By Patrick MacCoonRecord Sports EditorSometimes you have to learn how to lose before you learn how to be a winner.That has been exactly the case for the Warrenton Senior Legion baseball program, which has come to fruition this season and has already won more games than it had previously in the last three seasons.Already with double-digit wins and two triumphs over Washington, which use to scoff at Post 122 and use them as a doormat, Scott Butler’s team has given him everything that he and his assistant, Chad Berrey, have asked for.From day one of workouts in November, the motto for a program that fell to new lows in the summer of 2014, finishing 1-15, has been #CHANGE.“I knew coming in here that previous years have been, what some would say, a disaster,” Butler said. “But I told them that we have the pieces here to do something special. I didn’t understand why they hadn’t been doing anything yet, but I told them we’d turn this thing around and change the attitude of this program.”Not only has there been a change of mentality within the white-chalked foul lines and inside the dugout throughout Warrenton’s first 13 games, but the roster has seen a change. One that has helped spark a ballclub hungry for a winning season.Perhaps the best battery in District 9 Legion baseball has been formed this summer with the new faces to Post 122 in pitcher Ben Stephens and catcher James Dotson.Stephens is brand new to the Post 122 program after playing select baseball for a team based out of St. Louis the past couple of seasons. Dotson moved up from Junior Legion to Senior Legion for the first time this summer.Dotson has been almost automatic at blocking pitches in the dirt down in front of him and has thrown out numerous runners. Stephens has been just as consistent at sending opposing hitters back to the dugout with little hope for future at-bats against him.So far, 52.3 percent of the hitters who have faced the right-hander and his mid-to-upper 80s fastball and hard breaking slider have struck out.Stephens and Dotson have also provided a valuable punch at the plate and have a combined 38 hits for a .387 batting average.However, two players can not change a program overnight.With another year of experience under their belts, which has made for better leaders, several members from last year’s Warrenton Senior Legion team have returned to make for an unforgettable season to this point.Donovan Mozee has not only hit a pair of home runs and had several game-winning hits, but he has also been sharp on the mound. He has won two games and saved a pair as well while posting a team-best 0.49 ERA.Brandon Moeller has returned from his freshman year of college and has thrown two complete games out of his four starts. He also ranks second on the team with a .426 batting average.Troy Muse and Tyler Brittain have combined for 19 of the team’s 32 stolen bases and have used their speed in the outfield to take away hits as well.Corey Eckenfels has also swung a hot bat for a team with over a .300 overall average. In eight starts he has hit .400 (10-for-25) and has enjoyed the success he and his teammates have brought to the table as much as anyone.“I’ve played Legion ball for seven years now and it’s always been a losing season,” Eckenfels said. “This team has been purely phenomenal this year. Everyone is coming up big. To have two wins over Washington is sweet. It’s just so sweet.”Losing is something that can easily be done. All it takes is a mental lapse in the field, lack of hustle, or sometimes even the wrong coach or coaches.However, the summer of 2015 belongs to the Warrenton Senior Legion baseball team. They have put in the work in order to make the change on the field that was necessary.With an invested effort from all those involved, Post 122 has taken District 9 by surprise this summer and created a winning brand of baseball that others in the program can look up to and try their best to follow in the future.As the wins keep rolling along, so do the fans and the support from the community. For Sunday’s 4-3 win over Washington, there were fans in every seat of the home bleachers and several others in chairs across the hill behind Warrenton High School’s baseball field.With its final week of the regular season before them, Butler and his squad look forward to breathing a baseball atmosphere into the area again that has been missing over the last several years.The program’s intention is to take the district all together and win the title game. Records from past years mean nothing to the Post 122 Seniors.#CHANGE has occurred.

Patrick MacCoon will now serve as the Warren County Record's sports editor. He is originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee.