There is information inside the numbers. Ludlow High School’s Aaron Stamm has known that for as long as he’s been reading box scores.
Upon his promotion from assistant to Panthers head baseball coach, one of the things Stamm did was remind himself of the previous season’s production. He took a look at the numbers his players put up in 2023 to get an idea what to expect in 2024.
The Panthers’ .257 team batting average last year needed improvement. The bloated ERA of nearly 5 runs per game needed a lot of improvement.
“I know our hitters are better than that and the pitching is definitely better than that,” Stamm said. “As it turns out, it’s our pitching this year that’s carrying us, and we’re finding creative ways to score runs.”
It is Stamm’s first year back as Ludlow head baseball coach. It’s his second head-coaching stint with the team following a 13-year break. He last helmed Ludlow in 2009-10. Stamm has been former head coach Woody McMillen’s assistant while also coaching the Ludlow boys basketball team, so he is familiar with the baseball players.
“Look at the roster, and you realize what our pitching staff is capable of,” Stamm said. “Jackson Mays is back, and there’s talent behind him. I know we had to be better.”
It turns out Stamm had more than a hunch.
Ludlow pitchers did the improbable. They cut last season’s team ERA virtually in half. After the first 15 games, it stood at 2.26. Last season, it was 4.99.
“Our pitching is definitely better,” said senior hurler Joey Eads.
Some of the differences are striking. Eads lowered his ERA from last year’s 7.00 to a team-best 0.94. He struck out 28 batters in his first 22 innings pitched. He won three games in five starts. Last season, he won one game in nine starts.
Senior Prescott Baer lowered his ERA from 16.80 to 2.89. Last year, he had four strikeouts in five appearances. This year, he already had 19 strikeouts in his first seven appearances with a win and a save.
Sophomore Parker Trenkamp’s ERA went from 5.25 to 2.92. He fanned 12 batters in his first 12 innings, mostly in relief, while picking up a pair of wins. Last year he fanned five in 13 innings.
Meanwhile, Mays keeps rolling along. The sophomore ace’s ERA after the first month reached as low as 1.65 with 29 strikeouts and just four walks in his first 17 innings covering three starts. His three victories tied Eads for the team lead. Last year, Mays posted an ERA of 2.80.
“It’s tough to give Jackson a lot of innings because he also catches and plays shortstop,” Stamm said. “Joey and Prescott want the ball.”
Juniors Joseph Scott and Gabe Payne and eighth grader Miller Reed give the Panthers important contributions out of the bullpen.
“We work on a bunch of things, but what I think helps is they are a year older, stronger and their pitches are faster,” Stamm said. “They’re learning how to pitch.”
With all the instruction, the learning curve isn’t too steep for Stamm’s hurlers. As a result, they are getting outs.
“Even though he’s been around, having a new head coach is a big change for us and for him,” said Mays, who led the team with a .355 batting average. “He’s coaching two sports, so we thought we’d try to make it easier on him.”
The Panthers won their first three games and five of the first seven. They put together a 4-1 record against Northern Kentucky Athletic Conference Division III foes. It added up to a 10-6 record after the first four weeks of the schedule. By comparison, the Panthers won 15 games all of last season. At their current rate, they could surpass the 2023 total before the close of the month.
Eads is hoping April victories bring May mysteries to opponents.
“Winning gives us a good feeling,” Eads said. “Coach has really built up my confidence. We may not be what some people expect. We could be better.”
Mays agrees.
“Our pitchers, we are doing very well,” he said, “but we couldn’t do it without the guys in the field. I think we’ve improved on defense, too. It must be all the drills.”
Much like his predecessor, Stamm believes in repetition and fun learning. “Our players take pride in what they’re doing,” he said. “They do the right thing.”
Even so, the coach is encouraging more thievery to manufacture more runs.
“We’re stressing the importance of getting to first so we can utilize our great speed and steal more bases,” said Stamm, whose squad is successful in stealing nearly 90% of the time. “The key is getting on base more, and we’re working on that.”