By Charlie Meyer
Missouri Scout/Writer

Joe Hope is just a junior at Parkway North High School, but he already has plenty of experience at the varsity level. Hope came to North very raw and ready to help the Vikings get to the state title, and while under the radar last year, Hope is very quickly establishing a name for himself and is no longer catching opposing teams offguard.

Last year Hope helped the Vikings reach the finals only to fall short in the State Championship. Hope’s numbers were nothing short of high level as he finished the season with a record of 7-1, including 5 complete games.

This season Hope has continued to grow and build upon his success. Vikings Head Coach Fred Friedman said, “Joe’s biggest improvement from last year has been his maturing physically.”

Hope grew a couple inches from last year and has increased his velocity to 88 miles per hour.  Hope’s increased velocity has not only improved his fastball, now his changeup has also become a much more effective pitch. 

Moving pitches inside and out on batters has become a strong part of Hope’s game. Hope has 30 strikeouts so far on the season through 26 1/3 innings pitched. Opposing batters are only batting a minimal .211 on the season.

Hope, with continued growth and knowledge, could easily shoot up the class of 2014 rankings, not to mention he could put his name near the top for the pitchers of the 2014 class.