SILER CITY — With a 13-3 loss to Kannapolis Post 115 on Monday night, the Chatham American Legion Post 292 baseball team saw its first season come to an end.
Playing a best-of-three series, Chatham lost its first game to Kannapolis by a score of 3-0 on Sunday night. Post 292 was held to just one hit by Tanner Kaler, a recent Northwest Cabarrus grad who is committed to play college baseball at Charlotte. Kaler struck out 15 batters in Kannapolis’ win.
Things didn’t go much better for Chatham on Monday, as it fell behind by five runs, 8-3, after four innings and couldn’t recover. The team’s top batters in Game 2 were recent O’Neal grad T.J. McGraw — who went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI — and Chatham Charter rising sophomore Westin Phillips, who drove in the team’s other run via an RBI double.
On the mound, recent Southeast Guilford grad Chanceler Terry allowed 10 hits and seven earned runs over 3.2 innings while striking out two batters and walking none. For the season, he was second on the team in total innings (29.2), boasting a 6.62 ERA and 16 strikeouts against six walks.
The team’s top pitcher this summer was Chatham Central rising senior Anthony Lopossay, who had a 6.37 ERA and 27 strikeouts against 20 walks over 29.2 innings.The only other players who had at least 10 innings pitched this inaugural season were recent Jordan-Matthews grad Conner Martin (16.2) and Chatham Charter rising junior Zach Cartrette (16.1).
At the plate, three Chatham Post 292 players had at least 15 hits on the season. Leading the way was recent J-M grad Jackson Headen (.386 average, 22 hits, two triples and 12 RBI), while McGraw (.328, 19 hits, nine RBI) and J-M rising senior Ian McMillan (.300, 18 hits, 10 RBI).
Another big contributor at the plate was N.C. State commit and recent Grace Christian grad Brandon Crabtree, who hit .429 with 12 hits and 12 RBI while striking out just twice. Chatham Central rising junior Matt Murchison was the only other player on the roster to hit over .400, as he ended the year with a .424 average, 14 hits and seven RBI.
Ending its summer season at 6-17 overall, Chatham Post 292 has plenty of room for improvement as it continues to build up its program over the next several years. This summer saw Chatham’s American Legion team competing against way more experienced teams, and things should only get easier over time.
Almost every player on Chatham Post 292’s roster is eligible to return to the roster next summer. American Legion teams can roster high school players as well as athletes who recently completed their freshman year of college.
American Legion baseball has its roots in North Carolina, as the league’s World Series is held every year in Shelby, about 40 miles from Charlotte. The World Series has been part of Legion Baseball since way back in 1926, when a team from Yonkers, N.Y. defeated a team in Pocatello, Idaho, in the inaugural championship game.
Shelby became the permanent home of the American Legion Baseball World Series back in 2011. According to the Shelby Star, about $15 million in economic impact is brought into the area each summer because of the event.