Steven Dooley tops Oran's deep pitching staff

Oran senior Steven Dooley has fond memories of last year's postseason, despite the Eagles losing a Class 1 state quarterfinal game to Valle Catholic.

Dooley, a three-time all-state pitcher, transferred to Oran last year after spending his freshman and sophomore seasons at Chaffee, where he never made it past districts.

He said just advancing deeper in the playoffs was satisfying to him.

Dooley has a different mindset this season. He won't be happy unless Oran earns a trip to Springfield to play in the final four.

"I want it bad," Dooley said. "It feels awesome just to get to the quarterfinal game, but I want to win it now."

Dooley heads a strong four-man pitching staff that should help Oran remain a top contender in Class 1.

Along with Dooley, junior Alex Chasteen, junior Jayden Pobst and senior Kody Campbell are all slated to receive time on the mound.

Eagles coach Mitch Wood said Oran lives and dies by the success of its pitching almost every year. He admitted pitching is a definite strong point for this squad.

"They're all pretty good pitchers," Wood said. "I'd feel comfortable going into the postseason with any one of those four starting for me on the mound."

Oran graduated only two players off last year's team. One was a talented left-handed pitcher, Chase Seyer, who posted a 6-2 record with a 2.05 ERA in 44 1/3 innings in 2007. The other, Chris Asmus, pitched 16 innings in addition to his duties as a position player.

"We'll miss Chase a little bit, but I think we can replace him with what he have," Chasteen said. "We should be all right."

Dooley and Chasteen are the two most experienced Eagles pitchers, combining to throw 45 percent of Oran's innings in 2007.

The 5-foot-10 Dooley posted a 5-1 record with a 1.83 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 46 innings last year, while Chasteen compiled a 6-0 record with a 2.00 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 35 innings.

"I'm looking for big things out of him [Dooley] and Chasteen, of course, because they both have a lot of experience," Wood said, adding that he will use them to fill the Nos. 1 and 2 spots in the rotation.

Dooley can throw his fastball in the mid-80s and has good control. He mixes in a changeup and curveball, which is typically his out pitch.

Likewise, Chasteen's fastball has been clocked in the low-to-mid 80s. He said his strength is his offspeed pitch and his ability to keep hitters off-balance.

"We lost Chase and he was very reliable," Oran senior catcher Caleb Seyer said. "He pitched big games for us. We'll step it up a notch this year. Hopefully, we'll fare just as well. The pitchers I'd say are just as good. I think we're a little stronger this year pitching wise. Hopefully, a little deeper."

Pobst and Campbell will compete for the No. 3 spot in the rotation and likely will see some action as relievers.

Pobst, who pitched in some varsity tournaments and at the junior varsity level last year, posted a 2-2 record for the varsity in 19 innings. He struck out 29 batters and recorded a 1.47 ERA.

Pobst throws faster than anyone else in the rotation, but he's struggled with his control at times.

"If he's got his control, got his curveball and his changeup working, he'll be real tough," Seyer said of Pobst. "Right now, he's just got to work on it some more. But he'll still do good pitching."

Campbell threw the fewest number of innings (13 2/3) of the four main pitchers last season. He went 2-0 with 17 strikeouts and a 3.07 ERA.

He is more of a finesse pitcher. He played second base last spring and will continue to play there this spring, in addition to his pitching duties.

"He's just a real smart pitcher," Wood said of Campbell. "He's also got a little pop to him, but he mixes up speeds a lot and he's just a competitor. So he's in there to win a baseball game. ... He's not a power pitcher at all. He's got a good curve and just a good head on his shoulders. He's one of those pitchers -- he usually has to have some pretty good defense behind him. If he's got good defense, then he's a lot better."

Seyer added while discussing the rotation: "Dooley has gotten a lot stronger from last year, and smarter. Chasteen, I'm really impressed with Chasteen this season. He worked harder in the offseason and Campbell's coming around pretty good. His fastball has good movement. His changeup is good. His splitter is nice. All his pitches are working for him right now. Hopefully, he can carry it out through the season."