Local high school team steps up at NBC World Series

What started as a tweet will result in a temporary switch in baseball allegiance Wednesday at the NBC World Series.

A few hours before the 316 Elite and Mulvane Patriots took the field for a showdown of undefeated teams Monday, Ryan Jones, owner of 316 Elite, challenged Sunflower League commissioner Casey Walkup on Twitter.

“How about a little friendly wager for the commish?” Jones tweeted.

Walkup accepted and clarified the conditions of the bet – “loser sports the others gear,” he wrote.

Mulvane, one of two Sunflower League teams in this year’s field, knocked off 316 Elite 10-5, giving Walkup two reasons to celebrate. He won the bet, and his Sunflower League teams improved to 2-0 in the first week of NBC World Series play. Mulvane will have a shot at advancing to the semifinals and a potential championship week bid when they return to Lawrence-Dumont Stadium on Wednesday to close out group play against Round Rock (1-1).

Jones’ 316 Elite (1-1) will also play Wednesday against Fort Collins (0-2) with an outside chance of advancing. Jones will be there with a Sunflower Baseball jersey on – the payment for his lost bet – but he’ll still be pulling for 316 Elite to snag at least one more win.

“Our team’s been battling this week, and I love this,” Jones said. “You could see the nerves showing the first few innings we were out there, but it’s good experience.”

Experience playing in a professional ballpark with the significance of the NBC World Series is something the 316 Elite did not have entering this week. The roster includes two 18-year-olds, 15 17-year-olds and a 15-year-old.

“We’re not out yet, but some other things have to happen to get us in,” Elite manager Ray Baty said. “We’ve already seen some good things happen because of the experience we’ve gained. As young as we are, if we can have a 2-1 record, that’s a win for 316 and it’s going to go a long way for the kids.”

“We might be the youngest team that’s ever won an NBC tournament game,” he said.

For all their youth, 316 have also shown spunk. The team, made up largely of high school players, fell behind 5-0 in the first two innings of their tournament opener against Round Rock but rattled off 12 runs in the next three innings and shutout the Express the rest of the way.

Elite 316 trailed again 3-1 after two innings Monday night in a 10-5 loss to Mulvane.

“The high school bid is invaluable,” Jones said. “We’re young, but we’re learning things that are so important to baseball development.”

Hoping to overcome the inexperience, the players prepared for the NBC tournament with weekly classes to help them manage the mental challenges of the game, including expectations, uncontrollable factors and responding to mistakes.

“We sit them in a classroom and go over some modules we’ve crafted to help them grow,” Baty said. “You can see the difference.”

This story was originally published July 25, 2017 at 6:38 PM with the headline "Local high school team steps up at NBC World Series."