Team Preview: Roberts Post 161

Manager Rich Hurlbut, Coach Mark Harlander, Coach Jim Mann, Coach Christian Parsons.

Losses: Travis Bivins, John Michael Ellis, David Golemeiowski, Ben Korziel, Justin Martin.
Returning players: Cody Crego (3B/P/1B), Stephen Falk (P/OF), Devin Frye (SS/2B/P), Matt Hammill (C/Util.), Cory Hurlbut (C/1B/DH), Nick Iselo (P/Util.), Eric Latus (OF), Tyler Mann (P/2B/SS), Geoff Ogden (P/OF/1B), Kevin Quesnell (P/Util.), Mike Rixford (P/OF).
Newcomers: Curtis Hurlbut (OF), John Iselo (P/OF), Dylan Jones (1B/DH), Chas Parsons (P/3B), Andrew Roberts (1B/DH), Justin Weakley (2B/SS/P), Matt Williams (OF/1B).

I conducted a phone interview with Roberts manager Rich Hurlbut on Thursday evening. He also serves as coach of the Holland Patent junior varsity team.

Here’s what Hurlbut had to say about the upcoming season:

AD: Who do you expect to be your leaders from the players you have returning?
RH: As far as leaders, I’m expecting Matt Hamill to be a leader. Nick Iselo and Jeff Ogden too. The four guys that I made captains (Hammill, Hurlbut, Iselo, Ogden), I’m expecting them to be the leaders. I hope that Devin Frye and Tyler Mann can also step into that role too.

AD: What do you like most about this team?
RH: There’s team unity there, which I like.

AD: What does your team need to work on the most?
RH: Probably our hitting – we need to focus on that a bit more. If our pitching stays stellar, we should be okay.

AD: Tell me about the competition you face in Mohican, Lamb and Westcott. Is this a tournament and what does playing that type of competition do for your team?
RH: It’s a tournament out in Buffalo. We were there three years ago and two years ago. It’s good competition out there. A couple teams from Canada come down and play. They give you a good competition. There’s also a team out of Pennsylvania coming too. I think that’s the Westcott team. I believe they’re out of Erie. I think it will help out a lot. It’s fun for the kids to travel. Staying in the same area and playing the same teams all the time kind of gets old. It’s fun to play teams that don’t know you. I think our guys pick it up a little bit when they’re playing teams that we don’t know.

AD: Tell me about your assistant coaches and what they mean to the team’s success.
RH: Mark Harlander is the varsity coach for Poland. He’s going to be helping out. The other two have been around. One is a former player (Christian Parsons). He’s coming aboard and he’s going to help me out with the pitching and catching. Coach Mann used to do the bookkeeping for me and he’s coming aboard too. They’re going to help out quite a bit.

AD: What is your goal for this team?
RH: Like I said, I hope that we can finish third or fourth (in our division). And I also want us to have a win more than we lose each week.

AD: On paper, it looks like you’re in the tougher division. What are your thoughts on that?
RH: I don’t care for it, but it’s what happens. We’re just going to have to come ready to play everyday and hope we take some from the bigger guns as I call them.

AD: Who do you see as being the major contenders this year?
RH: Probably Smith post is going to be very, very strong this year. I’m imagining that Whitestown is going to be very strong this year. New Hartford should good too. You know, the usual teams that compete, I expect them to be there in the end.

AD: Anything you want to say about your team?
RH: I just hope we have a good season. They’re a great bunch of kids and I hope we can come out and have a good season.