By Tyler Waldrep
TRUSSVILLE — It starts the same way most things start – with a step.
Hewitt-Trussville’s Keegan Morrow can be a nightmare for opposing teams. Huskies’ varsity baseball coach Jeff Mauldin said Morrow will do anything to get on base. Once on base, it doesn’t take him long to score with his speed – Morrow runs a 6.7 60-yard dash.
“He will force teams to make errors and when he gets on base, he’s going to cause havoc,” Mauldin said. “He’s a guy that will go from first to third.”
“I was really shocked when I got the notification,” Morrow said. “[I was] just happy to represent Hewitt-Trussville baseball on that team.
Morrow said it takes a certain mindset to steal bases successfully. He has to be aware of his opportunities, but noticing them isn’t enough; he still has to seize them.
That used to be Morrow’s weakness. All of the awareness he possessed while stealing bases didn’t always carry over into the offseason.
Morrow said that he failed to properly prepare himself for varsity tryouts this past year, and that overdoing his offseason regiment caused a stress fracture that would sideline him for almost his entire junior season.
“I just knew that I missed my junior year,” Morrow said. “I knew I was going to have to bust my tail to get stronger senior year to go play baseball at the next level. So I had to get serious about it.”
Like a phoenix, Morrow has gone through a rebirth of sorts that has instilled an inner fire in him. Mauldin said Morrow worked hard to come back. He said he can tell that Morrow is savoring every minute of it.
“Him missing his junior year has really lit a fire in him. He had something taken away from him that he loved to do,” Mauldin said. “[He’s playing for] a chance to get it back.”
Mauldin said he was initially concerned about his arm strength coming back. He said those doubts were quickly erased, and that Morrow’s arm strength was on full display for Team Alabama.
“[He threw for] 93 mph. That’s what major league guys throw from the outfield,” Mauldin said. “Which was the second highest of any kid there. He’s come back better than he was before.”
Morrow said his selection to Team Alabama completed his comeback in his mind. He said it gave him a lot of things, including confidence.
“It’s [all the hard work] paying off right now for sure,” Morrow said. “Getting to play with the best players from another state, that’s only going to make you better. I just learned a lot.”
After missing the 2015 season, Morrow’s love for the sport has grown. If another injury comes, he said he wants to have made the most of his time.
Although he feels stronger now than he did prior to his injury, that isn’t going to stop him from hustling. Morrow has dreams of playing ball in college and helping Hewitt-Trussville win a state title next year. He said he knows he still has work to do.
“Even if you are good at something, I feel like you can always make improvements and adjustments. Even if I’m throwing 93 from the outfield, then I’m going to bust to get 95,” Morrow said. “You can always get more.”