Ben Etzell celebrates during the high school season. (Shelli Trumbull photo)
Call him Big Time.
Coupeville High School senior Ben Etzell went off the Island this summer for his baseball fix, playing with the Skagit Sox. A mix of top high school players and young college studs, the team provided him with a way to sharpen his skills and showcase his abilities.
And showcase he did, moving throughout the lineup (he generally hit #3 for the Wolves as a junior), banging the ball at better than a .300 clip, tossing strikes from the mound and making several superb plays in the field.
One web gem in particular, on an attempted drag bunt, drew the approval of one of his coaches, a former Major Leaguer who saw time with the San Francisco Giants.
As his season came to an end with a hard-fought loss in a tournament championship game — in which Etzell scored his team’s lone run with a wild head-first slide into home — he reflected on his season in the sun.
It was really an eye-opening experience for me.
I didn’t really know how I would do against many of the best players in the state. I entered the season looking at it as an opportunity to judge whether or not I had the ability to play at the next level (college).
I now look back on the summer and am more than thrilled with the way I performed. It proved to me I am someone who can play somewhere at a higher level.
It helped me grow as a ball player in the fact I was around kids who had already experienced a year in college baseball. I found out what expectations are and what I need to do looking forward to college ball.
Having a coach who doubles as Skagit Valley College’s head coach also proved helpful. I found out what college coaches are looking for and his guidance really helped to further my understanding of the game as well.
I also learned that I am capable of hitting just about anywhere in the lineup.
I hit in every single lineup spot but 2nd and 5th I think this summer. By doing that, it helped me realize what different approaches I can have as a hitter in certain spots in the lineup.
I’d have to say my favorite spot to hit was 7 because it allowed me to do just about anything.
I think I had seven or eight bunt base-hits this summer and at least five of them came when I was hitting towards the bottom of the order.
As far as stats go, I don’t have exact numbers for you but I can tell you I was definitely one of the top hitters average-wise on a team that included six or seven guys who have played college ball already.
I probably hit around .315-.330 and led the team in bunt base-hits and sacrifice hits. I also scored quite a few runs and was surprisingly a pretty good base-stealer (against the best catchers in the state).
Defensively, I had a great season. I played second, third, right field and left field this summer, along with a very little amount of pitching.
I made several stellar defensive plays which our coach and others were very impressed with. There was one play I made on a drag bunt down the third base line where my coach, who played for the San Francisco Giants, commented and said it was “One of the best defensive plays he’d seen in a long, long time.”
It was moments like this where I knew I was playing for the right team. It was a great group of guys who were all very supportive and fun to travel with.
Also, as far as pitching stats go, there isn’t much… The only game I started happened to be the semifinal game of our last tournament.
Coach finally gave me a shot and what did I do? Threw a complete game two-hitter to get us into the championship game against one of the better teams in our area.
It makes me wish I would have pitched a lot more often (I had only pitched twice prior to then and they were both in non-pressure situations when we were up by a lot).
