Burlington Central’s Liam Schultz isn’t your prototypical leadoff hitter.
Much like Philadelphia Phillies veteran Kyle Schwarber, who has hit leadoff at various times in his MLB career, Schultz is a power-hitting left-hander.
The reason the Rockets are opening the season with the junior catcher leading off is simple, according to coach Kyle Nelson. Get him as many at-bats in a game as you can.
“I just adjusted to the circumstances,” Schultz said. “They have me leading off now. Last year I was the fourth batter. Just trying to adjust and get on base as much as I can to help my teammates.
“If I get a pitch to hit, he wants me to swing. Just staying through the ball and seeing as many pitches as I can to relay to my teammates to better them and see what they can do with it.”
That strategy worked in Wednesday’s 11-11 tie at Batavia. Schultz came through with a three-run homer and two-run double, his first extra-base hits of the young season.
“I put him at the top because we want him to hit as often as he can,” Nelson said. “We have David Hintz at the bottom with an on-base (percentage) of over .400, so he should get on base before Liam.
“That’s why he’s up there.”
Schultz emerged last season, hitting .400 for most of the spring before a late slump left him at .333. He still drove in 18 runs and added eight doubles, two triples and two homers.
Nelson feels like there’s another step for Schultz to take this season.
“Just carry on what the did last year,” Nelson said. “He came alive again in the postseason. He’s a little stronger and bigger this year. Hopefully, he’ll hit for a little more power this year.”
He certainly did Wednesday. Schultz turned on a pitch and pulled it into the football stands beyond right field at Batavia for a homer that helped the Rockets stay alive in a wild, back-and-forth affair.
“Runners on first and second, he threw me a first-pitch curveball,” Schultz said. “He was a new arm. I didn’t expect as much bite on his curve. Second pitch, he threw me a fastball over the plate.
“I took advantage of it. I missed a couple of those early in the season so I’m trying to work on that.”
Batavia coach Alex Beckmann pointed out that his team’s approach to pitching against Schultz would likely be different later in the season.
“It’s just not seeing a team a whole lot,” Beckmann said. “If this was a conference series, we’d probably pitch around him. Early on, we want to give guys chances and see what they can do.”
Schultz started to make a name for himself in scouting circles over the summer. He also took advantage of his football workouts to add more strength.
“I went pretty hard in the offseason,” Schultz said. “I had football, doing lifts with them. Just trying to get more athletic and trying to do anything I can to help my team.”
Schultz’s focus in college will be baseball. He knows that this spring and summer will go a long way toward solidifying that future.
“I like the football part, just like mentality-wise,” Schultz said. “Something about that aggressiveness. I’m definitely more into baseball. I’m reaching out to coaches and whatnot.
“I’m really trying to put myself on the map this year in high school and into the summer.”
After Wednesday’s performance, he could be well on his way.
“I haven’t had many barrels throughout the beginning of the season,” Schultz said. “After my first at-bat with the double, that boosted my confidence.
“Obviously, that home run boosted my confidence even a little more.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
