2016 Chaparral Baseball Capsule
CHAPARRAL
Head coach: Dave Soto, fifth season
2015 record: 20-10 (9-5 Sunrise, third)
Returning lettermen (starters): Five (three)
Top players: P/OF Mark O’Connor (Sr.), 1B/C Connor Jarvis (Jr.), SS Erick Villarreal (Jr.), C Robert O’Connor (So.)
Outlook: The Cowboys bring back only five lettermen and are young with half the roster either freshmen or sophomores.
Mark O’Connor (.389, 15 RBIs; 6-3, 1.29 ERA, 49 innings, 99 strikeouts) and Jarvis (.368, 25 RBIs) will be among the team’s leaders, and Soto also hopes for big contributions from Villarreal.
“The team will lack the pitching depth and the offense from the 2015 team, but expects to overcome this by playing smart, aggressive and hard-nosed baseball,” Soto said. “The team expects to battle for a playoff spot.”
