John Curtis leans on depth in bullpen, Battard Brothers aid in Patriots’ playoff success

John Curtis leans on depth in bullpen, Battard Brothers aid in Patriots’ playoff success

HARAHAN, La. (WGNO) – It’s near deja-vu for John Curtis as they prepare for a semi-finals bout with Catholic-Baton Rouge.

The Bears are the defending state champs in Division I Select, but it was just last season where the Patriots were swept by them in the quarterfinal round.

“They’re the king of Division I Select baseball right now”, Curtis says. “They’ve eliminated us from the playoffs over the last four years, even the quarterfinals and state championship. Obviously we have a tremendous, tremendous challenge ahead of us.”

Familiarity weighs heavy between both squads but for Curtis head coach Jeff Curtis, their main mission is to play Patriots’ ball.

“They got three or four guys back in their lineup that were in their lineup last year and we’ve got probably five or six guys back. We’re going to go up to Baton Rouge, play as hard as we can, as long as we can and hopefully come out on top for an opportunity to win a trip to Sulphur for the state championship.”

In their quarterfinal series with Jesuit, John Curtis tallied 28 runs.

Curtis believes that their dominant offense can carry them to Sulphur, but their arsenal of arms pose a threat as well, including the Battard brothers.

“Couldn’t be prouder of the Battard brothers and the way that they competed and gave us a chance to the backend.”

This past weekend, Caden and Tyler Battard showed another meaning of ‘Brotherly Love’.

In game two of the series, the Battards allowed 3 runs, striking out 6 – splitting three a piece.

“I had to step up and help a teammate out, he would do the same for me”, says junior pitcher, Caden. “I just came in and threw strikes. When you have a good defense like this, you throw strikes and good things happen.”

For Tyler, a freshman, the playoffs is the biggest stage thus far of his young career.

“It’s a really big moment for me that he trusts me to go in that situation and do what I always do.”

Playing the two-seeded Bears on the road will be the biggest hurdle of the season for the Patriots, but helping lead a battle-tested bullpen is priceless for the Battards.

“It’s awesome getting to share this moment with him. We’re going to remember this for a long time and it’s a lot of fun. We’re just taking it game by game and we’re ready for the next round.”

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