Gateway baseball players benefit from fall workouts

By: Michael Love
Sunday, October 12, 2025 | 11:01 AM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

Gateway baseball coach Andy Hoover welcomed more than two dozen players to fall workouts and scrimmages at the end of August.

It was a fresh start for a group with high expectations and goals to make it back to the WPIAL playoffs.

The second-year coach said the past few weeks, with time on the field Tuesdays and Thursdays, were productive in seeing veterans and newcomers blend their talents together.

“Everybody was ready to go and get back together,” Hoover said.

“We have a lot of good baseball guys who are leading the way in getting things going and putting in the work.”

A big thing in the fall workouts, Hoover said, has been getting a sizeable group of freshmen acclimated to the system and the game at the high school level.

“We have a real strong freshman class. They only lost two games last year, so there is a lot of excitement around them coming in and seeing what they can do. As a coaching staff, we want to get those guys in, get them involved, and get them speaking our language because we are seeing a lot of them for the first time.”

Hoover said about 25 players have attended fall workouts and scrimmages with several others dedicated to fall sports such as football, soccer, cross country and golf or who are preparing for the wrestling season or other upcoming winter sports.

“Our numbers will be up from last year because of the freshman class and the fact that we didn’t lose many guys to graduation,” Hoover said.

“I have a bunch of wrestlers, and I don’t have to question whether they will be in shape or not. With youth sports, there have been a lot of cases of specialization where they pick there one sport and go with it. I think there is a lot of crossover athleticism that comes with playing multiple sports and staying active. I think it makes them more well-rounded athletes when we get them in the spring.”

Seven starters are back from last spring’s Gators team which went 6-13 overall and 2-8 in Section 4-4A. The Gators hope the work in the fall will lead to a return to a WPIAL postseason trip against 2025 section playoff qualifiers Thomas Jefferson, Baldwin, Connellsville and Montour.

The group of returnees include junior Roman Jennings, an all-section first-team selection at shortstop last year, and second-team pitcher Jon Saunders.

Senior catcher Grady Dunsmore also is a top returnee behind the plate and in the lineup.

Hoover said he’s excited to have senior shortstop Bucky Otterman back after he missed his entire junior season because of a broken wrist.

“That is a big win for him and for us,” Hoover said.

“This is the first time he’s been able to play baseball since fall of last year. It is good to get him back in the swing of things. He’s going to pitch a lot for us in the spring and play shortstop and third base. He came into the fall with a lot of energy and motivation.”

Gateway has taken advantage of scrimmages against Indiana, Freeport, North Hills, Mars and 14th Ward, a collection of players from Central Catholic and other neighboring schools.

“A lot of the guys have gotten good work in game situations,” Hoover said.

“We play each team twice. In one game, I would mostly play my younger guys so I would get eyes on them. The other game would be the older guys. Some of my top pitchers are resting their arms in the fall, so we’ve gotten to see a lot of young arms, which is good. The teams worked together to make it good for everyone.”

Last year, Gateway capped the fall work with a Halloween intrasquad scrimmage.

That will return this year at 5 p.m. Oct. 30 on the varsity field. The players will don costumes for the scrimmage which Hoover said the school community is welcome to attend.

“It was so much fun last year,” Hoover said.

“I had never heard of something like that. Some parents found out about it, and people came and took pictures of guys up to bat in funny costumes. There’s nothing like seeing a clown pitching to a pumpkin. We want to let the school know and hopefully make it a big deal this year.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Gateway