BaldwinCity.com

Photo by Jimmy Gillispie

Baldwin High School junior Andy Thurlow, left, tags out a Gardner-Edgerton runner trying to steal second base.

Photo by Jimmy Gillispie

Baldwin High School freshman Josh Hoffman, shortstop for the Bulldogs, fields a ground ball and throws it to first base to record an out Tuesday.

Photo by Jimmy Gillispie

Baldwin High School freshman Kyle Pattrick throws a pitch during the Bulldogs' second game at Gardner. BHS lost both games Tuesday.

Gardner — While confidence might not be running high, Brock Hartshorn is hoping his team will forget the past 10 days and be ready for Monday.

With six straight losses on its record, the Baldwin High School baseball team isn't playing its best at the right time. BHS (7-13) was swept by Eudora on April 28, then at Spring Hill Friday and here Tuesday against the Trailblazers. Those three opponents will finish atop the Frontier League standings for the season.

"We ended the season with the two teams that got first and second in our league," Hartshorn said. "Spring Hill only lost two games in the league and I'm sure they swept tonight and ended up league champion. Gardner only lost four games in the league. That's a tough way to end with a young team. We had some confidence going, but then we ran into one, two and three in the league. We caught a team in Eudora that is hot right now and has won 10 games in a row. That's the scheduling and we have to live with it."

Even with his squad's confidence falling, Hartshorn believes his young team, that includes five starting freshmen, has the ability to recompose itself for Monday's opening round of the Class 4A regional.

"I don't know, but they're young and, hopefully, they will bounce back," Hartshorn said. "We will work on hitting the rest of the week. We would like to get some practice outside, too. Confidence right now is not very high, but, hopefully, they will bounce back as high school students usually do."

One problem facing the Bulldogs, who have nearly doubled last year's win total, is their seeding in the regional tournament. They have drawn the eighth seed and will play No. 1-seeded Spring Hill at 4 p.m. Monday. The regional is being hosted by De Soto, but being played at the Johnson County 3 and 2 Fields, which is located at 83rd and K-7.

Despite the odds being against the Bulldogs, they will be bringing their ace, senior Zach Durr, to the mound Monday.

"Coming into our regional Monday, we are going to go with our number one guy," Hartshorn said. "We've won the majority of our games behind him. I hope it gives our kids some confidence with him out there on 10 days rest. It will be a ball game with Zach out there on the mound.

"If we get a win behind Zach against the number one seed, then that throws the sub-state wide open," he added. "However, the top-ranked team in the state is also in our regional as the number-three seed. It's a very tough regional and we are the only team without a winning record. It's a tough challenge and it will give these kids some experience at that level."

On Tuesday, Baldwin lost to the Trailblazers 11-1 and 12-2. BHS was also beaten by the Broncos on Friday, 20-2 and 11-2.

"We're just not playing very well right now," Hartshorn said. "We are not hitting the ball well at all. You're not going to win many games when you score two runs. It's just something we've got to work on."

BHS is out of action until Monday's regional game, which begins at 4 p.m.