To suggest that Terry Hayes is a glass-half-full kind of person would be an understatement.

In fact, show Hayes a glass half full of water, and he is likely to say that the glass is overflowing.

Hayes, a starting pitcher for the Scrappers, is the eternal optimist who insists on making the best of a bad situation. In high school, Hayes’ freshman year of baseball was wiped out due to COVID. Hayes fondly looks back at the period as “a great time, an opportunity to get out with my friends, work on the game, develop a passion for the game.”

As a freshman at Bellevue Community College, Hayes tore his Achilles just as the season was about to start. His college career was put on hold for 11 months before it could even begin. Rather than look back with regret, Hayes refers to the injury and recovery process as “a blessing in disguise.”

Hayes entered Liberty High School (Renton, WA) as a two-way player but was especially focused on hitting and playing the infield. When COVID shut down his season, Hayes said he began “studying the game” while spending a lot of time focusing on the art of pitching.

“I was throwing maybe 71 miles per hour my freshman year, and I started throwing a whole bunch during COVID and I started to learn more about pitching and I was up to 85 entering my sophomore season,” Hayes said. “That period when everything else was shut down, it’s when I developed a true passion for baseball.

“Until then I was just playing the game. During COVID, I was pretty obsessed with working on my game and learning about the game of baseball.”

Hayes would go on to have a stellar high school career. As a junior, he batted .348. In his senior season, he batted .419 with 21 RBI. On the mound, he pitched in nine games, posting a 1.42 earned run average.

Hayes’ injury occurred in February 2024, just as his college freshman season was about to start. What followed was a nearly year-long recovery process.

“Coming out of high school I was a pretty skinny kid,” said the 6-foot-3, 220-pound Hayes. “I spent eleven months lifting six days a week, changing my diet and it all paid off. During that time I really worked on my pitching, my different pitches.

“I was fortunate in that I had coaches who weren’t concerned about velocity, they wanted me to focus on learning multiple pitches. All that time made for a perfect transition into being only a pitcher.”

The transition paid off in grand fashion. This past spring in Hayes’ redshirt freshman season, he posted a 7-2 record with an 0.80 ERA. Hayes recorded 74 strikeouts and allowed just five earned runs in 56 innings pitched.

Hayes was recently named the Northwest Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and Player of the Year.

Hayes recently announced that he will be transferring to the University of Mississippi, where he will continue his baseball career with the Rebels.

“I really believe that you always have to make the best of any situation,” Hayes said. “I’ve been really blessed to be surrounded by a lot of great coaches who had my best interest in mind.”

“I’m looking forward to the next chapter. I feel like the best is yet to come.”

SCRAPPERS WIN ON OPENING DAY

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers presented a post-game fireworks show Wednesday following their season-opener at Eastwood Field.

The Scrappers offense provided their own fireworks early and often, resulting in a resounding 10-2 home victory over State College in front of 4,185 fans.

After State College took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, the Scrappers responded with four runs in their half of the frame and never looked back.

Mahoning Valley saw its first four batters reach base. The Scrappers’ first run scored on an error. Michael Sindelka gave the Scrappers a 2-1 lead on a sacrifice bunt, then Trey Fenderson knocked in a pair of runs with a double.

The Scrappers added two runs in the third, then blew the game open with a three-run fourth. Eight different Scrappers collected at least one base hit (14 total hits). Seven players scored at least one run. Fenderson led the way with three hits (two doubles) and an RBI.

Scrappers starting pitcher Chase Frey worked four scoreless innings after giving up an unearned run in the first to pick up the win. Frey gave up just three hits in his five innings of work.

The Scrappers and Spikes conclude their two-game series tonight at 7:05.