| Morgan Bates scrambles to beat out an infield hit against Highland on Friday. Bates, a Grand High School athlete, is one of several players who travel to Carbon County to participate on the Helper Legion team. |
Even though the Helper Legion ballclub has lost two key players to hand injuries in recent weeks, the depth and talent of the bench has kept Helper winning through the early games of the league season.
Helper is currently 3-1 on the season, even with veteran pair Joe Via, a catcher, and Chandler Pearson, a pitcher, watching from the dugout.
Via, whose thumb was broken by a pitch while batting, is expected back in the upcoming weeks. Pearson, who underwent surgery on his hand, is on the mend but could be out for the remainder of the season.
Several Helper players stepped up to fill the void left by the injured players last week, though. The team defeated Tooele and Highland with little difficulty.
Mike Smith clobbered Tooele pitching on June 16, hitting two home runs and gathering five RBIs.
Troy Grundy pitched a one-hitter, sending Tooele home with a 9-0 loss.
On June 18, Jamal Lewis knocked home two runs in the fifth to give Helper a lead over Highland it would take to the finish.
According to coach Jeff Cisneros, the team struggled as a whole from the plate but was able to take advantage of Highland errors.
Adam Martinez and Lance Richards lead Helper from the mound.
Helper will host Granger at 6 p.m. on June 23.
The team will then travel to a weekend tournament in Pocatello, Idaho.