He didn’t wait long in making a name for himself, launching a home run in just his second varsity game.
Five games later, Kent-Meridian’s Kyle Engman continued the trend, going deep once again.
By season’s end last year, Engman had left the yard four times — three of which came in South Puget Sound League North Division play. In a league known for its power pitching, Engman’s accomplishment certainly was noteworthy, especially for a team that struggled to generate offense a year ago.
What may be even more noteworthy, however, is the fact that Engman did it as a 14-year-old freshman.
“He’s a really good ballplayer. He’s just a natural baseball player,” said second-year Kent-Meridian coach Tim Akins. “He’s got a really smooth swing. Everything is mechanically correct. He’s not the biggest kid, but he can put a charge into the ball.”
Engman did exactly that last season, finishing with a team-high .324 batting average in league play and ranking among the SPSL North leaders in home runs. Yet, hitting home runs were the last thing on the mind of the lanky, 6-foot 160-pound sophomore.
Instead, Engman is all about putting a good swing on the ball.
“I am not going for home runs,” said Engman, a righthanded hitter who played outfield and pitched most of last season, but who will be shifted to shortstop this spring. “I just want to hit for a good average. If I go for home runs, they won’t happen.”
Of course, the home runs that did happen gave Engman a jolt of confidence, something Akins is banking on carrying over this year for both his slugger and the rest of a young Kent-Meridian lineup. The Royals graduated 11 seniors from last year’s roster, but enter the season with a level of optimism that lacked to some extent a year ago.
“We’re going to be extremely young, but we’ve got some kids who can play,” said Akins, a 1996 Kent-Meridian graduate. “We should be better defensively than we were last year.”
Akins’ first year was all about building confidence. And despite the team’s 0-16 record in league play, there were plenty of positives to be taken. Specifically, for the first time in many years, the Royals hung with a handful of the North’s top teams. Those losses — 7-3 to Federal Way, which took third at state last spring, 8-5 to perennial power Tahoma, and 7-3 to always tough Auburn — will serve as building blocks this season.
“It has been tough. The attitude really wasn’t there (last year),” said Engman, who also plays for the 15U Kent Bulldogs select team. “But (Akins) brought in a new philosophy. This year, we’re not going to get trampled every time. We’re going to try and win some games against good teams.”
The Royals just might have the players to get it done, too.
Along with Engman, who will be leaned upon to also pitch this season, Kent-Meridian returns junior outfielder Curtis Hong, sophomore infielder Sam Woods along with third baseman/pitcher Taylor Whittum, who also is the team’s lone senior. Kent-Meridian hasn’t won an SPSL North game since 2008, but with a new outlook and a group dedicated to moving up, the possibility of a move remains strong.
“We definitely want to get off the schnide,” Akins said. “We won’t be content with just giving ourselves the opportunity to win.
“But we are excited about the future.”
And the future begins with Engman.
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