Carroll County Times 2024 All-County baseball: Liberty’s Nate Martin, Manchester Valley’s Gene Magin earn top honors

Energy can not be created nor destroyed, but rather transferred from one form to another.

Whenever Liberty’s Nate Martin hit a bomb, made a diving defensive stop or hustled around the bases to score, his energy was transferred to the entire Lions bench.

“He’s a big game kid,” Liberty coach Travis Inch said. “He was the guy that anytime something big was going to happen for us, it was going to come because of him.”

The junior finished the season batting .349 with four home runs, 22 RBIs and 11 extra base hits. Led by Martin, the Lions once again won county and regional championships.

For his efforts Liberty junior shortstop Nate Martin has been named Carroll County Times baseball Player of the Year.

“It’s cool to win this award,” Martin said. “I know it’s not the ultimate award we want, but coming into next year mad and now with a target on my back gets me pumped already just thinking about it.”

Martin’s got off to a hot start at the plate. Immersed in the heart of the Lions’ lineup, Martin was a tough out all season for some of the county’s best pitchers.

“Every ball he hits has the opportunity to absolutely get smoked,” Inch said after the Lions clinched the county title against Century.

Martin’s game against the Knights was one of many key moments where he stepped up and came through for his team with the county championship on the line. Refusing to share the title with archrival Century, Martin hit not one, but two home runs to lead the way as the Lions once again claimed the county crown.

“That was the best moment of the year,” he said. “Being able to beat them and win a championship was cool. We all had been working so hard for that goal.”

The junior’s hard work during the offseason translated to the field, as he quickly emerged as one of the area’s best all-around players. Playing with more confidence, Martin came into the season and executed from the start, matching a big hit with a defensive play that provided valuable support for his pitchers.

“I just put in so much work during the offseason to be a better baseball player,” Martin said. “I wanted to be able to impact the game in multiple ways and contribute to winning.”

Not only did Martin impact the game, but the Liberty locker room as well. Wherever he made a key, highlight-reel play, the Lions’ bench would erupt, halting all his opponent’s momentum as everyone’s confidence was sky-high knowing they had Martin.

“He was one of those guys that got us going,” Inch said. “There were even sometimes when guys would be struggling and a quick pep talk from Nate would be all they need to get going.”

With the Lions losing several key players to graduation, Martin will be relied on to lead the charge even more in 2025. Inch says this award just shows the potential Martin has headed into his senior season.

“He puts in so much work and now he’s gotten to see what comes from that hard work,” Inch said. “He’s the best player in the county and if he puts in the work I know he’ll put in, the best from him is yet to come.”

Pitcher of the year

Before heading to Towson University, Gene Magin knew that he wanted to post one final strong season with his friends and teammates at Manchester Valley in 2024.

“The season was kind of stress free,” Magin said. “I was already committed so there was nothing else left for me to do but just go out, perform for my team one last time and give it my all.”

Magin, who was also a strong hitter, decided to take a look at himself and make some slight adjustments to his pitching before the start of his senior season.

“I really went back and focused on the art of pitching,” Magin said. “I honed in on pitch sequencing and really just playing the game from the chest up.”

Magin went 6-1 for the Mavericks in eight starts, finishing the season with a 1.54 ERA, 72 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.10. Perhaps the biggest indication of his dominance was the mere .151 batting average of his opponents.

For his efforts, he has been named 2024 Carroll County Times Pitcher of the Year.

“Any time we gave him the ball, we knew we had a chance to win,” Mavericks coach Shawn Hampt said. “He went out all year against well coached, very talented teams and he dominated.”

Whenever Hampt sent his ace to the mound, he delivered. Magin struck out 13 in a win against Century, 10 against Westminster and 11 against Tuscarora in what was a run of impressive performances.

“I would always go up to the mound with a plan,” Magin said. “I would look at the batter take swings [during warmups] and come up with a pitch sequence right then and there before the at-bat even started.”

When facing the area’s most elite competition, Magin stood tall on the mound, unfazed. Against county champion Liberty, Magin posted another dominant 10-strikeout performance as some of the county’s best hitters were sent back frustrated as Magin recorded a complete-game shutout.

“I kept telling myself that I was the better guy,” Magin said. “I knew I had the stuff and the ability to shut people down.”

Perhaps the biggest moment of Magin’s stellar season was in the Mavericks’ 3A West Region I quarterfinal against Oakdale. With the game delayed and put in question due to rain, Magin would have to pitch on short rest and in some sloppy and slippery weather conditions that would throw college or even some professional pitchers off their game.

He gave up just one run and struck out 13.

“It was up in the mountains and super slippery,” he said. “You would take one step and slide about two feet every time your plant foot landed. To go strikeout 13 and come back and win, it was awesome.”

Magin’s mental approach to the game propelled him to cement himself among the county’s best, often bouncing back from a walk or a missed spot to get the out in a big spot for his team.

As Hampt reflects on his ace one last time, he marveled at the growth he has made from arriving as a talented freshman, to a senior and the leader of the program now headed to the next level.

“I’ve always told him, the best player on the team has to be the best teammate,” Hampt said. “He certainly made an impact on the team and the program during his time here. I know he’ll do the exact same thing at the next level while representing himself, his family and Man Valley well.”