If Fitbit needs a spokesperson, the fitness tracking company could do worse than St. Joseph junior catcher Dakota Church, considering all the walking he did on April 27.
Church walked five times, scoring once and walking once with the bases loaded, in the Chargers’ 5-3 win over visiting Fenwick.
“I’m just seeing the ball much better this year,” Church said.
Patience and a better eye at the plate are paying Church dividends. He was batting .414 overall and .409 against conference competition heading into the Chicago Catholic League game against the Friars.
The Westchester resident also had an on-base percentage of .571 through 24 games.
“He bats leadoff for us, and he gets on base,” Chargers coach Jay Meath said. “He has a couple doubles, a triple, a home run, and he’s 10-for-11 in stolen bases. And you don’t often see catchers do that.”
Now in his third season as the Chargers’ starting catcher, Church traces his improvement at the plate to one primary factor.
“I slowed the game down. When you walk up slow to the plate, breathe, and relax, the game slows down and comes to you,” Church said. “Last year I was in my own head too much and the game sped up too much.”
Church entered St. Joseph as a middle infielder, but the Chargers were in need of a catcher, so Church put on catcher’s gear for the first time in his life and gave it a try.
His first varsity game behind the plate was understandably nerve-wracking.
“It was a big adjustment,” he said. “I was a freshman catching senior pitchers, and it was a little intimidating at first. I had a lot to learn in terms of blocking pitches and relaxing and controlling situations.
“I struggled early with blocking but that’s much better now, and with throwing I’ve gotten bigger and stronger since freshman year, and my arm is much better. But really, the hardest part of catching is just staying relaxed when things aren’t going well, and keeping your pitcher calm.”
Meath said he liked the way Church has grown as a leader this season. He’s also not surprised that Church has turned himself into a college catching prospect, thanks to the hard offseason work he put in both at the school and on his own time.
Church may have entered high school as an infielder, but he’ll leave as a catcher.
“I love it,” Church said. “Now I’m a catcher at heart. I want to catch in college, but I’ll keep my middle infield roots so I can still be a utility player if that’s what’s needed.”
St. Joseph (10-13, 2-9) grabbed a 4-0 lead in the third inning against Fenwick, getting an RBI groundout from Quincy Sowell and an RBI single from Ben Mazzulla. Fenwick answered with three runs in the fifth before the Chargers got an RBI on a sacrifice fly that scored Church in the sixth, off the bat of starting pitcher Jack Whitehead.
“Our energy is better now,” Church said. “We’d pick it up in the middle of the game when it was too late, or we’d get an early lead and get too comfortable. Lately we’ve been keeping that energy up the whole game, and that’s what we have to keep doing.”
More Top Picks Best Computer Desks
Gary Larsen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press