AMBOY – Winning became a little more prevelant last season for the Amboy baseball team. 

They won eight more games than last year and are ready to take its 12-11, 7-3 (Northwest Upstate Illini Conference) to the next level.

“This year we have some key returners back with the team. We lost a couple of seniors, but I think the guys replacing them will fill those roles well.” said coach Chris Tidmore, who has held the reign of the team for the last six years and has been with the club for nine. “We have our sights set pretty high this season.”

“We feel pretty confident this year with our lineup, 1-9, that we’re going to be able to put some runs on the board and hopefully pitching will hold up for us, too.”

Juniors Quinn Leffelman and Brody Christoffersen played a big part in last year’s success and will be asked to step up even more. Sophomore Rylan McNinch will also be in the catcher rotation.

Both players are pitchers. When they’re not on the mound, they’ll be behind the plate catching.

Senior Landon Montavon is going to be looked for to put up quality numbers and senior leadership. The same is said about senior Landon Whelchel, the Clippers’ lead-off batter.

While Tidmore knows his team can pitch, hit, and play defense, his first talking point when asked about the team’s strengths is the comradery. 

“This year, it’s our team chemistry. In the past couple of years, there have been some times where chemistry hasn’t always been the best,” Tidmore said. “I think this group is such a close-knit group. They hang out outside of practice. They’re always together. I think that is going to translate big time for us on the field. 

“Offensively, I think our numbers are going to dramatically improve from the last few years.”

Another aspect about this team is they know how to win as a large chunk of the names on the roster were also on the roster of the Amboy football team which won the Illinois 8-Man Football Association State Championship.

“We’ve been talking to them since the football team won the championship,” Tidmore said. “We’re hoping to build off of the success of football and translate it into baseball. We have a lot of football players on the team. They know what it’s like to win.”

Positivity and potential circulates the dugout and Tidmore along with his assistants Bryson Prusator, Tyson Powers, Mitchell McLaughlin, Hunter Zimmerly, and Kevin England, hope it will carry to the field.

Especially in the NUIC where the Clippers only lost three games a season ago.

“I think a lot of the schools in our conference graduated some key seniors,” Tidmore said. “I think out of all of the pieces we did lose, we have enough, probably more so than other schools, to withstand the graduations with some talent coming from underneath.”