Ootewah’s Bayne Inks Papers To Join Bryan

Lions Get One of Area’s Best In Owls’ Lefty Pitcher

  • Wednesday, November 20, 2019
  • James Beach
Ooltewah pitcher Chris Bayne (front center) signed a scholarship to play for Bryan College on Wednesday. Bayne is joined by, front row from left: grandmother Judy Sanders, parents Suzanne and Allard Bayne and brother Tanner Bayne. On th back row are: Bryan head coach Clint McAuley, Ooltewah head coach Brian Hitchcox, assistant coaches Tyson Latham, Corey Rhinehart, Blake Wachtveitl and Wes Caldwell.
Ooltewah pitcher Chris Bayne (front center) signed a scholarship to play for Bryan College on Wednesday. Bayne is joined by, front row from left: grandmother Judy Sanders, parents Suzanne and Allard Bayne and brother Tanner Bayne. On th back row are: Bryan head coach Clint McAuley, Ooltewah head coach Brian Hitchcox, assistant coaches Tyson Latham, Corey Rhinehart, Blake Wachtveitl and Wes Caldwell.


The first time Ooltewah baseball coach Brian Hitchcox saw Chris Bayne he was 115-pound freshman. Today, when he sees him, he sees a little bit of Cy Young award winner.

But first, Bayne will have to make his way through the NAIA baseball rigors with his soon-to-be Bryan University team after inking scholarship papers on Wednesday afternoon to join the Lions next fall.

“He came in here at 115 pounds and worked his tail off. He made himself a player with hard work and by being coachable, and he’s an even better kid and that says a lot because he’s a heck of a pitcher” Hitchcox said after watching his rising senior sign the papers before a large contingent of friends at Ooltewah Wednesday.

Now, about that Cy Young comparison.

Hitchcox is known to entertain the Owl troops with a tale or two about his playing days in the Philadelphia Phillies system.

The Samford baseball Hall of Famer and Rhea County grad spins stories about matchups against some of the major league’s best or feats by teammates such as Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley or Ryan Howard. In short, he’s seen some high level stuff in the game of baseball.

So it should come as high praise on Wednesday afternoon when he compared his ace pitcher to former Cy Young winner and three-time all-star Brandon Webb, the Arizona Diamondback star who also won AL Rookie of the Year by getting guys out in a way that made hitters scratch their heads.

“Webb never made you feel uncomfortable at the plate with his stuff, but at the end of the day you walk back to the dugout for the third time with a 0-for-3 line following a bunch of weak groundballs and you tipped your hat. Chris is like that. His stuff doesn’t make you uncomfortable, but you never barrel anything up against him,” Hitchcox complimented.

And that’s exactly the sort of stuff that should play well for NAIA powerhouse in Dayton.

“I just love the atmosphere there. It’s like a family. When my grandfather (longtime local prep football coach Bob Sanders) passed away, every one of them reached out to check on me to make sure my family was ok. Bryan is just a fantastic place, and I look forward to competing for them,” Bayne said of his choice.

“I’ve seen several of their games and its fun to watch them hit. They have put together the kind of team that as a pitcher you want to pitch for them because those bats take a lot of pressure of you. You’re not involved in a lot of 0-0 games going into the seventh inning, that’s for sure. It’s going to be fun,” Bayne added.

Bayne compiled a 3-3 record last year as junior as the Owls’ No. 1, but allowed just 34 hits in 49.2 innings pitched giving up just nine earned runs in compiling a 1.29 ERA. Opponents hit a paltry .179 against him and he had a 49-11 K-B ratio. Bayne also hit .337, playing a flawless first base when he wasn’t on the mound.

“If we had played any defense behind him, there’s no telling what that record would be. But that’s the thing that is most impressive about Chris is his body language. He never lost his cool; he never had bad body language or gave a teammate a bad look. He just got the ball and went back at it against the next hitter. And for a high school kid, that’s hard to do, but he’s a great teammate,” Hitchcox praised.

“He fills up the strike zone, and he has a lot of movement on his pitches. He makes pitches look like strikes to both lefties and righties, and gets a lot of weak contact. I don’t think there were but maybe one or two balls all year that got barreled up on him. He has a bright future, and I’m really proud of him,” Hitchcox added.

Bayne was so impressive he earned first-team Best of Prep honors from his peers after compiling the numbers against every district foes’ top ace. And now that the signing is behind him, he looks forward to getting back after it again.

“I’m ready to roll with the boy one final time. Now that I’ve signed, and having gone through it last year as a Monday starter, I think this year will be a lot more relaxed and fun. I’m especially excited about getting to work with coach (Wes) Caldwell and we’re blessed to have him back on the staff,” Bayne said. “It’s going to be a great last ride with the guys.”

Caldwell, who led Greenback to a Class A state title a year ago, rejoins the Ooltewah staff after back-to-back state tournament showings with Greenback. He brings a reputation as one of the top pitching coaches in the state, and he is looking forward to working with Bayne and the rest of Owl hurlers.

“I’ve known Chris for a long time and I know what he brings to the table. He has great stuff, throws from a lot of different angles, and just generally frustrates you as a hitter. He’s a true ace and I look forward to working with him and watching him do great things in the spring,” Caldwell admitted. 

“The last time Caldwell was here in 2017 we had a 1.9 ERA as staff and came within one game of the state tournament. Chris should be excited, and all of our pitchers should be. I’m really excited to see the two of those guys working together,” Hitchcox added.

Bayne will join a Bryan squad that enters the 2020 season ranked 18th nationally and is led by head coach Clint McAuley, who led the Lions to the NAIA national tournament last year in his first season as head coach.

Contact James Beach at 1134james@gmail.com  


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