Cullman’s Owen Lovell celebrates with teammates after stealing home with the winning run in an 8-7 defeat of Sparkman on March 5. (Photo: Rob Ketcham/The Cullman Times).
From now until the American Family Insurance ALL-USA high school baseball team comes out in June, we are profiling potential ALL-USA players. This week’s player is Cullman, Ala., center fielder and pitcher Owen Lovell.
Player: Owen Lovell, Cullman, Ala.
Height, weight: 6-5, 225
Year: 2017
College: Committed to Alabama
Statistics: Through 34 games, Lovell has 12 homers and had 52 RBI with a .438 batting average and 20 stolen bases. On the mound, the right-hander is 4-0 with a 2.10 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 30 innings.
Honors: He was the state 5A hitter of the year as a freshman in 2014 and made the Super All-State Baseball Team last season.
Biggest strength: “He’s a complete player. When he goes up to the plate, it not all-or-nothing. He’s going to try to get on base and has the speed to do it,” said Cullman coach Brent Patterson.
Needs work: “The biggest thing is he has to do is learn some discipline at the plate,” Patterson said. “Sometimes, when he doesn’t, it expands his strike zone, though I’ve seen him get good hits on pitches I wish he didn’t swing at. He’s learning that being a good teammate is sometimes walking and letting a teammate pick him up.”
Big games: He homered twice and stole home with the winning run March 5 in an 8-7 defeat of Sparkman (Harvest). On March 17, he threw 10-strikeouts and drove in three runs in a 6-0 defeat of Austin (Decatur). He drove in two runs and singled in the winning run with an RBI single in a 4-3 defeat of Thompson (Alabaster) on March 19. He homered twice in a 7-6 loss to Christian Brothers (Memphis) on March 22.