Former Ankeny pitcher Brody Brecht is expected to be a high-round draft pick in the 2024 MLB amateur draft.
Don’t be surprised if Ankeny Centennial junior Joey Oakie joins the Iowa sophomore near the top of the draft.
Oakie turned in another brilliant performance on Monday, allowing just one hit over the first six innings while recording 16 strikeouts to lead the second-ranked Jaguars to a 9-0 victory in the first game of a CIML Conference doubleheader at Waukee.
In two starts, Oakie (2-0) has allowed just two hits in 10 scoreless innings while racking up 27 strikeouts. Opponents are batting just .062 against him.
“I hear the same rumors that other people hear (about the draft),” said Centennial coach Mark Hey. “But if you watched him pitch tonight, he had three or four pitches working. I can’t imagine somebody looking at him and not wanting to spend some money on him. He’s real fun to watch.”
The Jaguars (4-0) then completed a sweep with a 7-1 win in the nightcap. Waukee dropped to 2-3 on the season.
“I was really happy with how we played,” Hey said. “We were very aggressive swinging the bat and running the bases, and defensively we played very well. It was just kind of every aspect of the game we were very business-like the whole night.”
Oakie left the first game after throwing 95 pitches. Cole Grider then relieved and struck out all three batters that he faced.
Damin Churchman went 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the win. Nick Severson went 3-for-5 with two doubles, while Sean Stewart went 2-for-4 with a double and scored two runs.
Emerson Alberhasky also went 2-for-4. Lucas Bruhl drove in two runs, and Easton Miller added an RBI.
“We had a lot of good performances,” Hey said. “Nick hit the ball really well, and Damin did, too. Lucas came through with a couple of big sacrifice flies. It was just a good job of situational hitting.”
Courtesy runner Jack Compton stole two bases and scored a pair of runs.
“Jack was so aggressive on the bases, and he helped set up a lot of the runs,” Hey said.
In the second game, Alberhasky and Preston Glatt combined on a six-hitter. Alberhasky (1-0) walked two and had five strikeouts over the first five innings.
Severson went 2-for-4 and knocked in two runs, while Oakie also went 2-for-4 and had an RBI. Grider and Bruhl each drove in a run, and Glatt had a double.
“Waukee’s a really good team,” Hey said. “It was good to play a conference game and play with such confidence. It won’t get any easier in this conference, so we’ve just got to be consistent and come out with the same approach on Wednesday.”
The Jaguars will host a conference game against Urbandale (6-2) on Wednesday.
