James Kulak acknowledges his first task for Neuqua Valley isn’t necessarily to get strikeouts.
For the junior left-hander, it’s about getting outs any way they come.
But he won’t complain if he does miss bats, that’s for sure.
Behind a third straight quality start from Kulak, Neuqua Valley ran its winning streak to 12 games with Monday’s 2-0 DuPage Valley Conference victory over host Waubonsie Valley.
Without feel for his curveball and changeup, he attacked the strike zone early with his fastball on the way to fanning nine in 6 1/3 innings.
“I don’t consider myself a strikeout pitcher,” Kulak said. “Normally, I’m just trying to pitch for flyouts and ground balls. (Monday), it just kind of worked out that way.”
The first seven outs he recorded came via strikeouts, and Kulak finished one off his career high.
Neuqua Valley (14-0-1, 8-0) posted its fifth shutout since April 11 and won despite its offense being kept quiet by Warriors righty Will Isdell.
A first-inning RBI double from Noah Herdman and a RBI double from Jake Wenz in the third were all the Wildcats needed with Kulak on point.
Kulak’s afternoon ended at 105 pitches — the IHSA’s new pitch count limit — as he allowed just four hits.
“I think he just misses the bats trying to pitch to contact because his stuff is one of the best I’ve caught,” Wenz said of Kulak. “I think after he struck out the first seven, we talked to him, like, ‘We need to go the whole game or go farther in the game’. His pitch count was getting up there. I think he locked more in on trying to actually pitch to contact.”
Isdell went 6 1/3 innings for the Warriors (8-6, 4-5). Despite walking four and scattering six hits, he made the most of his 100 pitches.
“I had to keep in my mind that Neuqua’s just like any other team,” Isdell said. “I had to keep the same approach with pitching and just hit my spots as much as I could. I knew my curveball was working really well.”
Base hits from Alex Schram and Zach Laws put Warrior runners on first and second with one out in the seventh.
But Kulak’s replacement, Zach Wenz, didn’t blink after giving up the hit to Laws, inducing a grounder to James Gargano at short, who turned the game-ending double play.
The opportunity to catch his brother is an unique opportunity and Jake Wenz had no concerns Zach would settle in quickly.
“If he throws strikes, he’s very good at getting ground balls,” Jake said. “He throws a two-seamer and his curveball is very good at getting ground balls. He’s not a strikeout guy. … When he gave up the base hit, I was a little nervous. But once he threw the strike after that, I had a feeling it was going to go well.”
Blake Baumgartner is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun
