At the start of the season the Decatur High School Varsity baseball team were using the hashtag “Ring Chasing”, with clear intentions of a state championship. Suddenly, due to Covid-19, that was no longer possible. The hashtag they use now? “Let The Kids Play.”
The virus had brought the world to a standstill. In Decatur, Georgia, 19 young men experienced their season come to an abrupt end. Nine of them had unknowingly played their last high school baseball game.
The team ended with an 8-6 record, going 1-0 in region play. Throughout the year they accumulated stats well above national averages, boasting leadership and stars on both defense, and offense.
Senior Jackson Hills has been a star both on the mound and at the plate for the Bulldogs. He says they struggled a little at the beginning of the season, facing “stronger competition,” and “a harder schedule.” In spite of this, he was confident the team was ready for a deep run, noting they had “started to heat up and prepare for another Region championship.”
The beginning of the season left a lot to be desired. They started with only one win in the first four games. They weren’t playing at the level they knew they were capable of.
According to the players, the moment it all clicked was their eleventh game. At the time the Bulldogs had a 6-4 record. The team travelled to Alabama to take part in the Perfect Game High School Showdown, where only the best teams from around the country are invited to participate.
The opponent was at the time number 44 in the country, Smiths Station. The Bulldogs didn’t let their opponent’s pedigree stay that way for long.
They jumped out to a 2-1 lead in the 1st inning and didn’t look back. They ended with an impressive 11-3 win. Starting pitcher Eddie Galatas, a third-year varsity player, threw all seven innings with nine strikeouts. Galatas says, “from that game on, the bats were alive.”
Galatas and the team were hoping those bats would go on a run to a championship. However, they only were able to hit for three more games. Winning their unexpected last game of the season, but first region game, 12-0 against Maynard-Jackson.
Last season, Decatur made it to the Final Four. Decatur Class of 2019 Alumnus, John Griffin Stanford, spoke on why he believed last year’s team was successful. “We had more leadership and team chemistry than I’d seen at Decatur Baseball in a few years.” It’s hard to talk about last year’s success without mentioning this year’s 2020 senior class, “We had a stacked junior class right behind us, that made our lineup dangerous from top to bottom.”
That stacked 2020 class was supposed to have one more full year. Hills believes last year’s run would’ve helped them this year. He says, “The classes above [us] really paved the way to what this is supposed to look like, and how to play the game with swag.”
“State Champions. No other goal in mind.” said Hills. While this seemed like a hefty goal, there wasn’t much reason not to believe they could achieve it.
The team has seven seniors committed to play baseball in college next year. With Georgia Southern commit Jaylen Paden, and Duke commit Jordan Walker, both playing Division 1. Walker is the number one player in the nation for the 2020 class.
Stanford believes “the amount of power and intelligence the 2020 players have at the plate will make a typical high school baseball team look foolish.” However, even with their talent, he went on to say, “the thing that impresses me the most is how they are all so dedicated and feed off each other’s success.” When you put together the talent and drive, it isn’t surprising they had a state championship on their mind.
This group of players have known and played with each other for over five years, destroying their opposition and dreaming of a state championship along the way. Stanford says when the 2020 and 2019 classes played Junior Varsity together, they “broke Dekalb County scoring and winning records.”
Senior outfielder and pitcher Jaxson Sprull is considered by Head Coach Robby Gilbert as a tremendous leader and the pulse of the team. Sprull says, “not being able to complete the dream [we] had together really hurts.”
Hills shared this feeling. “Heartbreaking and mortifying,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. I am still at a loss of words.”
Regarding his former teammates, Stanford said, “My heart hurts.” Stating the 2020 class has “worked harder than any group of guys I know.” He continued, praising “a skill level and desire to compete that you can’t find in a typical group of high school dudes. I am so sorry their hard work wasn’t able to cultivate into one last great season.”
The team was supposed to celebrate senior night on April 15. Instead they were honored with a heartfelt message from Coach Gilbert. With a series of Instagram posts Gilbert thanked the twelve senior players and managers for everything they have done for the program. With a picture and a paragraph for each one.
He also put handmade signs in all of the players’ yards. And followed the tradition of every senior night. Spray painting the numbers of the seniors below the mound on the team’s beloved home field, McKoy Park.
The team hopes to gather one more time to celebrate a season that never reached its conclusion. The effects of Coronavirus will weigh heavy in the air.
If you scan the players’ social media pages, you’ll find one hashtag everywhere. “#LetTheKidsPlay.” This trending hashtag makes a statement showing the importance of baseball to them and others around the country. It embodies the thoughts and feelings of the players on the Decatur team. While they know it’s the right decision not to play, they all wish they could. As Hills puts it, “We would kill to be on that field right now.”