A 3-2 loss to Mooresville eliminated the Cary Bulls American Junior Legion team from the State Playoffs last Monday. Mooresville went on to claim the title on Tuesday, leaving the Bulls just short of its fifth state championship in eight years.

The loss was particularly frustrating to the Bulls, who led 2-1 in the sixth inning before Mooresville tacked on one run in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to claim the 3-2 win. The Bulls had opportunities to pull away, leaving 12 players on base and leaving the bases loaded twice in the contest.

“We didn’t make errors. We didn’t walk guys,” manager Ron Powell said. “[Mooresville] earned what they got.”

One unfortunate break for Cary came simply from the size of McCrary Park, which hosted the championship rounds. Cary’s Blair Betts blasted two shots to center field over 380 feet, which would have been a home run in any other park the Bulls played in this season, but fell short of the 400 foot wall in McCrary Park.

Bulls pitcher Joe Pistacchio, a rising senior at Green Hope, pitched the first complete game from any Bulls pitcher this season.

“Joe Pistacchio pitched his heart out,” Powell said. “He pitched a tremendous game. He deserved to win that game.”

Despite falling short of championship aspirations, the Bulls went 43-4 on the season, posting the greatest winning percentage of any team in the history of Junior Legion baseball. And though Powell has coached his team to four championships this decade, he said falling short this season does not take away from what was one of the best regular seasons and talented teams he has worked with.

“I told our players to take about 10 minutes to be disappointed that we didn’t win the state championship and then look back and say, ‘We were 43-4.’ No other team has ever put that record together,” Powell said. “We’ve never won more games and we’ve never lost fewer games, even in the four championship years.”

Though Powell will not give out team awards and superlatives until the team banquet in August, TCN will take a brief look back at some of the impressive moments from the Bulls’ record-breaking season.

Big-Time Talent

Powell said it would not surprise him if as many as nine of his players went on to play Division-I college baseball, with at least five of those players being pitchers. However, few have the upside of second baseman Max Schrock, a 14-year-old playing in the 17-and-under league. Not only did Schrock start for the Bulls, he led the team in nearly every statistical category at the plate, including runs batted in, runs scored, doubles, triples, total bases, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.

Though Betts led the team in home runs, Schrock was known to go yard as well, and even blasted two home runs in the same playoff game.

“Even though he’s only 14, he’s the best player I saw this summer. On our team or on any other team, he’s the best player I saw,” Powell said. “He can play anywhere in America and it won’t surprise me at all if in ten years he’s playing in the big league.”

Making the cut

Perhaps the most inspiring story of the Bulls’ season was that of Corey Walker, the 16-year old right hander who tried out for the Bulls after being cut from the Middle Creek scholastic team. Walker, whose frame and arm strength are hardly imposing, made the cut for the Bulls as teammates and opponents found him nearly impossible to hit. Walker went over 17 consecutive innings without giving up a run or walking a batter and proved that his craftiness at the plate made him an intimidating relief pitcher.

“He is a perfect example of how baseball is the vehicle, not the destination,” Powell told TCN in an earlier interview.

Game of the year

There could certainly be some debate over the game of the year for the Bulls. In the words of coach Powell, “When you play 47 games and you win 43 of them, you have a lot of good games.”

Perhaps the most impressive, according to Powell, was a July 7 thrashing of Vance, where the Bulls scored 19 runs in the top of the first inning and went on to win 30-0. Anthony Colantino alone collected three hits in the first inning of that contest. On the year, the Bulls posted 14 shutouts, as well as several no-hitters.

A program, not a team

Despite the constant change in personnel, the Bulls consistently find themselves in the hunt for a state championship. In its 13-year history, the Bulls have won more than 400 games, four championships and seen 53 players go on to play collegiate baseball.

A large part of that success is due to the talent in the area, according to Powell, and the fact that local youngsters want to play for the Bulls to prepare them for the next level.

“I don’t think we turn mediocre players into great players,” Powell said. “We have great players coming to us wanting to play and develop their ability and talent.”

Powell also credited his coaching staff and the fact that the coaches and players dedicate lots of time before games to improving fundamentals that will help take players to the next level.

“We have high expectations for them. The players over time, over the last 13 years, have come to realize that and they say, ‘If you go play in that program, you’re going to get some more opportunities to play down the road.’”