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2022 Michigan High School Team Previews

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2022 Spring Team Preview: Brother Rice

BLOOMFIELD HILLS - Another state Final Four run is expected by perennial power Brother Rice this season. After all, only one senior position player graduated from a team featuring seven freshmen and  seven sophomores that made it to a third straight Final Four appearance.

“Our strength is we’re very athletic and can run,” noted head coach Bob Ricker, who has 17 returnees from a team that lost to eventual Division 1 champion Grand Blanc in the state semifinals. “On the mound we have upperclassmen returning to mix in with a lot of young guys that are talented. I think we can play defense and pitch. Hitting is another thing, it comes and goes. We want to put pressure on the defense by running and doing things right.”

Seniors Jake Coulter, Pat MacLean and Robert Klann headline a deep staff that will be without John Locker, who is now at Michigan State. Coulter, the fourth-ranked 2022 right-handed pitcher in the state and a Central Michigan signee, is now healthy after being hurt last season while MacLean is coming off Tommy John Surgery. Klann is the fourth-rated uncommitted senior RHP in Michigan.

A trio of outfielder/pitchers brings more depth to the mound led by junior southpaw Alfredo Velazquez, last year’s leadoff hitter and the 68th-ranked 2022 outfielder in the country. A Michigan commit, Velazquez had one hit and also pitched in relief during the loss to Grand Blanc.

Charlie D’Angelo, an uncommitted senior and four-year starter who scored the lone run against Grand Blanc, gives the Crusaders another left-handed pitcher when not manning center field. Kevin Mathews, the eighth-rated 2022 southpaw in Michigan and a Belmont Abbey College recruit, brings more experience on the hill while also playing right field.

“They throw strikes and know how to pitch,” Ricker said of his returning staff. “They get guys out and know how to compete. Strike throwers are a big thing for me.”

Brayden Dowd, the 12th-rated junior outfielder in the state, brings versatility at first base and pitcher while hitting third in the lineup. Junior Presley Fortino is an outfielder/LHP while switch-hitter Tristan Crane, the fifth-ranked sophomore shortstop in Michigan, started every game as a freshman and can pitch and play infield.

Alex Cheeseman, the seventh-ranked junior shortstop in the state, anchors the infield for Brother Rice, which must replace catcher Will Shannon who is now playing for Hillsdale.

“Finding enough playing time for everyone,” is what Riker said will be difficult this year. “We have a lot of good players that are going to push the older guys.”

Staying highly motivated is important in the eyes of the veteran coach.

“A concern would be young guys thinking they’re better than they are,” Riker related. “They have to work hard because everyone is gunning for you when you put on the Warriors’ jersey.”

That is the case with the success over the years at Brother Rice.

Riker, who was assistant coach from 1990-97 before taking over as head coach in 1998 and has been part of three state championships at the school (1992, 1994 and 2008), sees a lot of positives with this year’s edition.

“I really like the way they get along,” Riker noted. “They’re baseball players, not guys just playing baseball. They like to be around one another. The older guys take care of the younger guys which is how we built a tradition the last 30 years. They’re very coachable.”

That is the key to success according to the head coach of the Warriors.

“Staying together, especially when times are not going well over the course of a long season, is vital,” Riker concluded. “If you can stay together you can do a lot of good things.”

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