Though the Tiger baseball team went out early in the post-season, bumped out by Smith County in the final round of district tournaments, they had a pretty good season overall, especially shining on defense.

Steven Jennings led the Tiger pitching staff, spending 51.2 innings on the mound, allowing 15 hits, and striking out 99 opposing batters. He had an ERA for the year of .542, and was named District 8-AA pitcher of the year.

Christian Pruitt spent 17 innings on the mound for DeKalb, giving up 10 hits and striking out 11 batters for an .824 ERA.

John Maynard pitched for 50.2 innings in 2017, allowing 30 hits and striking out 84 batters for a 1.658 ERA. Maynard was also named to the All-District team.

Colter Norris pitched for 33 innings, allowing 23 hits and getting 20 strikeouts. His ERA was 1.061

Hunter Jennings threw for 41.1 innings, gave up 38 hits and got 27 strikeouts for a 3.048 ERA. He was named to the All-District team as well.

Christian Pruitt showed the way in the field, getting 36 outs and two assists in 38 attempts for a perfect 1.000 fielding average.

Logan Cornelius got 18 outs in 22 chances for an average of .818 

Luke Oliver had 38 opportunities, and got one assist and 33 outs for an .895 average.

John Maynard got 14 outs in 48 chances for an .854 average.

Grayson Redmon had 66 chances, and got two assists and 58 out for an average of .909.

Colter Norris had 68 opportunities and got 62 outs for a .912 average.

Paxton Butler got 26 outs in 28 chances for a .929 average.

Lee Randolph got 54 outs in 57 chances for an average of .947. He was named to the All-District team as well.

Catcher Jacob Self had an average of .979, getting 238 outs in 233 chances. He was also named to the All-District team.

The pitching staff reacted well when called on to field, with Steven Jennings going 9-for-9, and Hunter Jennings going 7-for-7 for 1.000 averages.

Offensively, Brady Hughes got 25 hits in 73 at-bats for the Tigers in 2017, collecting 14 RBIs for a .342 batting average. 

Lee Randolph batted 99 times for 32 hits. Hit batted in seven runs, and had an average of .323.

John Maynard got 26 hits in 87 times at bat, nine RBIs and a .299 average for the season.

Jacob Self batted 95 times got 27 hits and 19 RBIs. His average for the year was .284.

Paxton Butler hit 22 times in 81 at-bats. He batted in 12 runners, and had a .272 average.

Colter Norris batted 85 times and got 20 hits. He batted in 12 runner, and his average was .235

Christian Pruitt stepped up tom the plate 73 times, getting 17 hits and 13 RBIs. His average for the year was .233.

Grayson Redmon finished up with a .208 average, getting 16 hits in 77 at-bats and seven RBIs.

Logan Cornelius batted 71 times for 14 hits, batting in 13 runs and averaging .197.

Plans for the summer include Tiger Baseball camp, to be held at the high school baseball field on June 5-6 from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Players ages 7-14 will learn the proper mechanics for throwing and catching, the proper fundamentals for pitching and playing the infield and outfield, along with the correct fundamentals for hitting. Numerous drills for all aspects of the game will be covered.

Participants should bring cleats, tennis shoes, baseball pants, a hat, glove and bat, as well as catcher’s gear if needed. Players should bring snacks and drinks for breaks. Water will be provided.

The camp will cost $60, and registration will be held on June 5 from 8-8:45 a.m. at the baseball field