East Linn baseball, in rebuilding mode since the COVID pandemic, is looking to gain some ground on the basepaths this year under second-year Coach Corey Burns.
Burns, who has assisted the program in various ways over the years, took over last year from Cory Swigert, who remains with the team as an assistant.
Burns said the Eagles, who finished 6-17 last year, 6-15 and sixth in the eight-team 2A Special District 3, have six varsity players returning this year.
“We have a strong core from last year,” he said. “And we have a handful of younger players that we’re definitely excited about.”
The Eagles opened their season March 13 at Eddyville Charter/Siletz Valley, coming away with a 2-1 win. Sophomore Jesse Younger and freshman Nolan Hooper each came away with a hit in a tight defensive game, Hooper’s a double.
Burns said he’s aiming to build consistency in his players this year, and the Eddyville game was a chance for them to put that into practice.
“Our first game really showed when things started going south, they composed themselves,” he said. “If they had a bad inning or made an error, they didn’t let it snowball.”
Junior Noah Medellin went the distance for East Linn, striking out 10 and walking three.
Medellin is one of the returnees from last year, along with three seniors, Isaiah Blount, Chase Fenerty and Asher Taylor, junior Blake Burns, and sophomore Casey May.
Of his 14 players, half are moving up from middle school or JV, Corey Burns said.
Rounding out the roster are sophomores Owen King and Marshall Darwood, and freshmen Jordan Gilliam, Blake Ramsdell, Jake Salvage and Issac Taylor.
He said the enthusiasm and commitment he’s seeing from both veterans and newcomers “makes my job as a first-year coach easy.”
Burns noted that some of his players participated in fall ball, which is relatively new for the Eagles, and East Linn has a strong middle school program, with approximately two dozen participants.
“I’m looking forward to those guys working their way up,” he said. “I’m excited to see the experience, the emerging talent.”
He said their goal is to establish consistency, regardless of circumstances.
“Do we want to win our games?” he said. “Obviously. Do we want to win the league? That would be great.
“But developing young players, young men is more important for us. We want to win but our focus is being a consistent ball club. At the end of the season we want to be able to beat ourselves – what we were at the beginning of the season.”
In district competition, Burns said he expects perennial league powers Monroe and Regis to be the teams to beat once again.
On his team, upperclassmen have set an example this year.
“They’re really putting in the work to get better at baseball, really taking a leadership role whether they’re doing work on the field at practice, or just the way they go about their work. For us, leadership will show in preparation, attitude and the way they compete.”