Playing first base his senior season wasn’t always the plan for A&M Consolidated’s Bradley Boedeker.
Yet, it’s a change that has not only enhanced his play but helped others around him.
“If you’re not originally a first baseman, that’s the kind of position that you kind of get thrown to when you’re not good enough to do other stuff,” A&M Consolidated head coach Ryan Lennerton said. “He’s taken a lot of pride in being a really good defensive first baseman.”
Boedeker got looks from college coaches early in his high school career, as he tried out and successfully made a team in the Hunter Pence Baseball Academy as a sophomore. Earning a roster spot on a team also helped him get into contact with college coaches.
Before his junior year, he had different plans as an elbow injury ended his season.
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“At first there was just a pain in my elbow that I had no idea what it was,” Boedeker said.
A couple of doctors early on diagnosed it as tendonitis, giving him a steroid shot, but the physical pain stuck. He met a doctor in Dallas who suggested Thoracic Outlet Syndrome surgery. On June 26, he had his first surgery that called for a two-and-a-half month recovery time. When he went through the rehab process and back to throwing at his normal velocity, it still didn’t feel right. He then had a second surgery in September, with just a month’s recovery.
“It was motivating to get him back to help us out and he just did a great job rehabbing,” Lennerton said. “It’s not a fun thing to have to do and it can be very mentally draining, but he did a really good job with very few setbacks and he came back ready to go.”
When Boedeker was younger, he caught and played third base, but was also asked to pitch. Over time, his pitching time amplified quickly and he believes that’s where the injury stems from.
And although he hasn’t spent time at catcher, pitcher or third base since, he’s developed a new home on the far right side of the infield.
“Honestly, adapting position-wise, I’ve played multiple positions in my career, and they’re not always the same and everyone who’s played a different position can back me on that because it’s very different playing from one side of the field to the other and different situations call for different plays and learning how to do that was probably one of my bigger challenges that I luckily have overcome,” Boedeker said.
Lennerton has felt the senior has bought into first base.
“[He] saves our infielders a lot of errors with throws in the dirt and he’s done an outstanding job at the plate hitting and his presence in the middle of our lineup,” Lennerton said.
Lennerton and Boedeker’s relationship goes back to when Boedeker was nine when Lennerton coached him on a little league team and saw his power potential and skill as a catcher.
“Yeah, it just ended up happening,” Lennerton said. “It’s kind of a neat deal.”
Boedeker and Lennerton weren’t the only Tigers on that squad as current third baseman Nathan Hodge was on the team as well.
Lennerton has been involved with the Boedekers’ before as he coached Bradley’s older brother Wesley at Consol. Having his older brother as an influence helped the sport become Bradley’s favorite.
NOTES — Fresh off a district championship, A&M Consolidated (20-5-1) heads into its best-of-three bi-district series against Killeen Chaparral at Cameron High School. Game one is set for 7 p.m. Thursday with the second set for 7 p.m. on Friday. If a game three is necessary, they will play that at noon on Saturday. ...The Tigers come in with a four-game winning streak and a pitching staff that has quieted bats all around District 21-5A, with four shutouts and four other games holding opposing offenses to three runs or less. Consol’s offense has averaged over six runs a game during district play. “I feel like we’re all just trying to go up there and pass the torch to the next guy,” Bradley said. “Get more people on base, more runs, make things happen, make plays happen and just go out there and compete as much as we can and see how far we can go.” Lennerton plans on using the district two-game-a-week series format as a heavy influence in the playoffs. “Whether we win or lose on Tuesday [in district] avoiding the sweep or getting the sweep is a big deal,” Lennerton said. “So we’ve taken that approach the first two games [the] whole season, so we’ll just carry that into the playoffs.” ..To get into the playoff spirit, the team is attempting to get everyone to dye their hair blonde as good luck during the run, even getting the coaches involved. “I love coming out to see these guys,” Bradley said. “We all just share a special bond that I think a lot of teams don’t have and we all are just able to get along, hang out outside of school, do whatever it takes to become that one chemistry team and it’s just awesome.” ...A few remain with their natural hair color, but Bradley is hopeful that changes before the first pitch on Thursday.