What embodies an 'ace' pitcher?

Baseball has some unique terms and slogans – like pickle, dinger, a can of corn.But one that applies to pitching is the word 'ace.'There are starting pitchers, relief pitchers and closers, geared more towards college and the major leagues, but in high school baseball, the term 'ace' pitcher still applies.Well, it certainly does this season locally.With pitchers like New Riegel's Shane Jones, Calvert's Blake Coleman, Hopewell-Loudon's Cohen Sendelbach, Columbian's Isaiah Tilse and even Gibsonburg's Nolan Hoover to name a few, the strikeouts will definitely begin to mount as we get the 2025 season underway.While being a starting pitcher is one thing, being an 'ace' of the staff takes on an entirely different connotation.New Riegel coach Dereck Uitto summed it up: "An ace pitcher is a guy who has some bulldog in him, doesn't want to give up the ball."Of course he's talking about his 'ace' – Shane Jones.The senior right-hander has been a star for the Blue Jackets for a few years and he upped his play even more last season, earning the SBC River player of the year award. He not only got the job done at the plate, hitting .456, but he was even more impressive on the bump, tossing over 72 innings. He was 8-2 with a 0.68 ERA with 82 strikeouts as he led the Blue Jackets to a 14-4 record in a tough SBC River."Shane and all ace pitchers, are guys who may have thrown earlier in the week and then comes in without hesitation to close out a game later in the week if you need him to," Uitto said. "With Shane, I basically just hand him the ball and he makes me look real good out there. He's so dependable, and he has been that way for four years. "You don't have to think about it too much about heading into a big league game or a tournament game on who is going to pitch."Talk about dependable for four years – how about pitching in a state final game your freshman season.Blake Coleman has been the steady 'ace' for the high-powered Senecas for four years. While he may not fire 'gas' like the other pitchers in the league, Coleman's command of his pitches and the strike zone is wizardry. Coleman, who also got the job done at the plate, hitting .465, was a perfect 10-0 on the mound last season. He struck out 93 in a little over 65 innings with a 0.96 ERA. "For me, an ace is somebody that gives you a chance to win every day, no matter if they have their best stuff or not," Calvert coach Matt Coleman said. "I mean against Shane Jones last year, we played two 2-1 games against him last season. He will keep you in a game no matter what."They just battle and that bulldog mentality. Blake is probably the lightest thrower of those guys we mentioned, but if you don't have your best stuff, you need to mix up your pitches and you can still utilize your defense and keep your team in the game."Tilse had his best stuff pretty much every time on the rubber last season. The SBC Lake player of the year had electric stuff on the mound last season, keeping Columbian in games and shutting down some good hitters in the process. Tilse tallied 94 strikeouts with an ERA of 0.31 last season, dominating opposing hitters."I mean for an 'ace' the talent has to be there and the velocity is a big thing, but ultimately just being a competitor," Tornadoes coach Nick Weber said. "Isaiah is a huge competitor for us. He wants the ball every time that we play and we even have to kind of shut him down and pull him back a bit. He's a guy that will face any lineup and is not afraid to step into the light. "Last year, we faced Clyde on a Monday and a Friday and pitched both games to lead us to a league title. He was unbelievable against the same lineup … that's an ace."H-L could actually have an 'ace' A and an 'ace' B with the return of Sendelbach and Frankart on the hill.Sendelbach was 6-1 last season with 66 punchouts and a 1.34 ERA. Frankart in his freshman campaign pitched just over 23 frames with 24 strikeouts and a 0.61 ERA.Hoover tossed 83 innings last season for Gibsonburg with 114 strikeouts with a 1.26 ERA. In the end, the area is loaded with 'aces.'So let the strikeouts commence!