Photo by Christopher Huff/T&D
Will Rimes, left, and Tyler Kirby have acccounted for 17 of Orangeburg Post 4's 26 home runs in 12 games. Post 4 opens the playoffs at home Tuesday
By THOMAS GRANT JR., T&D Senior Sports Writer
Frank Leysath does not need to pinch himself at night to make sure he's not dreaming.
Reality is only a mouse click away at home when the Orangeburg Post 4 manager updated his team's statistics on Friday. A four-home-run barrage in the 15-8 win over Lexington Post 7 in the regular-season finale increased Post 4's total to 26 round-trippers in just 12 games.
Looking closer at the power numbers, the totals are concentrated between two players. Leading the way is second-year Post 4 catcher Will Rimes with 11 home runs, greater than the combined efforts of 14 of his 15 teammates, to go with 26 RBIs.
Standing in second in home runs (6) and RBIs (22) is Post 4 newcomer Tyler Kirby, a University of South Carolina Salkehatchie left fielder who played last year for West Columbia Post 79.
Together, the duo has put on an offensive display not seen during Leysath's tenure. With League 8 opponents having little success slowing down Rimes and Kirby, Chester Post 27 now faces the same task starting at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Mirmow Field for Game One of the American Legion playoffs.
Chester (9-7) placed third in League 5 and has won its last three games.
"Going into the playoffs, the teams that we're playing don't know us like these teams do," Rimes said. "In League 8, there are four teams and we play 12 games. Sooner or later, the teams are going to figure you out. In the playoffs, we're going in fresh. I don't know anything about them and they probably don't know a lot about us. So for a little while, I think it's going to benefit us."
Orangeburg's "Bash Brothers" are not just one-dimensional sluggers. Each has a low percentage of strikeouts, has drawn as many walks (13 for Rimes, 7 for Kirby) as home runs and is second and third, respectively, on the team in stolen bases.
"The hitting styles are totally different," Leysath said. "Will is just on pure power. I think Kirby, the fact that he played one year down at Salk, his hands to me are quicker than Will's and one thing Kirby does is you get two strikes on him, he shortens up his swing. He doesn't try to hit home runs. I'm not saying that he tries to hit a home run every time he comes to the plate. I don't think he does that. He just tries to put the ball in play. Will does that too, but you've got one kid that just has raw power in Rimes and you've got one kid who's got quick wrist and gets around on the ball. That's the way I see it."
Each player is also a major asset defensively as demonstrated Friday when they hooked up for a double play. With Lexington threatening in the top of the sixth, Kirby caught a fly ball by Archie Owens and fired the baseball back to Rimes at home plate to make the tag on a charging A.J. Hart.
Yet it's the long ball that has garnered Rimes and Kirby the most attention this season for Post 4 and it's an aspect of their game neither shies away from.
"I think there's a bunch of different type of baseball players," Kirby said. "You've got base hitters. You've got average hitters. On-base percentage hitters. Slugging percentage hitters. Small ball. People who steal bases. I think we've got all of that on the team, and we're just part of the slugging percentage. We can get up there and hit the ball a long way."
"We're lucky enough to be blessed with the talent that we have and all we're trying to do is keep building off of that," Rimes said. "There's no tomorrow. You wake up every day, you've got to be thankful with what you've got and (God) gave it to you. I look at it like he gave me this and he wants me to get bigger with it. I go every day, work out, hit baseballs and try to gain my power."
With his imposing 6-1, 226-pound frame and powerful swing, Rimes made an instant impression on Post 4 fans last year as he led the team with five home runs. After what Leysath candidly described as a lackluster season at Barnwell despite earning High School Sports Report All-State honors, Rimes returned to Orangeburg a different player.
"He came out here, he was a lot more relaxed," Leysath said. "I think he's actually enjoying playing baseball. I don't know if he enjoyed playing baseball in high school. I can't say that, but I think I'd be right on that. He's a year older and learned a lot from last year."
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