Hughson’s Cockrell grew into Trans-Valley League’s baseball MVP

Kyle Cockrell’s growth within the Hughson High School baseball program is probably best defined by two pickles, one at each end of his decorated four-year career.

The first was nearly nuclear, threatening to halt his MVP arc before it began.

The senior was bestowed that very honor – the Trans-Valley League’s highest individual accolade – during the season-ending coaches’ meeting.

Cockrell was nominated by Escalon coach Greg Largent, seconded by Hughson skipper Mike Bava, and that was that.

“We were going around the room and nobody was putting up anybody. Greg looked at me and said, ‘Kyle, right?’ and there wasn’t even a vote,” Bava said. “That’s rare for the MVP award. Coaches had a lot of respect for him.”

And to think, that moment almost wasn’t.

Pickle No. 1: As a freshman, Bava said Cockrell weighed no more than a blade of grass and struggled to hit the ball out of the infield. He wanted to quit baseball, but the Hughson coaching staff wouldn’t let him.

They saw too much potential, athleticism, heart. Forced to make a decision, Cockrell chose to be a Husky.

He leaves the program with the ultimate validation – back-to-back all-TVL first-team selections, two league championships and the MVP award.

“He was undersized coming in,” Bava said. “His freshman year, he said he wasn’t going to play baseball. He told my associate coach, ‘I’m too small.’ He couldn’t hit the ball out of the infield. We encouraged him and said ‘No way, you’re a good athlete.’ We could see it early on.”

The Huskies (19-4 overall, 14-1 TVL) won their second consecutive TVL title without much resistance and advanced to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V semifinals.

On a team featuring a former TVL MVP and Most Valuable Offensive Player, the big stick belonged to the wispy one. Cockrell posted team highs for batting average (.407), hits (33) and runs (30). He swiped 16 bases, struck out only five times in 95 plate appearances and emerged as the team’s closer, racking up three saves, two victories and a 1.87 ERA.

“I would never have guessed that in a million years,” Bava said of Cockrell’s ascent to closer. “He has nice velocity.”

His signature moment came in an 8-7 victory over Escalon, completing a season sweep of the traditional small-school power. In the seventh inning, Cockrell drove in the tying run with a line drive to right. He stole second and slid into third ahead of a force out, setting up pickle No. 2.

Cockrell attempted to tag and score on a pop fly to right field, “but he would have been hosed,” Bava said.

Cockrell was caught between bases. The rundown wouldn’t last long, though. Cockrell bolted for home after the ball lipped off the third baseman’s glove, securing the dramatic win.

“Kyle developed. He’s still not very big, but as a junior he batted over .300 and was first-team all-league,” Bava said. “This year, he was clutch; every time we needed him, he came through.”

The Huskies’ domination was reflected in the all-league voting. Senior catcher Lane Cobb was named Defensive Player of the Year after earning the MVP award in 2014. Junior Grant Williams was Pitcher of the Year, and Bava was honored as Coach of the Year.

Cobb, a four-year starter, committed just two errors in 117 total chances and picked off four runners. He had a .983 fielding percentage.

“To stick a freshman in there and tell him, ‘Go get ’em,’ is not an easy task,” Bava said. “But he was up to the challenge and got better and better each year.”

Williams went 8-0 with six complete games and one shutout. He was 5-0 in league play.

Ripon’s Angelo Baciocco was the Offensive Player of the Year. Baciocco was third in the league in average (.402) and hits (35) and second in triples (4).

Four other Huskies joined Cockrell, Cobb and Williams on the first team: outfielder Dakota Draper, four-year starter and former Most Valuable Offensive Player Dylan Horner, outfielder Tyren Vargas and infielder Josh Pack.

“It was a special season,” Bava said. “We had a young club that matured and continued to play good baseball.”

This story was originally published June 3, 2015 at 12:54 PM with the headline "Hughson’s Cockrell grew into Trans-Valley League’s baseball MVP."