Tigers' Baseball Ready for Opening Day

Don't ask Twinsburg baseball coach Don Jones how many games he has won in over two decades at the school. He doesn't really know or care to know.

You can ask him about what kind of players he has coached in his past 23 seasons and he will quickly tell you he has been blessed with both talent and character.

"It's definitely a team approach with us," said Jones, who took the Tigers to the state Final Four in 1990 and 2006. "We have guys that fit their roles and that's something that's been instilled in this program for many, many years. You don't win without talent and I've had some great kids in this program."

Last year, Twinsburg went 20-7 overall and tied with Solon for a division championship, winning or sharing the title for the third straight season. "We play for those 10 league games," said Jones. "We've been to the regionals four times and won two of them, but league championships are lasting. You will talk about those 20 years from now."

The Tigers lose eight seniors from last year's team and five of them are playing college baseball this spring. The only full-time returning starter is senior shortstop Michael Timm.

Returning letter winners include seniors Stephen Wallin, Frank Shaffer, Scott Shary, Zak Laubscher and Andrew Reed and juniors Alex Havens and Scott Effross. Wallin, Shaffer, Shary and Effross will pitch in addition to holding down regular spots in the infield and outfield while Laubscher will catch, Havens will play at third base and Reed will play in the infield.

As usual, Jones will make sure his underclassmen see plenty of playing time in the team's independent games. "We use those games to prepare for the future," he said. "We've been able to do that each year and continue to compete and we're just as excited for this group as any other."

Twinsburg made it to the district final before dropping a heartbreaking one-run decision last year. The Tigers will once again be a tough opponent for any team they face this season.

"You're going to see an extremely determined group of players," said Jones of the 2011 team. "We will be putting pressure on teams when we are in the (batter's) box – we're going to try and create as much havoc as we can. At the same time this is a very disciplined group and we should be solid fielding the baseball."

Pitching, as always, will make the difference. The Tigers are somewhat inexperienced on the mound, but have potential.

Twinsburg is set to open the new season Tuesday afternoon when the team travels to Dublin Jerome outside of Columbus. The Tigers will play both the host team and Delaware Hayes in a doubleheader.

Other early season games will include opponents such as Brush and Youngstown Mooney. Just another rugged schedule for Twinsburg – and just the way Jones likes it.

"We want to go out and play these teams and see where we stand," he said.

Seasons may change but the message stays the same for Tiger baseball – the team approach always prevails.