Despite having dropped three straight West Suburban Gold games to Leyden, Hinsdale South baseball coach Paul Hoel could be pleased with the continued production of junior Matt Uba in his first varsity season.
Uba had two of the Hornets’ five hits against Leyden on May 4 and two of their three hits against Leyden on Friday. Outside of a rocky third inning on Saturday that saw Leyden score three runs, Uba pitched well throughout the 5-4 loss.
“He’s been a solid player all year for us,” Hoel said. “He’s a middle infielder when he’s not pitching. He’s our leadoff hitter, and we knew during summer league play that he’d be a solid varsity player.
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“He can play somewhere in college, probably at second base as a lefty hitter and a righty thrower.”
Uba considers himself more of an infielder than a pitcher, but against the Eagles he utilized three pitches well.
“I have to locate my slider and use my curveball to change speeds,” Uba said. “I have a lot of movement on my slider, so I have to locate it perfectly for it to be effective.”
The Hornets (15-11, 8-9 through Tuesday) were also solid defensively, which typically allows a pitcher to breathe easier on the mound.
“They made the plays today for me,” Uba said, “and that gives me confidence on the mound to make my pitches, knowing they’re going to make the play.”
Uba, who is batting roughly .400, had to wait his turn to become a varsity player for Hinsdale South, whose rosters are usually dominated by upperclassmen under Hoel.
“He can throw a cutter, a curve, and he changes speeds and uses all three pitches,” Hoel said. “He hits his spots and doesn’t walk people. Coming into this game he had something like 29 strikeouts and one walk.”
Uba said he wants to play college baseball, and his performance this season is a step toward that goal.
“I’ve been going through the recruiting process. I started doing that a couple months ago,” Uba said. “I’d like to stay in the area, not too far away, but I definitely want to play.”
Leyden led 4-0 in the third inning Saturday, but the Hornets scored a run in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by third baseman Ryan Kuhlman. Leyden led 5-1 when the Hornets scored two more in the sixth, thanks to a 2-run home run from first baseman Jaxon Herchenbach.
The Hornets cut Leyden’s lead to 5-4 in the seventh inning and stranded the tying run on second base..
“We didn’t beat ourselves, (Leyden) beat us,” Hoel said. “They battled and fought, and it was a good high school game.
“They’re good and they don’t make mistakes. They field everything. For us, I liked the fact that we competed and limited our mistakes. We were a couple of hits away from winning, and I liked the way our kids competed and didn’t give up.”
Gary Larsen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press