EDN BASEBALL MOST IMPROVED PLAYER OF THE YEAR: His time was here and he delivered: Roepke emerges as a threat at the plate and behind it for the Bulldogs

Jul. 12—EFFINGHAM — It was Connor Roepke's turn and he didn't miss his opportunity.

The soon-to-be senior for the St. Anthony baseball team, Roepke patiently waited to become a full-time player for the Bulldogs and backed it up with a strong junior season.

Roepke played in 29 games and had 111 plate appearances. He batted .361 with a .523 on-base percentage, a .650 slugging percentage and a 1.174 on-base-plus-slugging percentage for a 24-5 St. Anthony team that was one win away from a state berth.

The year before, Roepke played in just 18 games and accumulated 59 plate appearances. He batted .214 with a .414 on-base percentage, a .357 slugging percentage and a .771 on-base-plus-slugging percentage.

"We had some question marks with our team. We graduated five seniors, guys with some very valuable playing time," St. Anthony head coach Tony Kreke said. "Connor played some infield, some outfield for us as a sophomore and then stepped in and rallied the troops. He's just a great leader."

What Roepke also does great, though, is being a strong presence behind the plate.

Making the pitching staff great is a part of that and the numbers backed that up.

The Bulldogs finished the season with a 2.69 team ERA. Three pitchers threw over 30 innings: senior Brock Jansen, senior Eli Levitt and sophomore Brock Fearday.

"You got a lot of guys pitching a lot of innings for us and when you look at your guys, you don't see any fireballers back there," Kreke said. "Nobody is blowing up the radar gun, but they know how to pitch. And, on the other side, you have a catcher who can turn a marginal pitcher into a great pitcher and that was what Connor did."

Roepke was asked what he loves the most about being a great catcher, along with a series of other questions, by EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner.

Below is how he answered those.

AW: Talk about your improvement from sophomore to junior year.

CR: "I mostly improved behind the plate. [It was] the desire to put myself in front of the ball instead of letting it get past me and play more for my teammates."

AW: What do you like the most about framing pitches and being a good catcher? How does that help you?

CR: "What I enjoy is maybe that questionable call and trying to steal that and get that for my pitcher. I enjoy — when you have runners in scoring position — blocking the ball and making sure they can't advance and I enjoy talking to the umpires sometimes."

AW: Talk about throwing out a runner.

CR: "When you get to throw out a runner, a lot goes into it. You got to catch it, transfer it and make a good throw. It's good to know because, in the end, it does come down to 90 feet and whoever gets more of the 90 feet. When you throw out the runner, it's exciting, but I don't like to express a lot of my feelings when I do that; I'd rather do it for my team than show my excitement about it."

AW: Going up to the plate, what are you thinking?

CR: "I mainly think, 'Sit fastball and try and crush it.' I'm a big mental approach guy. I take a deep breath before I step in. I look at my bat, clear my mind and if it's there, hit it; if it's not, let it go."

AW: Why does Vern [Hatton] call you "Super Gremlin"?

CR: "Whenever that [song] came out, I did workouts with him and he'd always play that song for me and that's why he calls me that."

AW: Talk about working out with Vern and how he has made you better.

CR: "His workouts improved me as a player. I enjoy everything he does and his workouts especially. He pushed me and it would look bad if I didn't work hard. I felt like I had to and that pushed me to become stronger, faster and better."

AW: Who is your biggest influence in baseball?

CR: "My dad influences and pushes me hard — both of my parents do. Coach Kreke expects a lot. He knows what to do to become a leader and what I need to do and pushes me to do that."

AW: What do you like the most about being pushed?

CR: "It keeps me going. I know a lot of people might be laid back more, but I think when you have coaches that push you, it's going to help your program and it's not a bad thing to push other players."

AW: What are you looking forward to the most about rewriting what didn't happen your junior year in your senior year?

CR: "I am hopefully looking forward to returning to the same spot and even going further. It shows that hard work can get you there and we didn't play our best game that day, but it all comes down to that day and you got to be ready and on your toes."

Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.