CABOT — Cabot Panthers baseball coach Ronnie Goodwin said junior Houston King carried his team at times during the 2019 season.
King, who is a three-year starter, including the 2017 season as a freshman when the Panthers won the Class 7A state championship, is the 2019 Three Rivers Edition Baseball Player of the Year.
“He is kind of a clutch guy,” Goodwin said of King. “I remember at the beginning of the conference season, right before spring break and during spring break, he was just really hot. He was kind of carrying us during that time. He’s the kind of kid that every time he comes to the plate, he’s going to get on base someway or somehow.”
King, a lefty, hit .451 in 2019 with 46 hits in 102 at bats. He scored 27 runs and drove in 28 runs. He led the Panthers with 12 doubles and 3 triples. He was tied for the team lead with 2 home runs. He hit safely in 26 of 29 games as the Panthers went 23-6.
On defense, he had 28 putouts with 1 outfield assist. He did not commit an error.
“I would say my bat is the most consistent part of my game,” King said. “I’m not one who tries to do too much at the plate. I try to get a base hit, get on base and let my teammates drive me in. Every once in a while, I can jack one out of the park or get a double or triple into the gap.”
King started playing tee-ball when he was 4 years old. He also played basketball while growing up.
“I played basketball up until the ninth grade,” he said. “I had a lot of fun with that.”
At that point, he was getting some looks from college coaches.
“Going into my ninth-grade year, I thought I’d rather just focus on baseball at the time and not worry about basketball,” he said. “I thought maybe I could go back and play basketball. I thought about it with my family and my trainer but decided it’s better to just stick with baseball and try to bring another state championship to Cabot next year.”
As a freshman in 2017, King played in all 32 games, hitting .356 with 36 hits, 17 RBIs, 6 doubles and 2 triples. The Panthers won the state championship that season. Following the season, King committed to play college baseball at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. The Wildcats are members of the NCAA Division I Southeastern Conference.
“I went up to the University of Kentucky not really knowing anything about it,” King said. “I got up there, and the coaches were the greatest guys you could ever meet.”
King was referring to head coach Nick Mangione and assistant coach Roland Fanning.
“They are second to none,” King said. “They are going to be on your butt about baseball, but they also care about developing you as a person, getting you through college and getting you a career afterward, not just worrying about baseball.”
King said Kentucky feels like home to him.
“Those two coaches put together … there’s nothing like it,” he said. “What they said is they are trying to develop me as a player. They saw such good things in me at such a young age. I thought they believed in me and gave me confidence.”
Goodwin said King is a leader for his team.
“He’s a great competitor,” Goodwin said. “There are just some guys that teammates gravitate toward for some reason, and he’s one of those guys. His teammates just gravitate toward him. He’s definitely one of our leaders and has been our biggest leader at times. He just has the ‘it’ factor. He’s a guy that people want to be around and people want to follow.”
King said he’s been contacted by major league scouts, so playing professional baseball is a possibility after high school.
“Ultimately, I want to attend the University of Kentucky,” he said. “It’s cool having major league scouts talking to you about possibly getting drafted. Ultimately, I want to get an education and play there. And hopefully, if I get the right path, I can go play Major League Baseball after that.”
Staff writer Mark Buffalo can be reached at (501) 399-3676 or mbuffalo@arkansasonline.com.