Slade Caldwell Eyes State Title , SEC Play & a Future in the MLB . By : Ryan Fletcher Over the course of the last four baseball seasons , I have had the honor of writing a piece on Valley View Blazer Slade
Caldwell . When I embarked on this four-year journey of writing about Slade ’ s career , I had no doubt he was going to be one of the greatest baseball players to ever wear a uniform in Northeast Arkansas . I had no doubt he would be playing high level collegiate baseball . I ’ m far from Nostradamus . I am smart enough to listen to local coaches and listen to those that know what they are talking about in regard to America ’ s pastime . I rarely if ever pay much attention to all the varying rankings that are posted by multiple websites , social media accounts , and the hundreds of self-proclaimed baseball gurus in the nation . With that said , Slade has been surrounded by local , regional and even national hype for several years . As stated by one local coach , “ the ball just sounds different coming off his bat .” Caldwell has a swing that is simply beautiful to watch . Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Junior was always complimented for having a smooth and attractive swing . Slade ’ s shares those same attributes . On top of that , he ’ s got immense speed , plays great defense , has a very strong arm , and he can even pitch extremely well at the high school level . He ’ s what every scout yearns for which is a five-tool player . Of course , the top prospect has much business to attend to this season on the diamond at Valley View . The Blazers have appeared in three straight state championships but have lost the last two . Valley View is absolutely loaded this season with gobs of division one talent including top move ins from Brookland and Jonesboro . They are the heavy favorite to win it all . “ We have a talented group , so I expect everyone to do things this year that they ’ ve not done before ,” stated Caldwell . “ We all know we have people waiting to step up , and that pushes us to be better every day . Our expectations ? Win every play . If we don ’ t , we have to learn and get better from it . My goal is to win a title . Winning a state championship with this team is the main goal . I love playing with these guys and coaches . If I play my role and do my job , the other things should fall into place .” Not only are the Blazers the top team in the state of Arkansas , but they are nationally ranked . Coach Allison has loaded his schedule with other teams outside of the state of Arkansas to challenge his group as much as possible . Valley View should be well prepared come state tournament time .
While Caldwell is the top player in the state of Arkansas and one of the top players in the nation , that has not stopped him from continuing to try to improve his craft . “ I work on the mental aspect of my game every day . I try to slow it down , breathe , and not get too big . I work on everything , swing , speed , reads , jumps , and my arm strength .”
Slade suffered an ankle injury prior to the start of the school year which forced him to miss the entire football season . With that being said , he has recovered nicely and his stock has continued to rise despite the unfortunate setback . “ I ’ m really doing well . I ran my fastest 60-yard time last week at 6.33 seconds . I missed playing with the guys so much . I loved football , and that group is special . I was there with them though on the sidelines .”
Even with the injury , the outfielder is now projecting to potentially be drafted in the first round of the Major League Baseball Draft . Of course , he is currently signed to play baseball at the University of Mississippi as an Ole Miss Rebel . By summertime , Caldwell could have a huge decision to make about his future . “ I am super excited to be a Rebel and compete in the SEC . Playing in