Experience should not be an issue for the Auburn baseball team this season. The real question for the Trojans is whether that experience will translate to wins in a tough South Puget Sound League North 4A.

The Trojans – who have 10 seniors and six starters back from last year’s 7-13 team – already are showing signs of improvement with a 2-1 league record, 2-2-1 overall.

Coach Baj Alastra’s team is scoring runs in droves, averaging more than six a game.

“We’re hitting the ball well and manufacturing runs,” said Matt Hansen, senior co-captain.

For Auburn, it all starts with Hansen and Justin Behrens, fellow captain and senior shortstop.

“He’s (Hansen) going to be a big part of our staff,” Alastra said. “Behrens is going to be one of our big leaders on the team, and he’s going to play solid defense, get on base, steal some bases for us and manufacture some runs.”

Although the Trojans will depend on their defense and hitting, Alastra said his team’s pitching staff should be stronger. Left-hander Justin Burns, an All-SPSL North 4A honorable-mention performer, anchor a rotation that includes Hansen and seniors Brandon Christiansen and Andrew Sansom.

“Our pitching has improved,” Alastra said. “Justin is a real hard-nose competitor and plays the game with a lot of passion and energy.”

Josh McCoy, a junior catcher, returns to handle the pitching staff.

“I’m expecting some big things from him,” Alastra said of McCoy. “He’s becoming a team leader. He’s going to swing the bat well for us. He’s going to play some solid defense for us. Not too many people are going to run on us because he’s going to throw them out.”

The Trojans’ attack will look to support their improved pitching staff.

“We need to stay up and stay on teams,” Hansen said.

“We score a lot of runs early in the game, and we need to continue that through seven innings. That will be key for us this year. We cannot settle for just one five-run inning, we need two or three five-run innings. We need to take it to teams and just pound them.”

The real key for the team will be its cohesiveness, according to Alastra. And with a roster full of players that have been together since their Little League days, that shouldn’t be a problem, Alastra said.

“A lot of these guys have been playing together since they were 7, 8 years old,” he said. “They’re a family, and it really shows in the way they pick each other up every day. I’ve been telling them we have to be like a family and take care of each other every day. We’re going to be in some tough ballgames, and we’re going to need that to be successful.”

Behrens added: “Because we’ve been playing together since we were in Little League, (chemistry) is just something that has been there (for us). And we’re going to need that to be there for us to be successful.”

Alastra hopes his team peaks at the right hour.

“Our goals are to make the playoffs and get into the state tournament,” Alastra said. “We want to compete for the league title, and always the end goal is to win the state championships. But first we have to make it to the playoffs, and it’s a tough league.”

“I think we’re a playoff team for sure,” Hansen said. “As a senior, that’s the way I want to go out. We’re talented. … I would be a little disappointed to not see this team do what it is capable of doing.”