Appy League West race air-tight after first month of season

Through the month of June, the sprint to the postseason is about as clear as mud in the Appalachian League West division. Opposed to the East, where the gap between the top and bottom is over three games, just one game stands between first place and last in the West through approximately a month of action. Leading the pack in the division are the Elizabethton River Riders, who enter Thursday's action with a 12-10 record. Through the team's first 22 games, they have been one of the better in the Appy in terms of hitting for power, sitting third in slugging percentage (.409) and tied for third in home runs (18). Hank Gomric has been one of the top performers for the River Rider offense. An outfielder for Saint Louis University, Gomric was a member of the Appy League Select Team that played in exhibitions against the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team earlier this week. He's hitting .328 for the River Riders in 16 games. Carter Johnstone out of Vanderbilt leads the active roster in batting average, hitting .351 with one home run and nine RBI. Ohio State catcher Austin Rose has also gotten off to a strong start, hitting for a .320 average with five long balls. Elizabethton's pitching staff ranks in the middle of the pack for the Appalachian League with a 6.44 ERA. They have recorded the least amount of strikeouts (184), are in the top half in fewest walks allowed (130), and have the second-highest batting average against (.277). John Battle product and Walters State right-hander Porter Gobble has been one of the top arms on the team. He has thrown 12 ⅔ innings with a 2-0 record, a 2.13 ERA, and a .245 batting average against. Colin Bolla out of Penn State-Erie ranks towards the top of the Appalachian League in strikeouts, racking up 21 in just 14 innings. Just a half game back of the River Riders and sitting in the second playoff spot at the moment are the Greeneville Flyboys at 11-10. With the bats, the Flyboys currently top the Appy in team batting average (.287) and hits (201), are second in home runs (19), OPS (.843), but last in stolen bases (28). Carson Ray, reigning Appy League Player of the Week, has led the way with bat-to-ball skills, hitting for a .404 average in 16 games played. The Atlanta native also has a 1.065 OPS. Other offensive standouts have been Owen ten Oever out of Indiana, who has a team-high four home runs, and Bryan Williams Jr., a product of Northern Oklahoma-Enid Junior College, who has an OPS of 1.015 in 20 games. On the mound, the Flyboys rank third in the league in ERA (6.00), fourth in WHIP (1.78), first in fewest homers allowed (13), second in fewest walks allowed (117), and second-worst in strikeouts (187). Cincinnati right-hander Bradley Coulter has shown well for himself in 8 ⅓ innings of work so far, going 3-0 with an unblemished 0.00 ERA. Dillon Kirksey leads Greeneville in innings pitched and has been effective, pitching to a 3.60 ERA in 15 innings. Tied for third place in the West are both the Kingsport Axmen and Johnson City Doughboys, both sitting at 11-11 entering Thursday's action. The Axmen have had their struggles, starting the year on a five-game losing streak, but have since rebounded to get to .500. Kingsport's bats are still looking to find a groove on the whole, hitting for a league-worst .226 average. Left-handed pitching has been their biggest kryptonite, hitting just .062 against southpaws. Garrett Luett has seemingly been immune to the offensive struggles, though, hitting .348 with a homer and 11 driven in. Former Tennessee catcher Cash Williams has also hit it well this summer to the tune of a .321 average, 1.012 OPS, and two homers. As one would expect, the Axmen are being kept afloat by their league-best 4.95 team ERA. They've also recorded the most strikeouts (240) and have the lowest batting average against (.234). Pitt right-hander Michael Seravese has been one of the league's top arms, not allowing an earned run in 13 ⅓ innings of work. He's allowed just four hits and struck out 27 opposing hitters. On the other side of things are the Doughboys, who lead the league with 24 home runs. They are also third in runs scored (158), second in hits (191), and second in walks (152). Vanderbilt commit Gunner Skelton has terrorized Appy League pitching, posting a slash line of .379/.410/.724 with five home runs and 12 RBI. Former Providence Academy standout Nate Eisfelder, Kentucky product Braxton Van Cleave, and USF catcher Jackson Geiger have all also been key contributors in the Johnson City lineup. Pitching has been where the Doughboys have struggled, posting a league-worst 7.36 ERA through 22 games. They have the highest WHIP (1.96) and opponents' batting average (.283) as well. Southpaw Julien Hachem has been a bright spot in the bullpen, though, going 1-1 with a 3.38 ERA in 16 innings (eight appearances). The Erskine product has 20 strikeouts to 10 walks.