It’s a tale as old as time, that is, every year, kids dream of summer lasting forever. Y-D’s Zach Russell and Jake Souders are about as close as they can get to making the universal childhood dream come true.
When they entered the summer season with Y-D, they attended different schools. Souders, the right-handed bat and outfielder, attended Samford University while Zach Russell, the right-handed pitcher, ended his season with the University of South Carolina.
The rising juniors will get a chance to carry their new found Y-D pride to their new school, together, in the fall: Mississippi State University.
They won’t be located within a twenty minute radius of beaches radiating the vibes of summer, but they’ll have their preexisting Cape League comradery off the field, and talent on the field.
“We’ve made a pretty good connection so far,” said Russell. “I’m excited.”
Tonight, against Wareham, Zach Russell allowed no hits, runs, and only one walk for three strikeouts over two and ⅓ innings, and earned tonight’s win. He took over the mound after Easton Teel (Oral Roberts) finished 3 and ⅔ innings.
Russell’s fastball and slider were his most dominant pitches of the game, he said, with his slider being his main tool for executing strikeouts.
Tonight marked Russell’s longest outing for Y-D this summer, with his first being only ⅓ of the ninth inning on opening day at Red Wilson Field.
It’s safe to say he’ll be back.
The other Mississippi State transfer, Souders, went 2-for-2 with one RBI, two walks, and two hit-by-pitches in his first and last at-bats of the game. The 6’3, Birmingham, AL native has played all five games of the season with Y-D and holds a slash of .368/.478/.368 for an .846 OPS.
As a testament to his speed, Souders also has four steals in only five games this season.
Most excitingly, Souders’ hot bat doesn’t seem to be cooling off anytime soon. Sometimes, to keep his momentum going from one game to the next, he needs to make adjustments to his swing. This was the case tonight.
“I was grabbing my top hand around the bat, which means I was missing some fastballs just by a little bit,” Souders explained. “[I] adjusted that and felt a lot better, on time.”
Other times, his success at the plate is less defined by a change in mechanics and more reliant on a positive mindset, which he plans to lean on to continue his success.
“The vibes are great right now,” Souders said. “Just coming every day, having fun with the guys, playing loose, and just having fun, that’s really the big thing.”
Their performances this summer should make Y-D fans excited to cheer for Mississippi State next season.
