Preseason Countdown: No.19 Lewis Palmer
March 22, 2016
By John Cackowski
State Director
Leading up to the start of the high school season, we will count down the top 50 preseason teams every day as part of our comprehensive season coverage. The top 50 teams are picked from all classifications, and are not divided up by class level. To see the entire list click here
Team: Lewis Palmer
Preseason Rank: 27
2015 Record: 22-4
Conference: 4A Pikes Peak
CHSAA Class: 4A
Head Coach: Tom McCabe
Playoff Run: Lost to Green Mountain 4-0 in 4A State Championship game.
2015 Final Rank: 8
Returning Starters: 2
Returning Pitchers: 1
TOP PLAYERS:
Paul Tillotson, No. 4 2016, RHP/OF (Nebraska Commit)
Billy Cook, 2017, OF
Kevin Tims, 2017, MIF
X-FACTOR:
After the 1-2 combo of Tilloston and Cook in the lineup, the Rangers will be looking for 7 other starters to help fill in roles. The Rangers graduated 7 seniors from last year off team that reached the 4A championship game.
KEY PLAYERS LOST:
Colin Cecere: (Indian Hills Community College)
STAT RAT:
Last year Tillotson and Cicere were a combined 17-3 on the mound and both had sub 2.0 ERA's. They also combined for 136 innings pitched and struck out 218 batters.
BOTTOM LINE:
Lewis Palmer reached the 4A state championship game in 2015 and lost 4-0 to Green Mountain. This year they will reload with an entirely new team, but will be expected to still be one of the top 4A teams in the state. 2016 OF/RHP Paul Tilloston (Nebraska) returns and could be the best pitcher in the state. Armed with a nasty 3-pitch combination which includes a lower 90's fastball, the Rangers will be expected to win every game he throws. Last year he went 8-1 with a 1.62 ERA. Tillotson struck out an incredible 145 batters in 78 innings pitched. He also hit .446 with 6 home runs and 32 RBI's which both led the team. 2017 OF Billy Cook returns a .422 batting average which was 2nd highest on the team. Cook also led the team with 13 doubles, and was 2nd to Tillotson with 22 RBI's. Not a bad 1-2 combo coming back this year. Look for 2017 MIF Kevin Tims to getting starting action this year to fill in. Lewis Palmer will be a playoff team, and will most likely win 90% of the games Tillotson throws. If new guys produce and they can find a solid No. 2 expect them to be back in Final 8.
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