Coach's Corner: Area baseball and softball coaches reveal thoughts on '24 season in anonymous survey
This spring season, the Treasure Coast hasn’t been short on talent either on the baseball or softball diamond.
How is that measured? What makes that statement true?
One easy tell is that there are several players either signed or committed to play collegiately in the future. Also, of course, stats can tell a part of the story.
But rather than rely on the numbers or the others, TCPalm chose a different path in highlighting the very best: we simply went to the very coaches that watch players take cuts or fire toward the mound every day.
SCOREBOARD: Treasure Coast high school sports scores for April 22-27, 2024
Baseball: Cody Morgan hurls complete game, Vero Beach baseball beats Martin County in top matchup
We asked all Treasure Coast coaches six questions and granted them anonymity in the hopes of getting the most-honest responses. One key stipulation is that the coaches were not allowed to choose answers from their own team.
While not every coach participated, here’s what we found out from our area coaches survey. Welcome to TCPalm’s Coach Corner.
Softball
1. Who is the last player you want to see at the plate in a big spot? - Keyhara Alleyne, St. Lucie West Centennial; Abbie Dewaters, South Fork; Amelia Hannah, Martin County; Sophia Loreto, John Carroll; Kennedy Moody, Treasure Coast
Clearly, our first question had a wide variety of responses.
Dewaters is the defending TCPalm Player of the Year and has followed that with a strong junior campaign (.436, 3 HR, 8 2B, 23 RBI). Alleyne (.275, 3 HR, 7 2B, 17 RBI) is the Eagles’ biggest power threat. Moody (.473, HR, 8 2B, 4 3B, 34 RBI) is an RBI and extra-base machine for the Tigers.
Lastly, Hannah (.443, 15 RBI, 17 R) and Loreto (.453, 6 2B, 21 R) are constant threats to get on base from the heart of the order.
2. Who is the toughest pitcher to get a hit off of? - Hailey Brereton, St. Lucie West Centennial
This one is hard to argue. There isn’t a player with more devastating stuff than the Murray State commit who can blow rise balls past batters or perplex them with off-speed stuff. She is sixth in the nation with 294 strikeouts, according to MaxPreps.
Brereton has tossed two no-hitters and a perfect game this season.
Others receiving votes: Makayla Megnauth, Lincoln Park Academy; Makayla Ortiz, John Carroll Catholic
3. Who is an underclassman that will be a star in years to come? - Makayla Megnauth, Lincoln Park Academy
Nearly the universal choice by coaches, Megnauth has been a significant splash as only a seventh grader. She’s second on the team in hitting (.462), but her most impressive feats have come from inside the circle.
Megnauth has a 1.24 ERA with 111 strikeouts and a .134 opponents’ batting average. She has tossed two complete-game shutouts, including a one-hitter with 16 strikeouts against Martin County.
Others receiving votes: Makayla Ortiz, John Carroll Catholic
4. Coach that gets the most out of its players? - Richard Vasquez, Centennial
The Eagles have a chance to repeat as district champions thanks to the leadership of Vasquez. The team stumbled through an 0-4 start only to win 17 of its next 20 games. Centennial’s head coach has rallied his bunch.
Others receiving votes: Stephen Boyer, Master’s Academy; Trevor Rolle, South Fork; Rico Rosado, John Catholic Catholic
5. Biggest surprise team this season so far? Lincoln Park
The Greyhound sprinted out of the starting blocks, opening the season with victories in their first five games, highlighted by wins over Jensen Beach and Master’s Academy. As the season progressed, LPA collected victories over Vero Beach and Sebastian River while only falling 1-0 to a Centennial team that was on fire.
Lincoln Park has sealed a winning record under head coach Ashley Langel.
Others receiving votes: Centennial, Morningside Academy, Sebastian River
6. Team positioned to go on the deepest playoff run? - Centennial
When the Eagles get on a roll, they can get scorching hot. They proved that with a 12-game winning streak that lasted five weeks. Outside of the power from Alleyne and outright dominance of Brereton, Jaylyn Cooke (. 359, 28 H, 28 R, 7 2B, 2 3B) and Myrna Pratt (.356, 11 BB, 19 R) have helped round out Centennial’s lineup.
Highlighting by narrow wins over Jensen Beach and John Carroll, the Eagles earn districts with victories in their last six games. If they can recapture the form from their previous stretch, look out.
Anonymous quote on Centennial: “If they could get their offense on the right track, they could go farther than last year. The pitching is there; they just need to put up more runs and make it easier on their pitcher.”
Others receiving votes: John Carroll Catholic, South Fork
Baseball
1. Who is the last player you want to see at the plate in a big spot? - Will Perry, Martin County
Between his power and plate discipline, this Tigers outfielder strikes fear in opposing batters every time he steps to the plate. Perry has clubbed five home runs to go with 17 RBIs and a team-high 22 runs scored.
Additionally, he paces Martin County with a .466 batting average while being pitched around 24 times. Despite being a power hitter, Perry has only struck out eight times.
Others receiving votes: Gavin Kindell, Okeechobee; Jace Romans, Vero Beach
2. Who is the toughest pitcher to get a hit off of? - Cody Bennin, Martin County, Sebastian Germano, Centennial; Gavin Kindell, Okeechobee; Rodrigo Morales, John Carroll
Coaches were most split on this category, with good reason.
Bennin (6-1, 2.01 ERA, 59 K) is the ace of a talented Tigers staff while Germano is among the area’s leaders in ERA (1.28), strikeouts (64) and opponents batting average (.137). Kindell has always had a great bat, but backs that up with a power arm as well. Morales is the Rams’ most trusted pitcher, appearing in 16 games.
Anonymous quote on Kindell: “High velocity and an excellent changeup. Bulldog on the mound.”
3. Who is an underclassman that’ll be a star in the years to come? - Frankie Brancaleone, Martin County; Cody Morgan, Vero Beach (tie)
These two have been key contributors to the area’s top teams in terms of winning percentage.
As part of an offense that scores six runs per game, Brancaleone is batting .379 with seven doubles, a triple and seven walks during his freshman campaign. Meanwhile, Morgan, a sophomore, has put up arguably the best numbers of any pitcher this season, going 8-1 with a 1.01 ERA, 67 strikeouts to only 12 walks through 62.1 innings.
Others receiving votes: Brennan Jones, John Carroll
4. Coach that gets the most out of its players? - Eric Kindell, Okeechobee
Even with the services of Gavin Kindell, the coaches believe has done tremendous work guiding a roster that only features 15 players.
The Brahams have earned impressive victories over John Carroll, Fort Pierce Westwood and Treasure Coast while playing state-power Cardinal Newman tough.
Others receiving votes: Dan Harper, South Fork; David Morales, Treasure Coast; Bryan Rahal, Vero Beach
5. Biggest surprise team this season so far? - Treasure Coast
The Titans have clinched their first winning season in three years. One season after suffering 15 losses, Treasure Coast enters districts with 15 wins.
Offensively, the team has been led by Raymond Missett, a senior first baseman with an excellent eye at the plate. He is batting .452 and boasts an on-base percentage of .652 thanks to 19 walks.
Meanwhile, fellow senior Logan Zavala has seen the most appearances on the mound. He’s thrown 34.1 innings and has recorded 48 strikeouts.
Others receiving votes: Martin County, South Fork
6. Team positioned to go on the deepest playoff run? - Martin County
The Tigers are ranked seeded third and their sixth region, but the coaches feel confident that they have the pieces to make a run deep into May. That should come as no surprise based on the Martin County names that have already made an appearance on this list.
Others receiving votes: Vero Beach, John Carroll
Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for Treasure Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at (772) 985-9692, on X at @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: TCPalm's Coach's Corner: Area coaches and their the best from the diamond
