By Sean Duncan
Executive Director

WESTFIELD, IN—The Midwest Rangers played the role of underdogs throughout a talented field of teams, belly-crawling their way to winning the inaugural Prep Baseball Report Fall Championship Underclass Division, 2-0, over the Indiana Bulls at Grand Park on Sunday evening.

2019 RHP Alex Pittman (Morgan Park HS, IL), who’s a primary infielder, was the story of the game, as the 6-foot, 185-pounder threw a one-hit shutout. Pittman actually carried a no-hitter into the seventh, but gave up a single to 2020 IF Bryce Eblin (Center Grove HS, IN) with one out. Pittman retired the next two hitters in order to seal the championship victory.

Pittman finished his masterpiece with nine strikeouts and two walks. After issuing a leadoff walk in the third, he retired 13 straight. Pittman did it by pounding the strike zone with three pitches, consistently dropping in his 69-71 mph curveball for strikes, and he held his 80-82 fastball velocity throughout all seven innings.

The Rangers, who went 4-0-1 in the tournament, scored both their runs in the first inning against Bulls RHP Sam Fulton (Hamilton Heights HS, IN), who stands at 6-foot-9, 220 pounds. SS Treyvin Moss (Concordia Lutheran HS, IN) was hit by a pitch and a double by 2019 OF Carson Husmann (South Central HS, IN) put runners on second and third. Pittman drove in the first run with a groundout and Husmann later came around to score on a defensive miscue to give the Rangers all the cushion they would need.

Fulton settled down after that, yielding only one infield single the rest of his six-inning stint. Fulton pitched predominantly at 80-83 with cutting action, and mixed speeds and shapes of his breaking ball.

The Rangers only had two hits in the game. But with Pittman on the mound, that was more than enough.

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