Regionals on deck for FCA Grays

By Chris Geinosky

It’s now or never for the Grays.

The FCA Grays summer collegiate baseball team has yet to compile a significant winning streak this season, but one well-timed stretch of victories could keep them on the field a little longer.

The National Baseball Congress Central Regional Tournament is scheduled to kick off tomorrow, Friday, July 25, in Clarinda, Iowa, and an invitation to the NBC World Series in Wichita, Kan., will be handed out to the champion.

“We’ve been streaky all summer,” Grays coach Jake McKinley said. “We’re hot for a few days. We’re cold for a few days. That’s baseball. It just seems like we’ve had trouble hitting on all cylinders consistently.”

There’s no time like the present. The Grays can extend their season if they can come out on top of the five-team, double-elimination postseason tournament.

And there are more reasons to be optimistic. Since the Beatrice (Neb.) Bruins have already punched their ticket to the NBC World Series by winning the Missouri Iowa Nebraska Kansas League regular-season championship, they will pass on the regional.

Chillicothe, the MINK League runner-up, will be the top seed in the regional tournament, but the Grays have several wins against the Mudcats this summer.

“I think the guys realize this tournament is wide open,” McKinley said. “I think they will believe that anything can happen if we bring our A-game.

“The key to our success is in our bullpen. This tournament is going to come down to pitching. If we can get quality starting pitching and if our bullpen guys can put up some zeros, I love our chances to make some noise.”

The Grays have played .500 baseball most of the summer, but some nagging injuries have led to a late-season slide and a 17-21 record entering this week.

Mathematically, the Grays still had a chance to catch the Topeka Golden Giants for third place in the MINK League with a few wins in the final games of the regular season this week at Beatrice.

Sports writer Chris Geinosky can be reached at 389-6654 or cgeinosky@npgco.com.