To say the least, there are some gifted baseball players in the area.
Three Blue Water Area players were just recognized as the state’s best, all having different stories to their all-state seasons.
One is a senior that went out with a second conference title, another is a senior who bounced back from a junior year injury and another is a rising junior poised for a big senior season.
Memphis’ Aaron Gillespie runs for third during a baseball game Thursday, April 28, 2016 at Armada High School.
Gillespie leads Memphis
Heading into the season, Aaron Gillespie had big expectations for himself and the other 13 seniors on Memphis’ promising team.
The season ended with the Yellowjackets second straight Greater Thumb Conference East title, ending the seniors’ Memphis careers with another banner season.
“(Gillespie) and this whole senior class has been huge to the program,” Memphis head coach Guy Walsh said. “Back when they were seven years old we knew there was something special about these guys, especially Aaron. He hit the ball further and threw the ball a little faster than everyone else.”
Gillespie was named to the Division 3 Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association All-State First Team. Seeing the stats, there’s no mystery as to how he found himself bringing in those honors as he hit .570 with 13 doubles and held a 1.03 ERA on the mound with 92 strikeouts in 54 innings.
“He was phenomenal in everything he did,” Walsh said. “He hit the crap out of the ball, he was our best pitcher and could play everywhere in the field.”
On the practice field Gillespie was a quiet kid who led by example. With the boosted number of younger players in the program, Walsh hopes the upcoming players saw how Gillespie handled his business as a Yellowjacket.
“He’s a great kid,” Walsh said. “Just a humble kid, works his tail off and he’s just a humble, hard-working kid.”
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St. Clair’s Gehrig Anglin gets a hit during a baseball game Wednesday, April 20, 2016 at Marysville High School.
Anglin puts together big junior year
St. Clair’s do-it-all player Gehrig Anglin made a splash last year as a sophomore.
It’s no surprise that he turned his junior season into a Division 2 First Team All-State season for the Saints.
“He spent the offseason working out,” Saints head coach Denny White said. “They worked on his speed and quickness, and he lost a little bit of weight, but he added muscle.”
As the Saints No. 3 hitter, Anglin produced numbers with power with his .437 batting average that included 14 doubles, three triples and three home runs. For Anglin’s standards, his year on the mound was considered up-and-down, but in the end he still sported a 2.14 ERA with 65 strikeouts in 62 innings.
As special as Anglin is on the field, he does his damage in silence. It’s all focus all the time, and he’ll carry that calm demeanor into his senior season where he’s already been named a team captain.
“He’s a quiet leader, and even in practice you get 100 percent of what he has every day,” White said.
“He’s a blessing to have on this team.”
Richmond’s Connor Margosian runs for third during a baseball game Tuesday, May 24, 2016 at Richmond High School.
Margosian bounces back in senior year
Last spring, Connor Margosian only had three at bats for Richmond in his injury-plagued season.
Today, he’s looking back at a senior year that ended with Division 2 Second Team honors for the Blue Water Area Conference-winning Blue Devils.
“He’s a hard working kid,” Richmond head coach Scott Evans said. “We try to pride ourselves as a high school of kids that overachieve and reach their potential, and that’s what he does. He stays after practice and hits and he just works his butt off.”
Whether it was a clutch hit at the plate or a big performance on the mound, Margosian had ice water in his veins all season to deliver big moments to Richmond. After a year limited to injury, the Blue Devils had no idea they were going to get a pitcher that would eventually go 7-1 on the season.
“On the mound I didn’t know what we had,” Evans said. “I knew he had a live arm, but until you get out and get tested it’s hard to tell what you’ll get from kids.”
While Marosian leaves the Blue Devils squad with graduation, he left a legacy and learning lessons for any up-and-coming player that looked at how he carried himself through another conference-winning season.
“He’s a hard-working kid,” Evans said. “That’s his mantra. He’s a good, soulful kid you would want your son to be like. Every father would want their son to be as honest, hard-working and passionate as he is.”
