Graham, Thompson throw BBs for Bees

Alec Thompson and Jay Graham have been playmates since they were 6 and 7 years old, respectively.

“Me and Jay have played together ever since we were little so we’re used to playing beside each other,” said Thompson, who started at safety in the Bees’ secondary this past fall, flanking Graham at cornerback.

Now, they’re among the veterans of a Brookville baseball team brimming with potential.

“I’ve known Alex since second grade so we’re pretty close,” Graham said.

The two pitchers/outfielders would have been battery mates this spring were it not for a shoulder injury Thompson suffered in the football preseason that has limited his range of motion and prevented him from making strong throws from a crouched position behind the plate.

“I dislocated my shoulder at the beginning of the fall in the first practice game,” said Thompson, who played through the injury in football and caught 10 passes from Logan Thomas for 154 yards and a touchdown in the Group AA state championship, a 50-46 loss to William Monroe.

He also complemented Thomas at forward in basketball, helping the Bees advance to the state tournament, and could be his successor at quarterback after starting the first two games behind center as a sophomore.

“In basketball, it didn’t bother me, it’s just the throwing motion that hurts,” said Thompson, who starts in left field beside Graham, who plays center when he’s not on the mound. “I’ve been able to deal with the pain in throwing from the outfield.”

Brookville veteran coach Jim White isn’t going to rush Thompson back into pitching, relying more on Thompson’s bat after he led the team with a .345 average and 12 RBIs last year.

“He’s our best batter,” White said, noting he also has an excellent curveball as a pitcher.

Thompson, who has pitched two bullpen sessions, wants to be ready to pitch by season’s end.

“He’s just trying to ease me back into the rotation,” said Thompson, who pitches with reckless abandon when he’s on the mound. “I’m more of a power than a finesse kind of guy. I usually drive it in there and give it all I’ve got.

“We’ve definitely got the pitching to make it far,” he added.

Besides Graham, the staff ace, the Bees boast starters Jeff Myers and Jeff Maxwell and relievers Derek Wingfield and Josh Roland, who backs up Ryan Mann at catcher.

All the pitchers but Roland also platoon in Brookville’s outfield.

Graham, who went 4-3 with one save and a 2.52 ERA last spring, fanning 50 batters in 41 2/3 innings, is the projected starter for today’s Seminole District game against Liberty.

“I usually throw every Friday,” Graham said. “I’m a weekend starter, which feels like a leadership kind of role.”

He has improved his delivery dramatically over the past two years by working in the offseason with E.C. Glass graduate Josh Hall, currently in the Colorado Rockies’ spring training camp in Arizona.

“He’s helped in getting my mechanics down,” said Graham, who has a good breaking pitch and also throws a split-fingered fastball. “I had all the pitches, but he’s helped me in hitting my spots and helped my balance and my velocity.”

Graham throws in the upper-80-mph range, a few miles faster than Myers and Maxwell, and has the endurance to maintain that speed even after 80 to 90 pitches, before reaching his 100-pitch limit.

“From working with Josh, I have faith in my arm to do its job,” he said.

That gives him the confidence to battle opposing batters aggressively, rather than working around them.

“Every time I get on the mound, I think I’m going to throw a perfect game,” he said. “If I don’t and I give up a hit, I just try to focus on getting the next out.”

Graham is looking at continuing his pitching career at Averett, Bridgewater or Lynchburg College, or possibly attending Liberty University to study aeronautical engineering.

“I want to fly,” said Graham, who is planning to get his pilot’s license this summer, inspired by his uncle, Robert Graham.

He hopes to help the Bees take flight this season, and contend with pitching-rich Jefferson Forest for the Seminole District title.

“I’m more relaxed this year as a senior,” said Graham, who wants the ball in his hand with the game on the line in the late innings. “If I’ve got guys on second and third, it doesn’t matter what the situation is. I like being in that type of situation.”