World Cup title exciting experience for local ballplayer
If any teachers at Lakewood Middle School assign a summer vacation essay, Ashton Larson has a story for them. The 12-year-old Overland Park resident competed at the World Cup in Taiwan last week as part of the 12 and under U.S. national baseball team.
Last month, he competed against 110 other athletes, selected from thousands across the country, for 18 spots on the national team. They had three days to practice together as a team before heading to the U12 World Cup.
“All of the kids are like Ashton, playing on a really high level. The coaches have a lot of faith in them and put them on the field. … Each day you could see how much they improved and were gelling as a team,” said Adrienne Larson, Ashton’s mom.
LSU stars shine bright as it takes the series opener against Wichita State 6-1
The LSU baseball team received a big night from its big-time players, which was more than enough to beat Wichita State 6-1 in a rain-delayed series opener Friday at Alex Box Stadium.
Among the stars who shined brightest for LSU (10-4) were Cole Freeman (2 for 3, two runs), Antoine Duplantis (3 for 4, two runs), Greg Deichmann (2 for 4, four RBIs) and Alex Lange.
These 2 pitches made Alex Lange so dominant in LSU’s series-opening win vs. Maryland
Alex Lange needed three pitches to strike out the first batter he faced.
The next batter he faced? The same result.
It set the tone for a dominant performance in which Lange, LSU’s ace right-hander, struck out 12 batters in six innings Friday night. His teammates gave him plenty of help at the plate as the Tigers dropped No. 25 Maryland 6-1 in the series opener at Alex Box Stadium.
“It sets the tone for the whole game, coming out there and showing the other team that you’re going to pound the zone, get strike one and pitch in our counts,” Lange said. “When we’re pitching in our counts, we’re going to be a lot more successful.”
How LSU pitcher Alex Lange, a driven, meticulous star, sees each pitch before he throws
Two hours and five minutes before junior right-hander Alex Lange throws the first pitch of the 2017 LSU baseball season, he will arrive at Alex Box Stadium — not two hours before, or two hours and 10 minutes before, but precisely 125 minutes before.
There is purpose to this. Lange is a stickler when it comes to organization and precision of his pregame schedule. He needs 125 minutes to flawlessly execute his routine, and Lange is obsessed with execution — so much so that you’ll have to excuse him if he doesn’t notice you on game day.
This episode of Good Sports was recorded at the Teamwork Sports Practice Facility and features an interview with Premium Pitching KC owner and instructor Mark Nussbeck.