By Brian Shaw | [email protected]

As Bingham head coach Joey Sato and his Miners traverse what is his 29th year at the helm of this baseball program there isn’t much the legendary coach hasn’t done.

Counting the past three years, however — the Utah High School Activities Association did not crown a state champion in 2020 — the Miners have not won a state title since the 2017-18 season. Pleasant Grove got it in 2018-19; as we all know, COVID-19 won in 2020; and, American Fork captured the 6A crown in 2021.

But is this the year that Bingham gets back to the Class 6A mountaintop? It appears the Miners are chiseling their way back up that big rock.

With a 13-3 record at press time, their best start in the four years since they last lifted the state championship trophy, the Miners have chipped their way to an 7-3 start that included a trip to the Flag City Classic in Tennessee where they went 4-0 there in mid-March. The only setbacks came at the hands of Spanish Fork in a 7-inning slugfest on March 16, at Skyridge on March 29 and at Lone Peak April 1.

Otherwise, the Miners have not lost and are swinging the bats with some serious might as they charge through Region 3.

At about the midpoint through region play, the Miners were unbeaten at 6-0 having blasted Mountain Ridge and Herriman in three-game series. In that six-game span they scored a whopping 46 runs and have allowed just nine.

Leading the way for the Miners on offense are senior Jonny Hatch, who has four home runs. Senior Preston Jacobsen has three and junior Maddax Peck, two.

Hatch also leads the team in RBIs with 21 on the season and junior Boston Jacobs has 15 for Bingham, who has benefited from a nice balance in run production; 10 or more RBI have come from six different players.

On the mound, the Miners are also doing some damage. Senior Rylan Marti has been a flamethrower this year. The 6-foot-4-inch pitcher is throwing heat to the mitt of senior catcher Maxton Peck, en route to a 4-0 record. Senior Israel Diaz has been big for Bingham as well, hurling his way to a 3-1 mark and two shutouts as the Miners second ace and the junior Maddax Peck has come on and pitched two victories.

The Miners had nine games left in the regular season before they focus their attention on the 6A state tournament where they bowed out last year in the semifinals to American Fork. That loss is one that this team packed with 12 seniors and several college commits remembers all too well and appears to be intent on reversing.