BERLIN (May 9, 2024) – Brady Yoder had some big shoes to fill for the Hiland Hawks in 2024. Thus far, he’s doing it extremely well.

Yoder moved from third base in 2023 to shortstop this season to take over the vacancy his brother Nolan left when the older brother won Division IV Player of the Year honors and helped Hiland to a 30-1 record and the OHSAA state championship.  Thus far Brady has been an excellent in the field, at the plate, and on the mound in six relief appearances for the 17-5 Hawks.

FIRST IN A SERIES

“Some other players might have had their brother’s great success at the same position get to them, but not Brady,” says Coach Chris Dages about one of his eight seniors on the team. “Brady is a cool and calm type of guy for us. No moment overwhelms him.”

Hiland fans got a great glimpse of how well Brady played in 2023, as he played third based. He collected two singles and was a key hitter and runner in Hiland’s 14-4 triumph over Russia in the state title game.

This season, Brady is batting .387, second on the team, and leads the squad with a .951 slugging percentage. He’s also second on the team in hits (24) and RBIs (18), and 4-for-4 in stolen bases as well. He’s always in the middle of the action on offense. For example, he lashed a single and double and scored a run in Hiland’s 3-0 senior day victory over Indian Valley on Monday (5/6).

He’s also pitched in four games, notching nine strikeouts in 6 and 2/3 innings with a 0.00 earned run average. At short, Brady has demonstrated excellent range and helped turn seven double plays for the Hawks.

“I’ve been playing baseball for most of my life, since T-ball at age five,” Brady says. “We definitely had some loose ends at the beginning of the season. (We’ve) tightened some things up. We need to improve our baserunning, but we’re working (it) out and doing well.”

Credits his dad Jerry with teaching him and his brother Nolan the game. He also praises the hard work of his teammates, and also sees room for Hiland to improve. He’s also appreciative of the work which Coach Richie Mast has done to help him and the entire team improve.

Hear an interview with Brady Yoder here:

“We need to put the ball in the play hard,” Brady says. “We tend to get under the ball (popups) some. We need sharpen up and fine tune everything.”