Prep baseball: St. Albans' pitcher Jake Carr leads All-Kanawha Valley squad

He’s also lost just one decision over the past two seasons, and in every game remains an integral part of a potent batting order that’s gotten the Red Dragons back to the Class AAA state tournament.

Big stuff for a guy of modest stature. But that’s Carr in a nutshell. And that’s why he’s the Gazette-Mail Kanawha Valley Player of the Year.

Carr becomes the first SA player to win a Gazette-Mail Player of the Year award since Ken-Michael Samms was chosen as the Kanawha County Player of the Year in 2001. The Kanawha and Putnam county awards were combined in 2006.

Other players considered for this year’s honor were George Washington’s Aidan Johnson, Hurricane’s Joel Gardner and ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic’s Marshall Pile.

Brian Sutphin of Hurricane was selected as the Coach of the Year and the Freshman of the Year honor was shared by Poca’s Toby Payne and Hurricane’s Quarrier Phillips.

St. Albans placed three players on the 13-man All-Valley first team, with infielder Noah Cummings and utility man Nick Loftis joining Carr. Hurricane, Capital and ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic all had two first-teamers each, with pitcher Jonathan Blackwell and infielder Joel Gardner making the grade for the Redskins, utility man Cam Thomas and outfielder Andrew Sydenstricker representing the Cougars and outfielder Pile and utility man Thomas Blaydes earning the honor for ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic.

Carr has been one of the state’s most-dominant pitchers for several years, and has already signed with West Virginia University. Even though he lacks the size of traditional Division I pitchers — the Mountaineers’ current top arms belong to 6-foot-6, 260-pound Alek Manoah and 6-7, 220-pound Nick Snyder — Carr is fully expected to get a crack at mound duty in Morgantown.

St. Albans coach Rick Whitman believes Carr will have a good career at WVU, and isn’t concerned about his stature being, well, a shortcoming.

“Once the ball leaves your hand, it doesn’t matter if you’re 6-3 or 5-8,’’ Whitman said. “Once it leaves your hand and it’s coming at 88 or 89 miles an hour like his fastball, or if it’s breaking like his breaking ball breaks, then size doesn’t matter.’’

Carr certainly doesn’t think his smaller frame will prevent him from succeeding in college baseball.

“I know I need to get stronger; I’m not as strong as I could be,’’ he said. “I can still build more [velocity]. But hey, 5-9 in baseball don’t matter, 6-6 in baseball don’t matter. It’s all mental. If you feel you can do it, put your mind to it and do it, just about like anything.’’

Carr has applied himself quite well this season, going 6-0 with a 0.25 ERA and fanning 94 batters in 561/3 innings. He’s gotten the ball in just about every crucial situation for the Red Dragons and produced:

n In an early-season showdown with Blackwell and Hurricane — the defending state champion and another Kanawha Valley team that’s qualified for the AAA state tournament — Carr went the distance with a four-hitter and 10 K’s in a 2-1 win.

n During the Mingo Bay Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Carr fired a two-hitter with nine strikeouts in a 2-1 win against High Point Christian Academy (25-4), which eventually won the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association 3-A state championship. That win put SA into the Mingo Bay Division 1 title game.

n Carr helped St. Albans capture its first-ever Mountain State Athletic Conference title, going 61/3 innings and striking out 10 in a 2-0 championship game win versus Hurricane;

n In the sectionals against George Washington, Carr pitched a two-hitter with 11 K’s in a 1-0 win to claim a pitchers duel with GW’s Johnson.

n Then, in the opening game of last week’s regionals, Carr was at it again, fanning a career-high 17 and permitting three hits in a 9-0 victory against Riverside.

“Over the years, he’s a guy who always wants to compete,’’ Whitman said, “and he always wants to pitch against the best teams. Not everybody has that. Not everybody wants that burden put upon themselves, but he wants it. What a factor to have a guy like that.

“That first game against Hurricane, he said, ‘Coach, I want to shut them down.’ He’s got that mentality. If he tells me he’s going to do something, he follows through and does something. Everybody talks that talk, but to back it up and have the belief in yourself to do that? He’s got that.’’

The only game Carr has lost in the past two seasons was a hard-luck 1-0 setback to Wheeling Park in last year’s state tournament semifinals. In that game, Carr threw a one-hitter with 13 strikeouts.

But pitching is only part of the game for Carr, who normally bats second and plays center field when he’s not on the mound. He’s hitting .371 and has scored 37 times. With a keen eye at the plate, he’s drawn an astounding 39 walks and struck out just 11 times.

“The biggest thing that makes him so special is that he’s just a competitor,’’ Whitman said. “He wants to do whatever he can do for this team to win that day, whether it be seven innings of pitching or putting down a bunt or stealing a base. That’s the thing that’s differentiated him from other good players I’ve seen and coached. His mentality is, ‘I want to win, and whatever I’ve got to do,’ he does it.’’

Carr fully intends to continue working as a pitcher when he joins the Mountaineers, but said it’s nice to know he’s got more than one option. And with that in mind, he’s not looking too far down the road just yet, because St. Albans still has some unfinished business at Appalachian Power Park this week in the state tournament.

“Right now, they want me to go up there and be a pitcher,’’ he said of WVU, “so I’m going to be a pitcher. If they feel I can play out in the field, they’ll put me out in the field.

“But right now, I’m just worried about winning. I’m not worried about the future. I’m taking it one game at a time. We ain’t won nothing yet.’’

The other All-Valley first-team honorees include catcher Ethan Payne (Poca), infielders Johnson (GW) and Zach Robeson (Sissonville) and outfielder Charlie Pierson (Riverside).

Capsule looks at the first-team selections besides Carr:

Ethan Payne, Poca: He led the Dots in batting average (.448) and runs scored (30) and swiped 14 bases. As a pitcher, he went 3-3 with a 2.23 ERA and 31 K’s in 372/3 innings.

Noah Cummings, St. Albans: A repeat first-team pick, this first baseman leads the Red Dragons in home runs (3), RBIs (49) and is hitting .412. He’s struck out just three times in 134 plate appearances and has drawn 21 walks.

Joel Gardner, Hurricane: Showed amazing improvement as a sophomore, topping the team in hitting (.459), homers (6) and RBIs (51) and has also shined on the mound, going 8-0 with a 1.36 ERA and 60 K’s in 461/3 innings.

Aidan Johnson, George Washington: One of the most feared hitters in the state, he batted .450 with six homers, 15 doubles and 34 RBIs. Was also the team’s No. 1 pitcher, going 6-3 with a 1.39 ERA and 56 strikeouts in 451/3 innings.

Zach Robeson, Sissonville: The surprising Indians went 21-7 despite losing five senior starters, including their top two pitchers. He led the team in batting (.489) and had three homers, 31 runs, 27 RBIs and 11 steals.

Charlie Pierson, Riverside: He solidified the outfield and the batting order for the Warriors, who made the regionals for the first time since 2014. Led the team in hitting (.404), runs (24) and homers (4) and drove in 22.

Marshall Pile, ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic: Versatile enough to play virtually any position, he’s hitting .496 with 55 runs and 37 RBIs. On the mound, he’s 10-2 with 91 strikeouts in 67 innings and a 1.36 ERA.

Andrew Sydenstricker, Capital: A big part of the resurgence for Capital (17-12), which had its first winning season since 2011. He hit .427 with five homers and 43 RBIs and struck out 38 in 421/3 innings as a pitcher.

Thomas Blaydes, ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic: He leads the Kanawha Valley in hitting (.504) and has driven in 47 runs. He’s also been solid as the team’s No. 2 pitcher with a 6-3 record, 58 K’s in 482/3 innings and a 2.59 ERA.

Nick Loftis, St. Albans: Like Carr and Johnson, he’s a third-time first-team selection. He wasn’t able to pitch this year due to Tommy John surgery in the off-season, but is hitting .429 with 43 RBIs.

Cam Thomas, Capital: Led the Cougars in hitting (.483) and worked the team’s most innings on the mound (42), carrying a 6-3 record.

Jonathan Blackwell, Hurricane: A Division I signee with Coastal Carolina, he leads the Kanawha Valley with 100 strikeouts in 572/3 innings and sports a 1.21 ERA. He’s permitted just 31 hits and 21 walks all season.

Coach of the year

Sutphin guided a squad that lost 10 seniors — most of them starters — from last year’s Class AAA state championship team and got the Redskins back to APP with a 32-4 record.

Infielder-pitcher Tyler Cox was Hurricane’s lone returning full-time position player. Blackwell was another returnee, but he only pitches, and Austin Dearing served as designated hitter last year. That’s it as far as varsity experience coming back. The other 10 players who now fill out the lineup card had a combined 68 at-bats last season.

Hurricane has advanced to the state tournament four times over the last six seasons under Sutphin. Other coaches considered for this award were Bill Mehle (ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic), Whitman (St. Albans), Will Isaacs (Winfield) and Kyle Root (Capital).

Freshmen of the year

Toby Payne blossomed into one of the top players on a rebuilding Poca squad while playing in the outfield and at first base and hitting in the top three of the order. He batted .414 and led the Dots in RBIs (22) and doubles (13) and also swiped 11 bases.

Hurricane’s Phillips carved out a role for himself as a utility player on one of the state’s top AAA teams despite his ninth-grade status. He’s hitting .342 and has drawn 21 walks and stolen 11 bases, allowing him to score 35 runs, third-highest on the team. He’s committed just three errors in the field.