In senior leadoff hitter Clay Milas, Burlington Central possesses the ideal player to start an offense.
Milas does a pretty fair job continuing those problems for opponents in other ways as well.
After finding the power aspect of his swing in recent games, Milas has exceled in all aspects to lead Burlington Central (18-4, 8-1) in a tight Kishwaukee River Conference race.
“He’s pretty much been doing everything for us so far,” Burlington Central coach Kyle Nelson said.
The place where Milas first stands out is initiating problems for opponents with 16 stolen bases.
“I’ve been stealing a good amount and trying to get on as much as possible,” Milas said. “If I can turn a walk into a double by stealing and getting into scoring position, with the middle of our order, I know they’re going to drive me around.”
It’s not just with stolen bases where Milas pressures defenses. He takes the extra base after hits and after his teammates’ hits.
“He can run, he’s fast, but he runs the bases a lot faster than he is,” Nelson said. “He has great instincts, gets good reads. You have to know when to take chances and when not to, and he does.”
Milas, who has committed to play at Elgin Community College, hit .343 last season but started out so-so through 14 games this season with a .286 batting average.
But over the last seven games, Milas has cranked out 15 hits in 30 at-bats, including a home run, three doubles and two triples. He also has added nine steals.
“Right now I’m working to do what I think we all need to do better and that’s get the ball in play and have a good two-strike approach with runners on base,” Milas said. “We need to figure that out as a team and then we’ll really be tough to beat.”
More Top Picks Best Automatic Pool Chlorinators For Home Pools
The Rockets must attain a higher level next week because they play a three-game series for the Kishwaukee River lead against Johnsburg (10-1).
“We’ve had big goals for this team since the start, whether it’s the conference or postseason,” Milas said. “Last year didn’t leave us with a good feeling, but we think we have what we need to take this a long way.”
Virtually the entire lineup returned for the Rockets, who lost to Sycamore in last year’s regional finals. Burlington Central then made regional finals in the Phil Lawler Summer Classic for the first time.
The Rockets’ downfall last postseason was the lack of a real pitching ace, but Milas believes they’ve found a solution in numbers.
“We felt this year we didn’t know who our No. 1 was, but I think every guy who has gone out there has emerged as a No. 1 type,” Milas said. “We knew we had depth, and it’s really good depth.
“We’ve been executing, hitting our spots, and you see it every game.”
Since the Rockets returned from their March spring trip to Myrtle Beach, only Huntley, Barrington and Woodstock North scored more than four runs against them. Burlington Central beat Barrington and Woodstock North anyway.
Milas also is part of the solution on the mound. He’s 4-1 with a 2.37 ERA.
Josh Noeska (3-0) has a 1.55 ERA and 42 strikeouts in 36 innings. Closer Josh Rodriguez has six saves, and helps hold down pitch counts for starters.
“Guys are throwing strikes and changing speeds to put it in play because they know with Clay (at second) and Paddy (McKermitt) at short, not much gets through our infield,” Nelson said. “That’s key because we’re not always going to have guys go out and strike out 10 or 12.”
Twitter @genechamberlai2