Sperry High School junior catcher Jake Blaylock brings an old-school edge to the Pirates’ baseball program, grounded in lessons from family, teammates and the game itself. A three-year varsity player, he has grown into a steady presence behind the plate and in the dugout.
Blaylock’s biggest inspiration is his late grandfather, Bob Blaylock, who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and helped shape his love for baseball. “Seeing how far he made it in baseball and how he influenced so many other young ball players is really cool,” Jake said. “He taught me so much about life and baseball over the years before he passed, and he was definitely my inspiration.”
On the field, Blaylock embraces the mental and physical demands of catching. “I’m a catcher,” he said. “The most difficult thing about being a catcher is having to read the pitch to see if it’s going to be in the dirt and if you need to block it or catch it.” He also sticks to baseball’s unwritten traditions, including one superstition he takes seriously: you don’t step on the foul lines.
Blaylock said his favorite part of being a Pirate is competing and growing with his teammates. “I enjoy playing ball with all of my friends, growing as a team and just having a good time on and off the field,” he said. He appreciates a group that knows when to joke around and when it is time to “lock in and be serious.”
In the classroom, Blaylock’s favorite subject is history, and he names his baseball coach, Coach Wolf, as his favorite teacher. Away from school and the diamond, he spends his free time working out, hanging out with friends and playing video games, always carrying the mindset to work hard and “control what you can control.”
