Wyatt Binckley pitched a complete 5-hit game – 93 pitches in 7 innings, striking out 5, walking 2 – to power Heath to its third state title in baseball.
Heath jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first two innings and rode the pitching of Wyatt Binckley the rest of the way to beat Millbury Lake 3-1 for its third state championship.
Akron, OH – When the Heath baseball team converged in the left field concourse of Canal Park after a bitter 2-1 state semifinal defeat to Harrison Central in 2023, coach Tom Warren – by design – made darned sure the Bulldogs soaked in the disappointment.
“We all felt we should have won it last year and that feeling gave us a lot of resolve to come back this year on a mission,” second baseman Tannar Patterson said. “I mean, we were prepared for this.”
Veteran central Ohio columnist Steve Blackledge writes the OCC and sports at large for Press Pros.
In ripping the first two pitches of the game, Heath made a statement that it would be the aggressor in the Division III state championship game against Millbury Lake Sunday.
The approach yielded a run in the first inning and two in the second and the second-ranked Bulldogs rode the solid pitching of Wyatt Binckley the rest of the way for a 3-1 victory that yielded the program’s third state title. Warren was an assistant under legendary Dave Klontz for the ones in 2002 and 2007.
“It’s too soon to say what it feels like,” Warren said. “I need to let this sink in for a while. I’m just so proud of the guys and all the work they put in to get back here and achieve this. As far as breaking this down, pitching and defense is what got us here and except for a hiccup here and there on defense, that held true again tonight.”
On the game’s first pitch, leadoff hitter Connor Corbett hit a hard smash that Lake third baseman Jack Sobzach couldn’t corral. Patterson promptly smoked a single. Corbett scored on a fielder’s choice RBI by Riley Baum.
Heath’s Conner Tommey had a two-hit game in the Division III Final.
Heath stayed in attack mode in the second. A walk, two singles, a sacrifice bunt and a fly out quickly made it 3-0. Corbett and Patterson collected RBIs.
“All year long when we’ve been the visiting team, we’ve found a way to jump ahead early,” Warren said. “I never imagined that three would hold up, though.”
That’s because Binckley hypnotized the Flyers all day with a wide variety of pitches and speeds. He scattered five hits, striking out five in a complete-game effort. Sixty of his 93 pitches were strikes.
“I tried to use my curveball, both the fast and slower one, and I also worked in my change-up a lot,” Binckley said. “I had a few first-time jitters coming out but getting that early run support really gave me a little cushion.”
Warren said Binckley (9-0) was on cruise control the final four innings when he allowed just three harmless singles.
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“That’s the best I’ve seen him all year,” he said. “I thought Wyatt really settled in. He really executed his pitches well and let his teammates do their jobs.”
Lake coach Casey Witt was impressed not only with Binckley but his own starter, Ryan Wagner (9-4).
“Their pitcher threw multiple pitches for strikes and when we hit him it was right at them, but that’s baseball,” he said. “For that matter, I don’t think they hit the ball that hard off Ryan, but they executed small ball better than we did.”
Although fourth-ranked Lake (28-5) got its lone run in the third, Heath minimized the damage on a spectacular defensive play by Patterson. After an errant pickoff play, the second baseman ran down the ball and gunned down Wagner trying to reach third. Patterson was an outstanding pitcher until an elbow injury and subsequent surgery forced him to change positions.
“That’s the first time I’ve had a chance to show off my arm again,” Patterson said with a smile.
Said Warren, who has coached at Heath for 27 years, the past eight as head coach, “That was one of the greatest plays I’ve ever seen. Tannar performed like a champion. That was huge for us.”
The 28-2 championship season fulfilled dreams and expectations by many wearing the orange and brown.
“We’ve dreamed about this since we were kids,” Binckley said.
Patterson said always wanted to even the score with older brother Timothy, who played on the 2007 team.
Warren knew this was a possibility since preseason workouts began in the winter. The return of eighty seniors buoyed those expectations.
“Last night, I had dream after dream about this,” he said. “All of them came out this way. The guys made it happen. They made it all work.”
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