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39 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, April 18, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 1, 2005 Scorching start Senior outfielder Robert Woodward is hitting a torrid .824 for the Phoenix baseball team By KEVIN GOFF Mail Tribune Robert Woodward can specifically recall his failed at-bats. Not a difficult task when you’re four games into the season and you’ve been retired just three times. "I reached on an error, struck out on a pitch I shouldn’t have swung at and I grounded out," remembers with disgust the Phoenix High senior. Those few occasions aside, Woodward has made the most of his first starting varsity baseball gig by hitting .824 (14-for-17) and helping the Pirates to a 3-1 start heading into Thursday’s game against Sutherlin. "Robert doesn’t get cheated up there," says Phoenix coach Joe Hagler of his center fielder. "I’d say 13 of those hits were well hit, either line drives or hard grounders. Advertisement "We’ve had some better hitters here but nobody works as hard at it as Robert." Woodward spent most of the last two seasons on the junior varsity team, although he was used as a varsity pinch-runner on several occasions a year ago. His spot as a starter wasn’t even a for-sure thing when this season began. "We’ve got five pretty good outfielders all looking for time," Hagler says. "Right now, one of the best things a coach can have is good competition for a spot. "But Robert isn’t letting up." While not a physically imposing 17 year old — he stands about 5-foot-9 and 160 pounds — Woodward takes advantage of his quick bat and speed. "We’ve been working on hitting a lot this year," says Woodward, who moved from the infield to center field two seasons ago. "I’ve just been able to put the bat on the ball and hit ‘em where they ain’t." "He did it kind of quietly," adds Hagler of Woodward’s hot start. "I mean I noticed he got multiple hits in almost every game. But when I stopped and looked after our last game I thought, ‘Holy smokes, this kid’s hitting the ball.’" Woodward did have one mini-slump. Normally slotted in the No. 6 hole in the lineup, Hagler inserted Woodward into the fifth spot for one game. "I went 2-for-4. I couldn’t believe it," Woodward kids. "I told them to put me back hitting sixth, and they did." One "down" game hasn’t slowed the Pirate offense, though. Phoenix is averaging around 11 runs per game and its lone loss was a 6-5 setback to Brookings-Harbor in the second game of a doubleheader split. Woodward went 6-for-8 during the nonconference twin bill and followed that outing by going 5-for-6 with five RBIs in a 25-6 drubbing of Newport. Natural ability and plenty of repetition — Woodward plays just the one sport and spent the summer successfully perfecting his swing — have paid immediate dividends. But, like most baseball players riding a streak, a little superstition has naturally played a part. Woodward, a right-hander, used the summer season to hone his swing from the left side so he could approach the school campaign as a switch hitter. When he started belting the ball consistently right-handed, however, Woodward scrapped the switch-hitting approach. Until his current torrid stretch subsides, that is. "I’m not messing with the streak," he says. "If (switch hitting) will help the team in some way, then I’ll do it. But right now I couldn’t be happier with my start." Woodward isn’t the only hot-hitting Pirate. Entering Thursday, Phoenix is batting .396 as a team, with Dustin Smith (.424 average), John Goldberg (just over .500), Brenton Ferguson (.506) and Chad Walker, who holds the school’s single-season doubles record, paving the way. The Pirates will put their bats to the ultimate test when Skyline Conference play begins for them on Tuesday. Top-ranked Henley, the defending Class 3A state champions, returns almost its entire roster, while 10th-ranked Rogue River also boasts a talented lineup. "I think we’ll do fine," says Woodward. "As long as we don’t give up a lot of unearned runs and we keep hitting the ball, I think we’ll be OK." And if Woodward continues at his current pace, the Pirates will be one tough out. Reach reporter Kevin Goff at 776-4483 or e-mail [email protected] . 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