If you passed Aidan Martin on the street, you might give him a glance and move on. Seeing him in a baseball catcher’s gear, however, is another matter.
At 5-foot-6, 135 pounds Martin is not an imposing figure but when it comes to catching and handling a pitching staff he is as big as they come. And he stands tall when in the batter’s box. Martin was the Region 3A all-region catcher last year and was a major reason the Redskins advanced to the Sweet 16 of the GHSA state playoffs. He should, unless coaches in the revamped Region 3AD1 have a blind eye, repeat this year.
“I’ve only got two seniors this year and that’s Aidan and Konnor (Leggett),” Coach Justin Covington said. “It’s going to be tough losing them. I’ve had them since they were freshmen which was my first year as head coach.
“Aidan is small for a catcher but the boys look to him,” Covington said. “He’s a great leader. He puts in the work and effort.
“Don’t let his size fool you. He’s got it. What he doesn’t have in size he makes up in heart and play. He’s a great batter, great behind the plate and has a very good arm. His ball has snap, zip. He’s a phenomenal kid…his parents have done a great job raising him.”
The Redskins (13-11, 5-4) have had their ups-and- downs this season. Going into a three-game series with Savannah High — the two teams met in a doubleheader on Tuesday and will play again Thursday at Savannah — had lost four of their last six games.
Losing two of three to Screven was a bummer while managing one win against Metter helped keep hosting a home playoff series in the GHSA state playoffs — Bryan County will be a No. 3 seed at worst — alive.
Sweeping the winless Blue Jackets is all but a given and if Claxton (1-15, 0-6) could somehow manage to beat Screven (11-12, 5-4) the Redskins would host a first-round game. Those odds are extremely thin as Claxton was riding a 13-game losing streak going into its matchup with the Gamecocks.
Martin has been solid at and behind the plate all season. Going into the Savannah series he was hitting .342 with 17 RBI. Among his 25 hits were five doubles and a team high three triples. For his career, based on box scores reported to Game Changer, he is hitting .311.
Tanner Ennis is leading the Redskins in hitting at .365 and runs scored with 28. AJ Thomas is the RBI leader with 22 and is hitting .313. Justin Beck is at .316 and Sean Kelly Hill, who is 7-16 in his last five games, is at .314.
Leggett has, by his standards, struggled at the plate. He’s hitting .317 and due to his past success rarely sees a good pitch. Leggett is .371 for his career and is seven hits shy of reaching 100.
The Redskins were looking to contend with Metter for the region championship and opened region play with a sweep of Claxton. Then came a week off and they’ve been looking to regain that momentum.
“When we left Claxton, we were on fire,” Martin said following the disappointing series with Screven. “We really didn’t come out with a lot of momentum but I think we’re ready to catch fire again.”
Unlike past seasons Martin said he got off to a good start this season and has been able to maintain it. Last year, for example, he started slowly but finished in a rush to hit .327.
“I’m seeing the ball coming out of the pitcher’s hand,” Martin said. “I’ve got a lot more pop in my bat this year.”
Martin doesn’t spend much, if any, time in the weight room, but rather has built up his strength in his arms and legs the old-fashioned way: through manual labor.
“I work a lot in physical jobs,” Martin said.
