FRONT ROYAL — Perfection has a weird way of presenting itself at Warren County High School.
The Wildcats' baseball team has an unblemished 10-0 record through the first half of the season, yet none of the players or coaches seem at all interested in what they've been able to accomplish. Sure, there's a smile painted on each and every face in the ballpark, but beyond that, it's business as usual.
"I don't think anybody's excited," senior Jesse Henry said during practice Thursday. "I mean, we're off to a good start, but we haven't done anything yet. We still have another half season to play."
The second half of the season begins tonight at home against Central, but it's impossible to think about the future without recalling a little of the past.
Warren County has been locked in the Northwestern District cellar for the past two decades and the Wildcats haven't been a legitimate title contender since the days of former star pitcher Dana Allanson, who now serves as an assistant coach. If the Wildcats wanted any part of the regional tournament, they had to buy tickets.
Those days are apparently gone.
Head coach Todd Miller — the team's third coach since the legendary Yates Hall retired in 1999 — preaches cliché after cliché to his team, but it's working.
"I believe you have to stay focused and take it inning by inning," he said. "I really believe that. If we do that, things will take care of themselves."
So far, so good. Warren County has been tested early and often and the Wildcats passed each exam with flying colors. First came an 8-4 win over Handley followed by a doubleheader sweep of crosstown rival Randolph-Macon Academy.
The Wildcats also won three straight road games, including a 6-5 statement-like victory against district favorite Sherando on March 28. They've also earned a 4-1 win over Millbrook, last year's district champ.
"Every single game has been a tough one," said Miller, who guided the Wildcats to an 11-11 record last year. "Every time you don't come out to play, you could lose at any moment."
Warren County has climbed to the district lead using a mixture of solid pitching, timely hitting and a brick-wall defense that commits about one error per game. They've also done it with Henry, the team's best all-round player, performing at less than 100 percent.
The senior, who has legit aspirations of playing at the next level, injured the elbow on his pitching arm in the fourth inning against Sherando and hasn't seen the mound since. He's been contributing as a designated hitter, but that's it. Even his duties as the team's shortstop were taken away and given to Nathaniel Jackson, who was called up from the junior varsity team.
"Something popped on the inside," Henry said of the injury. "I thought it was a fluke accident, so I threw another pitch. On that pitch, I felt something else pop and it scared me."
Henry has been on a progressive throwing program ever since and Miller said he's not sure when, if at all, Henry will be able to pitch again.
"We'll gradually bring him back," Miller said. "It's all about the safety of the player. I'm not going to do anything that will damage Jesse. We'll slowly work him back into it until he feels comfortable."
In Henry's absence, sophomore Shawn Brown and senior Andrew Baggerly have been picking up the slack as the team's starting pitchers. Senior Mike Brown also got a start and allowed just three hits in five innings against Broadway on Wednesday. Sophomore Grayson Partlowe and junior Alex Settle have given the Wildcats quality innings out of the bullpen.
Baggerly, who overcame tendinitis in his right bicep last season, held Millbrook to just one run in 6 1/3 innings Tuesday.
"The pitching depth we have is one of our strengths," Miller said.
The next two games — at home against Central (4-3) and James Wood (2-2) — present what appear to be easy wins, at least on paper, but there's not a Wildcat in the dugout who will admit it.
"You see major league teams get big-headed all the time," Baggerly said. "Like New York [Yankees]. They always get big-headed and they get beat. We think about being 10-0 after games, but when we hit the field, it's like we're 0-10."
