Tribe players accepting roles

Every successful team has its stars.
They’re the players who get the recognition — their picture in the newspaper, interviews on television, and so on.
Without them, teams wouldn’t win a district or regional title for the first time in six decades.
Sure, they’re important.
But just as essential are the role players — those who don’t crack the starting lineup but still contribute in big ways.
Take Fort Recovery High School freshman Will Homan, for example.
The speedster entered as a courtesy runner in the third inning of the district championship game May 24 against Minster with the score tied at two.
Three consecutive wild pitches later, Homan scored the eventual game-winning run. (The Tribe tacked on four more in a 7-2 victory.)
“It was a great feeling,” Homan said, reflecting on just the second of three runs he’s scored this season. “Probably one of the greatest of my life as of now.”
His older brother Ross, a junior, and freshman Cade Wendel make up a trio of guys who have not gotten to see the field every day, but are still called upon during pressure situations to contribute.
Will Homan’s base running against Minster is a prime example. Wendel coming in to pitch in relief during the regional championship game Saturday against Cincinnati Country Day is another.
“When I have those guys in the dugout they give me a lot of flexibility with game management,” said FRHS coach Jerry Kaup, who has led the Tribe to the first district and regional championship since 1953, and plays Newark Catholic at 4 p.m. Thursday in the Division IV state semifinal at Huntington Park in Columbus, Ohio. “When we were playing a lot of games throughout the week, the really good thing about either of them is I could use them in a lot of situations.
“(It) certainly gives me a better chance at success.”
It can be easy for a player to hang his head when he see himself left out of the starting lineup day in and day out.
Ross Homan, who has seen action in 18 of the Indians’ 30 games this season, isn’t one of them.
“I’m definitely not an everyday guy,” he said.
But he’s OK with his role. He’s come to accept it.
“You can look at it as a good thing or a bad thing,” he added. “Being on a state-qualifying team, I’d say it’s a pretty good thing.”
He then went on to talk about what it’s like to have a crucial, behind-the-scenes role on a team that is two games away from a state championship.
“It’s a great feeling,” he said. “A bunch of people over the weekend asked me about it. I really didn’t have many words for it because it’s just awesome.
“There (are) no words for it. It’s a one-of-a-kid opportunity.”
Ross Homan is the epitome of a utility player. He enters the game as a pinch runner, but he can also be put in nearly anywhere on the field.
Wendel is one of two left-handed hitters on the team — the other is his brother Cole — and recently he has been used as the team’s designated hitter.
He pitches too. He is 1-1 on the season in eight appearances, and has converted both of his save opportunities, having tossed 19 1/3 innings.
He doesn’t have gaudy numbers — he boasts a 2.53 ERA, has given up 17 hits, walked eight and struck out a baker’s dozen — but he’s effective. Saturday against Country Day, he scattered three hits over three innings and allowed one earned run.
“It was a big situation,” said Cole Wendel, who started the game on the mound but didn’t make it out of the second inning. “He came in, I thought he really clutched up and really took control. It was pretty impressive for a freshman.”
The younger Wendel made the most of his opportunity.
Ross and Will Homan have done the same.
Their duties each game go beyond their performance on the diamond. Their presence in the dugout is just as important.
“Other than the on-field stuff, which is what everybody sees in the crowd … in the dugout they bring a lot of positive energy,” Cole Wendel said. “Will is always in there screaming stuff. We always have Ross in there trying to keep (us) positive. He won’t let your head hang.”
Will Homan can be loud. Ross can be just as vocal.
“The biggest thing is when we’re in the dugout is to make a lot of noise and keep the energy in the game,” Ross said. “Keep the energy up in the dugout. It doesn’t matter if you’re up 100 or down 100 you have to keep playing the same.”
But how do those guys prepare for when Kaup calls their number?
“Make sure your head’s in the game,” Ross said. “I stretch every inning in the dugout to make sure I’m ready to go whenever I’m called on.”
Will agrees.
“You always have to be ready to come in,” he said. “When you’re not in the game, you always have to cheer on your teammates and do as much as you can do on that day.”