Baseball: Hubs back with versatile varsity roster

Rochelle faces Boylan Catholic on the road March 23

Russell Hodges
Posted 3/15/22

Depth and versatility are two strengths of the Rochelle Hub varsity baseball team that head coach Jarrod Reynolds will lean on when the 2022 season tees off this spring.

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Baseball: Hubs back with versatile varsity roster

Rochelle faces Boylan Catholic on the road March 23

Posted

ROCHELLE — Depth and versatility are two strengths of the Rochelle Hub varsity baseball team that head coach Jarrod Reynolds will lean on when the 2022 season tees off this spring.

Rochelle will open the season with a nonconference road game against Boylan Catholic on Wednesday, March 23. The Hubs are looking to improve on their 7-12 overall record and 4-10 finish in the Interstate 8 Conference during the shortened summer season this past year.

“We have a big roster and we have a nice blend of juniors and seniors,” Reynolds said. “We have a lot of flexibility on defense and we have three players who can catch. It’s nice for us to have those options in case of injuries or illnesses. We’ll have a lot of kids who will push each other and compete for playing time. We have a lot of depth and we’ve had a lot of kids throwing bullpens over the offseason. Hopefully we’ll be able to play most of our early-season games.”

Seniors Braden Alfano and Andy Buskohl headline Rochelle’s returning starters on the pitcher’s mound this season. Senior Nate Burdin will also see an increased role in the Hub rotation after largely throwing as a reliever last season. Senior Eric Briseno returns as one of the team’s leading hitters, while senior Josh Lloyd could have a bigger role with his speed on the bases.

“Braden had a great season last year and we’re going to be counting on him moving forward,” Reynolds said. “Andy and Nate will both have a big role as starting pitchers as well. I think those three guys are going to be huge for us as we get ready to enter the conference schedule. Eric had a great season last year as both a hitter and an infielder and we want to see him build on that. Josh has a lot of speed and we’d really like for him to be on base as much as possible.”

The Hubs will open the Interstate 8 schedule at Ottawa on Monday, April 4. Rochelle will play a 14-game, home-and-home conference schedule along with nonconference matchups against Sterling, Auburn, Forreston, Hinckley-Big Rock, Belvidere, Byron, Belvidere North, Streator, Guilford, Niles West, Freeport, Stillman Valley, Genoa-Kingston, Dixon and Geneseo.

“We’ve done a lot of hitting work and we’ve been working through a lot of situational scenarios,” Reynolds said. “We have a lot of kids who’ll have the chance to get into the lineup this year.”