June 8, 2023 at 1:15 p.m.
Rebels eye another strong season
Antigo triangular Saturday kicks off 26-game slate
Rebels eye another strong season
But, with a roster that features a number of players from an Rhinelander High School baseball team that improved as the spring went along, as well as a few holdovers from last year's state team, Huhnstock said he figures a return trip to state is not out of the realm of possibility.
"I'm looking forward to making a push toward making it to Ashwaubenon," he said. "I think we're going to start out maybe a little bit slow until we find our rhythm. Hopefully we're a whole lot stronger down the stretch at the end of the season than we are at the beginning of the season."
The Rebels will start their 2023 campaign tomorrow against the team they vanquished last July to win the regional title and get to the state tournament - the Antigo Post 3 Typhoon. Rhinelander will take part in a three-team triangular in Antigo tomorrow. That kicks off a busy 26-game regular season schedule for the Rebels.
Rhinelander doesn't figure to have the dominant big three on the mound that it did last summer. Isaac Bixby and Joe Schneider are no longer eligible to play in the 19-and-under league. But the team does return three age-eligible class of 2022 players, including Ryan Jamison.
Jamison logged a team-high 56 2/3 innings on the mound last year, going 8-1 with a 0.74 ERA and 59 strikeouts. He also led the team by hitting .458 with home runs and 18 RBIs. Jamison has already tuned up by playing for the Rhinelander River Monsters adult team, where he's currently 2-0 with a 3.79 ERA and 31 strikeouts over 19 innings.
"Ryan Jamison basically was the heart and soul of our team last year," Huhnstock said. "Having him back will be huge. You can pretty much count on him for a complete game every time he's on the mound and keeping you in a game, making it a very competitive game."
Jacksen Smith and Kolby Ridderbusch are the other age-eligible players back from last year. Smith was 0-1 with a 1.97 ERA over 10 2/3 innings last summer and figures to add to a staff that is also expected to have the top five arms from this past spring's RHS baseball team, led by senior-to-be Max Ratty.
"Jacksen adds good depth there to go along with Max," Huhnstock said. "We're looking forward to getting James Heck and some of the younger guys - Kaden Vanney, Oscar Hanson, Dylan Vanderbunt - some good time on the mound to get some good experience for them."
Offense may be a bit of a question mark to start the season, especially without Joe Schneider's (.430) and Bixby's (.419) bats in the lineup. Graduating senior Sam Schneider hit .358 with a team-high 26 RBIs for the Rebels last summer. Over the years the bats have seemed to have more pop in the summer than the spring for Rhinelander's baseball program. The Rebels hope that trend continues this year with five players coming in - Ratty, Sam Schneider, Owen Kurtz, Seth Nofftz and Cody Everson - who hit .265 or better for the Hodags this spring.
Rhinelander will have plenty of innings to get its lineup and pitching staff sorted before the postseason. The Rebels are slated to play 26 games in a 37-day stretch between Saturday's opener and a regular season-ending doubleheader at Clintonville July 16.
"We've got a very aggressive schedule this summer," Huhnstock said. "There will be plenty of innings to go around for everybody. It gives us a good chance to see which kids are going to grow into good roles for both the Rebels this summer and for next year's Hodag team."
Due to some uncertainty over the winter in terms of participation, the Great Northern Legion Conference voted to disband for the 2023 season. As it turns out, all six members of the GNLC will have squads for this season, including Minocqua and Northwoods, which withdrew from tournament consideration and merged to play a handful of games last year due to low numbers.
Rhinelander will play every former GLNC rival over the summer with the exception of Medford. Hunhstock said the teams were unable to find a mutually-open date on the calender to play.
Regional play is slated for July 21-25, though the exact dates, location and teams within the regional bracket will not be announced until after the Legion summer meeting in early July. However, if the bracket shakes out like it has the last couple of years, Huhnstock said he expects many of the usual suspects to be involved, and a very competitive regional.
"Antigo always puts a very competitive team on the field," he said. "Medford always puts a very competitive team on the field. Merrill always is right there and I would imagine Minocqua will be in it this year."
Ashwaubenon will host the Class AA state tournament July 28 to Aug. 1.
The Rebels will play the bulk of their home games later this month, starting with a contest against Minocqua next Wednesday at Stafford Field. Minocqua was also a late add to the field for annual Rebel Invite over Father's Day weekend, replacing Clintonville. Fond du Lac Springs, Everest and Merrill will return for this year's invite.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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