Central Bats Welcome Wellington Back To District Play

John Padich went the distance for the Broncos Monday afternoon.

The Wellington Wolverines appeared to have turned a corner last week while away for Spring Break. The Wolverines went away and won the Central Florida Slam championship, beating some of the best teams from Central Florida in the process. On Tuesday, the Wolverines were welcomed back to Palm Beach with a hit barrage from Palm Beach Central in a 16-0 8A-9 win.

The Broncos are battling for first place in the district, tied with Palm Beach Gardens for second, two games behind Jupiter. Tuesday afternoon, the Broncos were in no mood to make this a competitive match-up, instead scoring three runs in the first and then tacking on two more in the third, and 10 in the fourth. It was one of the most complete games of the year for PB Central, with its offense, defense, and pitching all working in sync.

John Padich, who came into the game among the county leaders with a 1.81 ERA, had little problem maneuvering through the Wolverines lineup. On the day, Padich allowed only six hits. Even in the innings where he put guys on base, his defense was there to bail him out.

“John has the ability to throw three pitches for strikes, and we knew they were a fastball hitting team,” said Broncos Manager Scott Benedict. “John’s a guy that’s not afraid to pitch backwards. He missed some spots early, but then he got in a groove. He got some ground balls, and some weak fly balls, so it was a good performance by him today.”

Mike VanCateren tries to break up a double play.

Of course, Padich can thank his offense for the easy afternoon. In the first the Broncos first four batters all reached base. Gage Morey reached on an error, Danny Hernandez walked, Joe Shue executed a bunt, and Ian Hagenmiller hit a single. All four would score in the inning. Shane Sawczak had a perfectly executed squeeze, and Kyle Perkins an RBI single in the inning.

“Once I saw that I had the lead in the first inning, it made things much easier from there,” said Padich. “If we don’t score in the first, it’s a completely different game, with different pressure. But once we scored, everyone was able to relax and I was able to just throw strikes and rely on my defense.”

The offense struck again in the third, using timely base hits from Shue, Perkins, and Mike VanCateren to extend the lead to 6-0. Sawczak showed once again in the frame why the Broncos are one of the best fundamental teams in the county when he executed the team’s second sacrifice of the game.

In the fourth, PB Central put the game away with a 10-run explosion. The usual suspects of Shue, Danny Hernandez and Perkins all had hits in the inning, but what impressed Benedict the most was the guys he brought off the bench in the fourth. Gabe Hernandez had a double, Diego Francisco and Austin Rivera had singles, while Tim Becker, Jameel Edney, and Brandon Krock also reached base off the bench in the inning.

“Our approaches at the plate today were outstanding,” said Benedict. “Staying back, hitting the ball the other way, staying inside the ball, and executing our bunts, it was all very good. The guys that came in off the bench were ready to hit and ready to perform, and that’s always good to see.”

Gage Morey congratulates teammate Danny Hernandez in the first inning.

The Broncos moved their district record to 4-2, just a game back of Jupiter. Their biggest tests will come next week, when they face both Jupiter, and Palm Beach Gardens in games that will have a direct effect on seeding for the district playoffs.

On the other side of the field, the Wolverines puzzling district season continued, as they dropped to 1-5 in 8A-9. Wellington has a 1-5 record in district, and 10-3 record outside of district play.

“We’re an OK baseball team when we pitch and play defense, and when we don’t, you get games like this,” said Wolverines Manager Scott Riddle. “We are fine in games where we have confidence and know we can beat the other team, but when we play in district we play more tentative and on our heels. Their game changes when the competition steps up, and that’s something we are going to have to try and fix.”

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