Now’s the time for Homewood-Flossmoor baseball.

The Vikings roster is senior laden, with 19 of the 24 players set to graduate in a few months. It’s the type of experienced roster most coaches dream about. 

“This is our year. We’ve had these kids for four years and most of them I’ve known before that,” coach Marcus Rodgers said. “This has to be our year.” 

Players say they can feel that air about this season’s team already. Rodgers chalks it up to maturity but the Vikings say there are fewer egos and cliques in the dugout and more players willing to do what it takes to win and play for each other.

“This is the best the team chemistry has been in my four years being here,” senior Henry Humes said. “We’re all just closer, more tight knit. Last year that was a real problem for us but this year we’re one big group.” 

Humes and Cormac Saunders will both start and both close. Humes will play at Northwestern next year and is the staff’s ace. Saunders threw 16 consecutive scoreless innings in relief in SouthWest Suburban Conference games at one point.

Both will start and finish games.

“If Henry pitches on a Monday and he feels great on Thursday and we need him to throw an inning, he’s going to be ready to rock,” Rodgers said. “Cormac was a starter and we moved him to the bullpen but they both can and will do whatever we need to win.” 

Both hurlers said they’re grateful to have earned that trust. 

“Over the last couple years, I’ve pitched in every role possible. I’ve started. I’ve closed. I’ve pitched in the middle of games,” Saunders said. “I feel like I’m ready for anything.” 

One thing the Vikings could use is a lefthanded arm or two. There are no southpaws on the varsity roster to start the season, though Rodgers said a younger lefty could work his way into the varsity lineup. 

There aren’t many lefthanded hitters, either. 

“It’s not ideal but it’s not a problem,” Rodgers said. “We’ve got two big left-handed bats on varsity but we don’t have a lot of lefty bats or lefty arms.”

H-F isn’t concerned about its ability to score runs, though. The Vikings have speed, led by junior Mikey Watson, who will lead off, and junior infielder Ashton Jones. H-F plans to be aggressive on the basepaths. 

That’s exactly how Rodgers said he’d like his team to be. He wants players he calls “dirtbags” who fly around the field, diving and sliding and soiling their uniforms. 

“You can’t steal first base but I do think we’re going to put a different type of pressure (on defenses) that not a lot of teams can duplicate,” Rodger said. “I don’t want a whole lineup of guys like me because if we’re not hitting, we’re not scoring. Good teams can score runs without getting hits.” 

Demir Heidelberg (Eastern Michigan) and Mateo Munoz (Triton) are two important hitters from the 2025 team whose production needs to be replaced. Watson and Evan Bradford will be counted on to do a lot of that.

“One thing I’ve noticed this year is now we’ve got guys scheduling times outside or practice to go hit together,” Saunders said. “I haven’t seen that in the last couple years. Obviously, that’s great. Any extra reps can help you get better.” 

That’s the sort of thing that the Vikings believe makes this team better than the last few years. There are senses of camaraderie and urgency to this group. 

“It’s a more mature team than last year, for sure,” Humes said. “We all understand that this is our last year and we’re really giving it our all.”