'We have a lot of depth': Young Calallen rotation leading Wildcats into regional semifinals
Drayton Mitchell used to dream of pitching in a Calallen uniform as a member of the Oil Belt Little League team.
Mitchell even looked up to former Wildcat and current Texas A&M pitcher Justin Lamkin, who put together a sensational high school career, including a 21 strikeout game during the 2022 season.
"My goal is be on varsity and do what Justin Lamkin did for the Wildcats," Mitchell told the Caller-Times in 2022. "Justin Lamkin... I look up to him a lot."
Fast forward to 2024 and Mitchell is living his dream of helping lead Calallen's young pitching rotation as they prepare for the Class 4A regional semifinals.
Mitchell, a left-handed pitcher, is currently 10-1 with a 0.94 earned-run average, which includes 68 strikeouts.
"It's really special to have what we have," Mitchell said of Calallen's rotation. "We have variety and a bunch of different things. It's really special that I got to experience what I experienced in Oil Belt and looking up to Justin Lamkin. Now I get to follow in his footsteps."
The Wildcats have several players from Oil Belt's Little League World Series team, including pitcher Coll Carroll, who has been another vital piece to the team's rotation.
Carroll holds a team-best 0.42 ERA and is 8-1 on the season.
"It's been great," Carroll said. "All my guys that I've played with growing up and it creates a lot of trust. You have to trust the guys behind you. This is basically the same team as the little league team and we're here now. These are all of my friends since I was little so it helps a lot."
Even with 1,100-plus wins and three state championships, Calallen coach Steve Chapman said he can't recall having this much depth in his rotation.
The Wildcats have used several key arms this season such as junior Cody Andrade, who has pitched deep into games with multiple saves and junior Hayden Brock, who is another key asset in the rotation.
Former Oil Belt pitcher Lucas Saenz, Chase Lynch, Tress Vasquez, Matt Lopez, Nathan Groves and Conner Klostermann are others who have pitched multiple innings during the 2024 season.
"It's been great watching them develop," Chapman said of his pitching staff. "They've become good pitchers, who have gone through the struggles of pitching and then also progressing with their pitches and abilities."
The Wildcats' pitching staff has allowed 39 runs this season which is good enough for a ERA under one.
In fact, Calallen has recorded 18 shutouts this season with two coming in the playoffs.
"It's been a fun ride the whole way," Carroll said. "We have a bunch of pitching whether it's right-handers, left-handers ... It's a lot. It's really great because we can go deep in the playoffs, so a three-game series can be easy for us."
Chapman said the key difference from last season to this year has been watching the pitchers mature and putting in the extra work to help the program make another run in the playoffs.
"The maturity they have has made us that much better because we have lots of guys who are committed," Chapman said. "They work their tails off all the way up until now and hopefully it pans out for them the rest of the way."
The Wildcats have won seven of their last eight games ahead of this week's regional semifinal series against Needville.
Calallen is 7-1 in the playoffs after sweeping La Feria, rival Sinton and winning two out of three against Floresville.
If the Wildcats can get past the Bluejays, it would be the program's first regional final appearance since 2022.
"The biggest difference this season is our pitching," Carroll said. "We have more depth and we're a lot better. It feels great to be in the regional semifinals. We have to keep doing our job so we can keep going."
More: Big game: Coll Carroll's gem helps Calallen baseball outduel Sinton in high-stakes series
More: Here's how Calallen baseball was finally able to top Sinton in the playoffs
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Young Calallen pitchers leading Wildcats into regional semifinals
