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‘Stangs carry confident approach into state By Kris Henry Updated: Jul 21, 2022 07:36 PM A A 3 View all photos Medford opens bid for 18th American Legion state championship Saturday in Roseburg There haven’t been many bumps in the road this summer for the Medford Mustangs, but a recent one may have been exactly what the American Legion AAA team needed heading into the state tournament. Ever since an opening-game loss to the Eugene Challengers in what would be the start of a four-game series to determine the Area 4 champion, the Mustangs have been revitalized and more focused than ever. “I think at some point every season you get to that point where you kind of do get slapped in the face a little bit,” said 12th-year Mustangs manager Nate Mayben, “and you need to go back to what you’ve been doing. That did happen, Eugene got us, and our guys responded really well.” In the five games since — all Medford victories — the Mustangs (32-7) have outscored their opponents 56-13 and enter the state tourney at Legion Field in Roseburg brimming with confidence as they vie for an 18th title in program history. “I’m excited about it,” said Mayben of the five-day event that begins Saturday. “I feel really confident in our pitching staff and I feel really confident in our defensive play, and those are the two most important things once you get into the state tournament.” “And our hitting has just continued all year, really we haven’t had what you would call a rut all year long,” he added. “Offensively I like where we’re at, we’ve been pretty consistent through our lineup, especially the top five or six guys.” Medford was a play or two away from potentially extending its own state record to a seventh straight state title dating back to 2014 last summer in Roseburg (2020 was canceled due to COVID). That experience, which saw the Mustangs fall in the championship finale against Eugene, should also help keep Medford on task as it opens at 1 p.m. Saturday against the winner of a Friday play-in game between the Beaverton Sockeyes (13-11) and Corvallis Marketmen (22-14). State tournament host Roseburg will carry each game via livestream on YouTube with Joey Keeran on the call at 1490thescore.com for those unable to attend. “We had a lot of years there where we got to finish on top and last year we got it taken away from us,” said Mayben, “and I think these guys are pretty motivated. They’ve been on top of it all summer, they’ve been working hard and showing up to the ballpark every day with a goal in mind — and that goal is coming up, hopefully. This is always the funnest part of the summer right here.” A typical summer, however, would have seen the Mustangs square off with most of the state tourney contenders already but that won’t be the case this time around. Medford has only seen Area 4 peers Eugene (38-15) and Roseburg (20-17) in action, along with the Salem Withnell Dodgers (22-21). “It’s going to be interesting,” said Mayben. “There’s a lot of unknowns right now going into the state tournament. I think you had a lot of teams that didn’t play very many games that are playing in those play-in games on Friday, so those are going to be interesting since most of them only played around 25 games and you don’t really know who they have and what they have.” What Mayben does know is the pre-tournament hype seems to revolve around the Hillsboro Barbers, who won the Area 2 title at 30-8-1 and typically are a tough out. Medford pinned the only two losses on the Barbers in last year’s tourney, including one on the final day of play. “Everybody’s talking about the Barbers,” said Mayben. “Year after year they bring in a solid group of guys. They haven’t won it yet but it sounds like they have a bunch of guys on the mound and everybody’s talking about them, which rightfully so. They’ve been there a lot and been in that last day a lot, they just haven’t quite crossed the finish line, so I’m sure they’re pretty hungry.” Cody Borraggine was the winning pitcher in both games against the Barbers last summer and returns to anchor another championship bid. Borraggine has posted a 3-2 record and 1.19 ERA entering the tourney, and has been instrumental offensively in the leadoff spot with a .411 batting average. The lone collegiate returner in Medford’s lineup, the center fielder has scored a team-high 57 runs to go with 29 RBIs and only two strikeouts this summer. “Cody finds a way to get on base and the rest of the guys kind of hit the ball all around the ballpark to score some runs for us,” said Mayben. With Borraggine setting the tone, the top half of Medford’s lineup has been especially potent thus far. Second baseman Cameron Sewell is batting .350 with 52 runs and 45 RBIs — sporting 24 extra-base hits including five home runs and six triples — while first baseman Tanner Douglas is batting .372 with 43 runs and 40 RBIs and third baseman Jace Miller has been on a ear to bat .518 with 37 runs and 46 RBIs. “Those guys have been consistent all year long,” said Mayben. “It’s been a great group of guys right there setting the table for us and they all take a really good approach to the plate.” “This year I’ve probably seen more opposing pitchers going into the second and third innings with 40-50 pitches,” he added, “and that’s big when it comes down to pitch count and who are you going to come with next and who are you going to save or not save. Those first four are tough outs, man.” Left fielder Aiden Horsley was one of the most productive Mustangs early on until being slowed by injury. His recent return spells big things potentially in Roseburg, with Horsley batting .405 with 22 runs and 22 RBIs. “Being able to add him back in the middle of the lineup hopefully is going to really help us,” said Mayben. Just as exciting is how little dropoff Medford experiences further down the batting order, with Jeremiah Robbins (.316, 26 runs, 34 RBIs), Frankie Rutigliano (.283, 19 runs, 16 RBIs), Owen Thompson (.310, 23 RBIs), Kaleb Long (.473 on-base percentage) and Johnny King (.341, 31 runs, 18 RBIs) each providing tough outs. “I really feel like up and down our lineup we’ve been pretty consistent,” said Mayben. “You’ve still got guys that are hitting in the 7-8-9 holes that are hitting .340 and .316. Those guys are still getting the job done for us, especially when you look at their on-base percentage.” On the mound, the Mustangs may not have a flame-throwing top-end starter but they make up for it with incredible depth and the ability to mix pitches effectively to keep opponents at bay. Thompson (7-1, 2.48 ERA), Douglas (6-0, 1.98 ERA), Julius Bolstad (6-0, 3.19 ERA), Beau Aldrich (5-2, 2.46 ERA) and Sewell (3-2, 2.75 ERA) have logged big innings for Medford thus far. “Our guys have done an excellent job of being competitive in the zone,” said Mayben. “We don’t have a lot of strikeouts as a staff, but we don’t have a lot of walks either. It’s nice, our guys go out there and they compete. They’ve got good enough stuff with multiple pitches to be able to keep hitters off-balance and get them guessing, and have just enough velocity to make it get on you every once in a while.” “The best thing about them,” Mayben said of his pitching rotation, “is they trust our defense, and our defense has been playing phenomenal all year. We’ve gone stretches of five or six games where we don’t make errors, and that’s pretty phenomenal.” Have a local story idea? Reach sports editor Kris Henry at 541-776-4488, [email protected], www.facebook.com/krishenryMT or www.twitter.com/Kris_Henry Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune Medford Mustangs manager Nate Mayben talks with the team between innings Wednesday at Lithia & Driveway Fields in Medford. Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune Medford Mustangs center fielder Cody Borraggine connects for a base hit during Game 1 against Redding at Lithia & Driveway Fields in Medford Wednesday. Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune Medford Mustangs infielder Johnny King celebrates with teammates after scoring during Wednesday’s game against Redding.