The parade of student-athletes signing to continue playing at the next level despite not having a 2020 season continues for the Bridgeport High School baseball team. On Wednesday, Drew Hogue was the latest addition to the club.

 

Hogue signed a letter of intent to play for Fairmont State University of the Mountain East Conference. The signing took place inside the school library with coaches and family members present.

 

“It seemed like the right fit,” said Hogue of his decision to sign with Fairmont State. “I’m looking forward to playing at the next level.”

 

Hogue chose to play for Falcons Coach Phil Caruso, who has had more than one Indian in the past and more than one on the team currently. He chose Fairmont State over West Virginia State and Bethany.

 

Although part of the Indians program that has won six straight state championships, Hogue was noticed by colleges on the summer travel and American Legion circuit. Due to COVID-19, Hogue, and the entire BHS team’s 2020 season was wiped out.

 

“One of the biggest things this year was playing through the Appalachian Aces organization and playing some Legion ball (for Bridgeport Post 68),” said Hogue, who plans on studying occupational safety. “It gave me an opportunity to travel places and face competition in areas like the southern part of the state and get some exposure. The playing time was exactly what I needed because it had been a while since I played with a Bridgeport uniform.”

 

The last time Hogue actually suited up and played in a BHS uniform was during his sophomore campaign in 2019. At that time, he was part of the highly successful Indians junior varsity program.

 

“He played a lot of ball with our junior varsity program, but he practiced a lot with the varsity team,” said Coach Robert Shields. “Drew can play, and I can tell you that from more than just watching him with the jayvee team or in practice or when we brought guys from the jayvee up. I saw him play this summer in Legion and travel play. He’s going to make an impact for us.”

 

An impact will be what will be needed as the Indians look to extend a state title win streak to seven years. This time, however, they will have to do it in Class AAA as the Tribe made the jump to the large school classification for the 2020-21 school year.

 

“He’s very good defensively and runs well while being aggressive on the base paths,” said Shields. “Drew is also a good contact hitter and hits it the other way extremely well. He’s versatile too and can play a lot of positions.”

 

The versatility is something Shields always takes advantage of as he noted Hogue can play practically any position in the battery. However, he said there is an area where the BHS faithful will likely see him.

 

“He can play any of the positions in the outfield and he can also play in the infield, but I think if you’re looking to where we expect for him to make an impact it will be in the outfield,” said Shields.

 

Hogue said he, too, expects to play the outfield. However, he said he will fill in wherever Shields needs him.

 

“During this offseason, I rotated throughout the outfield, but mainly in left field or center field,” said Hogue. “They had me playing a little bit of everywhere and I absolutely believe my versatility will help. I’m comfortable and confident to play anywhere in the lineup.”

 

Shields said a handful of players will be making the jump to varsity full time for the first time this year, but he does not believe it will be an issue for Hogue.

 

“I think the transformation is going to be easy because he played so much in the summer and even last fall,” said Shields. “Plus, he has a lot of time playing a lot of innings for our junior varsity team. The thing is with Drew is that he has invested his time, and when you play travel ball there is also an investment of money, so I know he loves to play this game and is committed to be the best he can be. I’m confident that investment will pay off for him and this team.”

 

Hogue backed that assessment. He also feels ready to play at the Class AAA level.

 

“I feel I’ve done everything I can to prepare myself, particularly considering the level of competition in summer ball was extremely good. I’m not too worried about going to play at the varsity level,” Hogue said. “Going to ‘AAA’ shouldn’t be a dramatic switch because the team has played at a high level against a lot of ‘AAA’ opponents for years. I feel we’re going to be very competitive and, in the mix, again, but we have to not take anything for granted and play hard.”

 

Bridgeport will begin practice March 15. The team's first game is a home contest April 22 against North Marion.

 

Editor's Note: Photos of Drew Hogue playing summer baseball courtesy of Drew Hogue. Photo at the top of Hogue with family and coaches is from Wednesday's signing ceremony.