Hitting is no small feat for Moses

Playing for a small school like Advance, Trenton Moses' all-conference and all-state honors may not have carried much weight with his new teammates heading into this summer.

He had been selected to the Class 1 all-state team after his junior season, when he hit better than .500. But making the jump to the Scott County American Legion team -- after playing Senior Babe Ruth baseball last year -- presented a new challenge.

"I felt I needed to prove it to my teammates," Moses said. "Just because I'm from a Class 1 school, I can play."

Moses has answered all doubters with authority this summer, pounding the ball to the tune of a .575 average.

"I thought when Shane Menz was hitting .500 last year that's as good as I'd ever see, and he shows up hitting .570," Scott County coach Tom Dirnberger said. "He just has so many things he can do. He pitches, plays first, he loves playing third. I don't know where his college potential is, but with his bat he'll probably be in the field."

With each multihit game Moses racks up this summer, he improves his standing as one of the top baseball prospects in the area. Moses has played mostly first base and third for Post 369 after spending time at third and on the mound for the Hornets.

"I think it's going to help me next season because I'll be hitting in the No. 3 or No. 4 hole, maybe No. 5, and if I'm comfortable hitting this summer, I should be comfortable hitting against the smaller schools," Moses said.

At 6-foot-3, Moses has a powerful bat and plate discipline. In 51 official at-bats during the high school season, Moses did not strike out once. He finished with 12 walks. That streak of games without a whiff ended in the Legion season, but Moses has remained a tough hitter to strike out.

"I've always been one to get really upset if I strike out," Moses said. "I really just try to hit the ball, put it in play."

While Moses put together impressive numbers in the spring, the season was frustrating. Advance finished 12-4 after falling to Oran in the district championship. The Hornets were plagued by rainouts and a late start to the season following the school's state final four run in basketball.

As one of the key contributors to Advance's basketball success, Moses was part of a sizeable group of players who got a late start to the baseball season.

Moses is making up for some of that frustration with an enjoyable summer for Scott County, which has the No. 2 seed for the District 14 tournament that begins Monday.

"The big tournaments, competition is just unbelievable," Moses said. "You face the kids from bigger schools. Being from a Class 1 school, this is the best pitching I've seen in my life."

Unlike during the high school season, Moses does not have his father calling the shots on the field during the summer. Bob Moses is the baseball coach at Advance and coached Advance's Babe Ruth team last summer.

"I think he enjoys it to just sit back and watch for a change, and I don't have to worry about him yelling at me if I screw up. I do that myself," Trenton Moses said.

Joining Moses on the Scott County squad is fellow Hornets player Rusty Hendricks, who is hitting around .400 while playing shortstop.

Dirnberger said the two Advance players have really been a pleasant surprise this summer.

"Both of them," Dirnberger said. "The Hendricks kid surprised me just as much. They complement each other really well. Those two Advance kids have been really great for us."