Super sophomore's hits spark Steelmen

He says he is still a little bit uncomfortable playing varsity baseball.

He already looks right at home hitting in clutch situations.

Damon Softcheck, the sophomore shortstop/second baseman who is gaining a baptism under fire this spring, had two hits in three at-bats and drove in three runs in Joliet’s 4-3 eight-inning victory over Morris on Saturday.

JT (7-4) trailed 2-0 when Softcheck stepped up with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning. He followed his coach’s instructions. And he poked a 2-1 curveball into right field for a two-run single that tied the score.

The Steelmen started their game-tying rally off Morris starter David Balzer in unlikely fashion. Senior first baseman Chad Carlson reached on an error. Pinch-hitter Doug Bukauskas followed with a line-drive single to center that somehow found a hole between the Redskins’ two middle infielders, Josh DeGraaf and Josh Bennett, who were positioned to turn a double play.

Devonte Green was inserted to run for Bukauskas. Dan Eichholzer’s sacrifice moved JT’s runners to second and third with one out. Jose Hernandez was retired on a hopper to Balzer in the pitching circle, JT’s two runners holding on the play.

Softcheck, hitting in the 9-hole for the Steelmen, wasn’t about to act like a human soft spot. In a brief meeting just outside the batter’s box, JT coach Terry Piazza advised him to look for a curve from Balzer, the right-hander who kept JT’s hitters off balance for much of the day with his breaking stuff.

Piazza told Softcheck to wait on the pitch and hit it the other way. He listened. And he executed.

“Yes, it was a struggle to score runs today,” Softcheck said. “The wind was blowing in, and it was hard to drive the ball out there. When I came up in the sixth, we had two outs and I knew we needed a hit. My coach told me to take the curveball and hit it the other way. And that’s what I did.”

Morris (3-8) went ahead 3-2 in the top of the seventh. Balzer reached on a one-out error. He moved to second on Kjeld Torkelson’s single to right and scored — from second — on a 3-1 wild pitch. JT’s Dan Brandt, working his second inning in relief, fired a pitch to Morris’ 5-hitter, Justin Porter, that bounded in the dirt and eluded JT catcher Mike Hollenbeck.

“The ball was blending in with the backstop — no one really saw it,” Brandt said. “I wasn’t paying attention to where the ball was going. I was watching the runner coming around third to see if he was coming home. It was just bad communication on that one. It cost us a run. I should have been yelling to Mike (Hollenbeck). But it happened. That’s all I can say. You learn from that kind of stuff.”

Brandt (1-0) allowed two hits in three innings to gain his first varsity victory. He struck out five with a fastball that was popping in Hollenbeck’s glove in the mid- to upper-80s. JT starter Eric Sowa worked five innings and allowed two runs — both unearned — on seven hits. He struck out five.

The Steelmen tied the game in the bottom of the seventh on Hollenbeck’s sacrifice fly — but only scored once after putting runners on a second-and-third with nobody out. The inability to move runners up or produce a timely two-out hit looked like it could prove costly until Softcheck saved the day for JT.

His two-out RBI single in the eighth scored pinch-runner Eric Cheffer with the run that snapped a 3-3 deadlock. Cheffer went to run after Matt Ronchetti greeted Morris reliever Matt Hussey with a single to single. Eichholzer’s sacrifice moved Cheffer to second. Hernandez lined to right for the second out.

“Well, the first pitch (from Hussey) was a curveball,” Softcheck said. “And, like the other pitcher, I didn’t think he was going to come back with another curve. So, I was looking for a fastball. I got it. I was a good hitter’s pitch. I think he made a mistake. It was pretty exciting to come back and win this game like we did — we kept battling.”

Softcheck has been battling to gain a foothold in the JT lineup. He said he never anticipated being up with the varsity so soon.

“I’m sort of fitting in up here now, some of the time,” he said. “But I’m still trying to get used to it, trying to get comfortable.”

Tyler Brown added two hits for JT. Torkelson, Porter and Kevin Henry each had two hits for Morris. Balzer was nicked for three runs — two earned — in seven innings. He struck out a pair. He also doubled and scored two runs.

“Give credit to Morris,” JT’s Piazza said. “They played very well. Some calls didn’t go their way. It’s a game that realistically we probably didn’t deserve to win. But we kept battling and played tough and got a ‘W’ today.

“Damon (Softcheck) made an adjustment in that sixth inning with the two-out single. I told him to wait back on the curveball and take it the other way. He did exactly what he’s supposed to do.

“We didn’t do that all day at the plate. We had some very weak swings. We’ve got to hit the ball better. And we made way too many mistakes defensively again.”

Morris finished with nine his — like JT — but was unable to make them count on a consistent basis. The Redskins stranded 11 runners, seven in scoring position.

“We’ve been hitting the ball pretty well lately,” Morris coach Todd Kein said. “I expected us to come here today and hit the ball pretty well. I expected them to hit the ball well, too. Neither of us could bunch any hits together early in the game, so it ended up being more of a pitcher’s duel than I think we expected.”