Nazareth's Karl Keglovits is The Morning Call's 2011 pitcher of the year

FROM THE MORNING CALL

From the time Karl Keglovits stepped into the Nazareth High baseball program, coach Jon Lock and his staff have tried to follow a plan that will keep the rising senior pitching well beyond high school.

Keglovits' first two seasons saw him incorporate more of his legs into his delivery. He spent his junior season polishing a curveball to pair with the power fastball he brought into high school.

When Nazareth's 2011 season ended a few weeks ago, Lock and Keglovits met to discuss Keglovits' next move — adding a change-up or splitter. Lehigh Valley Conference hitters will be hoping he has trouble blending another offspeed offering with his current repertoire.

Keglovits used his fastball-curve combo to dominate LVC lineups most days this spring despite a winter knee injury and a rain-plagued April that kept him from finding his rhythm until late in the regular season. Once he hit a groove, he delivered a string of outings that made him The Morning Call's 2011 pitcher of the year.

Keglovits started three times from the opening of the District 11 tournament through the PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals. He went 3-0 with three complete games, a 1.33 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 21 innings pitched.

He finished the season 8-1 with a 1.42 ERA, a 0.96 WHIP, 16 walks and 77 strikeouts in 59 1/3 innings for the Blue Eagles, who won the District 11 Class 4A title and reached the state quarterfinals.

"I think at the end of the regular season, he only had about six starts," Lock said. "Typically you'd like to see your No. 1 get 8-10 starts. That kept his progression down until a little bit until later in the season.

"He peaked at the right time for us."

Despite his irregular regular-season work, Keglovits produced several brilliant efforts. He opened the season with a five-inning perfect game against Pocono Mountain West and struck out 19 in a one-hit shutout of Bethlehem Catholic in late April.

Just over a month later, he threw what may have been his signature game of 2011. Facing Emmaus in the District 11 Class 4A final at Coca-Cola Park, he fired a four-hit shutout and struck out seven to pitch the Blue Eagles into the state tournament.

"I get up for the bigger games," Keglovits said. "I should get up for any game, but I seem to get up for the bigger games mostly, and championship games."

Keglovits showed his big-game ability again after the high school season. He allowed one run and four hits over 11 2/3 innings while striking out 19 in four appearances to help the Lehigh Valley team win the Carpenter Cup tri-state all-star tournament. He now plans to rest his arm for a few weeks before ramping up for the end of the American Legion season and pitching for one of the New York Yankees' youth scout teams.

Keglovits has drawn heavy Division I interest, with Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Mississippi among the college programs following him. Lock expects big league scouts to start contacting him about Keglovits this summer.

"The word is out," Lock said. "He's on the radar.

"A lot of scouts and higher-ups definitely are looking at his ceiling. His ceiling is really, really high."

Nazareth's fellow LVC schools will be happy to see Keglovits move on to college or the pros a year from now. Count on him laying a few more local lineups low before he heads to his next destination.