DALTON, Ga. — One, two, three strikes you’re out.

It isn’t often high school baseball fans will see one team with three pitchers who could arguably be the team’s ace, but this season the Northwest Whitfield High School baseball team has just that. In any given series, any one of the three starting pitchers could be the standout performer.

Seniors Jake Bearden and Ty Fisher, along with junior Hank Bearden, make up the three-headed entity that is the Bruins’ rotation, and this season the trio has been one of the most effective pitching staffs in northwest Georgia. All three are college-bound prospects and have a repertoire of pitches which would be the envy of almost any high school pitcher. Having an arsenal of arm talent is a benefit Northwest coach Todd Middleton doesn’t take for granted.

“We’re obviously relying on them a lot,” Middleton said. “That’s the strength of this team — pitching.”

While they have already had success, there’s a difference between throwing a baseball and pitching. Understanding pitch selection, game situations and batter tendencies is an art in itself, and the trio continues to grow in those areas. The Bruins (13-4, 7-2) currently sit atop Region 6-4A, and the composure of all three will surely be tested as the team gears up for the second half of the season.

Loose lefty

Although he set the single-season passing yardage record as quarterback for the Bruins’ football team this past fall, Fisher’s true love comes from throwing a baseball. Since his days as a toddler, those closest with the lanky lefty have known this without a doubt.

“If he could play baseball every day he would,” Fisher’s father and Northwest offensive coordinator Chad Fisher said. “I think he just played football because I was a coach.”

Fisher has been the game one starter for the Bruins this season and has displayed the arm talent that made him a Division I recruit. In his team-high 34 and 1/3 innings pitched, the Tennessee Tech signee has posted a 5-1 record with a 1.01 earned run average to go along with one save. His 50-7 strikeout-to-walk rate is impressive as is his 0.69 walks plus hits per innings pitched (WHIP).

According to Northwest pitching coach Brad Dunn, Fisher’s personality helps him execute in pressure situations.

“Ty’s loose,” Dunn said. “He fits that perfect, goofy, lefty mentality. But when it comes time to pitch, he also has a serious side to him. He won’t tell you that, but he does.”

Fans and opposing batters have become well-acquainted with Fisher’s serious side this season. Fisher has thrown a first-pitch strike to 74 percent of his batters faced this season and his 29 innings with no walks leads the team. On game days where he’s scheduled to pitch, his pregame routine starts early in the morning.

“I go in the morning and get me a Monster Energy drink and a gas station biscuit,” Fisher said. “I gotta do that. A gas station biscuit and a white Monster at Andy’s Corner in Tunnel Hill.”

During his pregame warmup, Fisher prefers the soothing sounds of Guns ‘N Roses and Motley Crue to get him in the right mindset to hit the mound. Once the game begins, his fastball, curveball and changeup do most of the talking. With a fastball that sits in the mid-80s and a sweeping curve with 1-7 action, Fisher has befuddled opposing batters all season.

Dunn said Fisher’s improvement since he transferred to Northwest has been noticeable, especially in his mental approach. Fisher credits Dunn with fostering that improvement.

“When I came here I wasn’t a really good pitcher,” Fisher said. “Coach Dunn has really helped with all my pitches and with just how to think about pitching.”

Northwest’s starting catcher Reed McClain said the two have been working on pitching inside to right handed batters in recent bullpen sessions, due to the fact Fisher’s fastball has so much two-seam movement.

“We’ll have (teammate) David (Ramirez) set up at the plate and Ty’s ball will start out right at him but end up right on the inside corner,” McClain said. “It’s a lot of fun catching these guys. I think they’re the three best pitchers in the region.”

The brothers Bearden

Jake and Hank Bearden’s father Russell Bearden was a gifted pitcher in his own right. A member of the 1982 state championship team at Northwest, Russell Bearden went on to play his college ball at Cleveland State and the University of West Georgia. Watching his sons follow in his footsteps for the Bruins has been a blessing for Russell, and it’s safe to say the apples didn’t fall too far from the tree.

“I think we’ve just been most fortunate to get them both in the right places with the right coaches,” Russell Bearden said. “From the time they were playing T-ball they’ve been around some really good coaches over the years.”

Jake Bearden, the older brother who is signed to play college baseball at Georgia Gwinnett College, used to be the shorter of two brothers since the time the pair were in elementary school. A growth spurt over the past year-and-a-half has shot Jake above his younger brother in terms of height, but that hasn’t changed the dynamic between them. Being one year apart and both being competitive athletes, it wouldn’t be surprising to expect the edge to spill over at times.

The exact opposite is true.

“I don’t know if they’ve ever been in a fight,” Russell Bearden said. “They’re competitive with each other in their own quiet way, but they always pull for on another.”

In his 23 and 2/3 innings pitched this season, Jake Bearden has posted a 3-1 record with a 2.66 earned run average to go along with one save. Most pitchers would be satisfied with a fast ball in the mid-80s to go along with a sharp breaking curveball, but Jake Bearden has another option which has peaked the interest of his future college coaches.

Although he hasn’t featured it much this season for Northwest, Jake Bearden’s knuckleball is an effective pitch for the senior when he’s called upon to use it. The coaches at Georgia Gwinnett envision Jake being primarily a knuckleball pitcher on the next level, but even when used selectively this season the unpredictable pitch is a true weapon.

Having his uniform and equipment lined up the night before, and having a clean pre-game throwing session are important to the older Bearden when it’s his turn on the mound.

“A lot of the guys on the team are very superstitious,” Jake Bearden said. “Like when I’m throwing in the outfield before the game, I do not like the ball to hit the ground. That can’t happen.”

Although he’s the youngest of the three, Hank Bearden has been the most dominant Bruins’ pitcher this season. In his 31 innings pitched, the junior has posted a 4-0 record with a 0.45 earned run average and has one save. He has a team-leading 0.54 WHIP and a 55-9 strikeout to walk rate. In his 31 innings pitched, the University of Georgia commit has allowed just eight hits and two earned runs.

ProspectUSA.com has the younger Bearden ranked as the No. 1 right-handed pitcher in Georgia and the No. 32 prospect in the country for the class of 2020.

According to Dunn, Hank Bearden could be even better on the next level.

“The thing about Hank’s changeup is it comes in about average speed, so kids at this level hit it,” Dunn said. “When he throws his fastball he throws it by guys but they’ll hit his changeup because they’re swinging at that same speed. But that pitch will be very effective for him in college where kids are used to hitting high 80s and low 90s fast balls.”

Hank Bearden’s curveball is nothing to sneeze at either. A sharp breaking pitch that breaks at a 11-4 angle, the pitch has been featured by the younger Bearden as an effective strikeout pitch. His fast ball reaches the low 90s, and with his ability to locate all of his pitches, batters at the high school level have difficulty making solid contact.

Hank Bearden’s pregame routine is a mixture between the two seniors ahead of him. A regimen of pitching band exercises before each start is a must for the younger Bearden, but the pre-game superstitions seems less important.

“Jake is a little superstitious with getting everything ready, but Hank won’t know where his pants are before the game starts,” Russell Bearden said before Northwest’s home win against Heritage earlier this week. “I had to bring him his glove before today’s game.”

Naturally soft spoken, those who know Hank Bearden best say there’s a different side to him when he gets angry. A competitive side that drives the pitcher to excel on the mound, fans can see the look in his eyes when he’s firing a fastball, and McClain may have the best view from behind the plate.

“Yeah, you don’t wanna mess with Hank when he gets mad,” McClain said.

So far this season, Hank Bearden has retired 87 percent of his batter’s faced when he records a first-pitch strike. His skills on the mound will likely continue to develop over the next year-and-a-half, and the possibility of being drafted by a Major League Baseball team isn’t out of the question for the Northwest junior. The quiet confidence in Northwest’s youngest starter is evident more in his play than in his words.

“I feel pretty good heading into the these next few series,” Hank Bearden said. “What’s already happened is in the past, so we just have to work on what’s coming up.”

A team effort

Even with a surplus of pitching talent, winning ball games still comes down to the entire team. The Bruins dropped two of three to Heritage this past week, and Middleton continues to stress timely hitting as being the difference between winning and losing the close games coming down the stretch. Upcoming series with Pickens and Southeast Whitfield will likely determine whether the Bruins win their region, but more importantly will likely prepare Northwest for the rigors of postseason play.

Despite their success, the trio of pitchers aren’t aloof amongst their teammates. “Mandatory” team gatherings at the Bearden’s house or at other player’s homes have become a bonding exercise for a team that clearly enjoys playing with each other. Ramirez, Brody Crossen, Eli Nance and Matt Redmond will each help determine the Bruins postseason fate regardless of how well the starting pitchers perform.

Overall, staying in a present mindset has been helpful for all three starting pitchers and seems to be a mantra that has been ingrained since an early age.

“We just take it one game at a time,” Jake Bearden said. “We’ve got three or four weeks coming up where we gotta get after it. Anything can happen in baseball.”