shortstop, while former Baylor School player Taylor Maxey has transferred from Tennessee Tech and will be in right field. The catcher will be Danny Sirven, another Miami player who transferred midyear from South Alabama.
"We have a few left-handed hitters we can inject in the lineup some," said Dennis, acknowledging that pitching is his biggest question mark.
Chad O'Donnell is a 6-foot-5 right-hander from Cypress, Texas, who had some NCAA Division I offers, but he had a shoulder issue in the fall and just now is rounding into form.
"He seems to be on the mend, and our hope is that he is going to be a conference-caliber guy," Dennis said.
Andy Rivera, a Wabash Valley transfer from Miami, "has really good stuff and can be filthy at times," the veteran coach noted. "And Hugo Casilla, a Venezuelan kid also from Miami, also has the ability to have really good stuff."
Dennis pointed out that the team wasn't able to play some of its scheduled fall scrimmages, which adds to the inexperience factor.
"These guys didn't get bloodied, so to speak, in the fall, so this is probably as big a challenge as any we've had in the last 10 years," he said. "We're going to have some good moments and tough ones, probably, but it's a good bunch and I think we'll eventually be OK."
Said Parker: "If we all come together, I think we can be pretty happy come March and April and May."
Contact Ron Bush at rbush@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6291.