SOUTH PARIS – Kyle Keniston got off to a slow start last year, yet he ended up being the leading hitter on one of the most explosive offensive teams in Class A.
So what’s he going to now that he’s gotten a head start on almost everyone else?
That’s the foreboding question confronting the rest of the KVAC this year, as the Oxford Hills shortstop and senior captain begins to open more and more eyes with his bat and glove.
“I think we take him for granted,” Oxford Hills coach Shane Slicer said. “I think he is overlooked.”
That was understandable last year. Slicer had Corey Tielinen, Joe Baker, Matt McDonnell and a number of other better-known names etched on his line-up card. And Keniston didn’t exactly make a grand entrance either.
“He started slow and then he played very well down the stretch. When we got ready to pick our all-conference team, all I had to say was He led our team in hitting, and we were pretty successful.’ That tells you a lot,” Slicer said.
With his sure-handed fielding factored in, Keniston made second team all-conference last year and was a force in American Legion play for Bessey Motors, as well. Yet he continued to toil in relative anonymity, despite playing probably the most high-profile position in high school baseball.
That’s all fine with Keniston, though.
“It’s not a big deal to me. I just play the game and whatever happens happens,” he said. “If I get overlooked and someone else gets more of the attention, I don’t have to worry about it.”
“I think he’s the best shortstop in our conference. Of course, I’m biased,” Slicer said. “But when you start thinking about good ballplayers, shortstops are usually the ones you think about, and he’s the best of the best in our league.”
Some even recognized Keniston as such last winter, when he joined a group of all-stars from Frozen Ropes on a tour of Florida. He was one of only three Eastern A players selected to a team dominated by southern Maine players, and the extra playing time against top-flight competition has him confident that he won’t repeat his early hitting woes of last season.
“He got some valuable experience playing with some good ballplayers,” Slicer said, “so he was in mid-season form when we started.”
“I think it’s starting me off quicker this year because I got so many swings over the course of the year,” said Keniston, who may be headed to the University of Southern Maine next fall. “My hands are quicker than what most people’s are this time of the season. I’m seeing the ball better. I’ve been seeing live pitching where everybody else has been in the cage hitting pitching machines.”
After hitting second last year, Keniston is moving up to the leadoff spot to start the season. He said it’s a bit of an adjustment for someone as aggressive as he is at the plate.
“I’ve got to look at more pitches. (Slicer) tells me to see pitches. If I see a good one, go after it, but work the pitcher first at bat and see what he has,” he said.
Once the pitchers see what Keniston has, he may not have as many good pitches to go after.
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