The Siuslaw Vikings' dirty dozen of the baseball diamond can't catch a break.

But they may have enough hitting, pitching and team defense to contend in the Far West League this season.

"It's a bit of a letdown. When you get rained out, it's always hard," Vikings assistant coach Randy Paredes said Wednesday, in the wake of a second straight opening-day mud-out.

"The kids get antsy. They get stoked and excited the night before to play baseball. Then all of a sudden you get a rainout, and you're back out there doing drills and things like this."

In lieu of a home game with Sweet Home, the Vikings were moving around tarps and raking the infield in an attempt to get a workout for Thursday's new season opener at Sweet Home.

The Huskies won the game, 6-2. The Vikings, now 1-2, lost 4-1 to Taft on Saturday and broke into the win column with a 14-1 victory over Gold Beach on Sunday.

Rain has washed out Siuslaw's game today (Monday, March 21) against Valley Catholic at the Taft Tournament.

Siuslaw originally was scheduled to open its season Monday, March 14, with a home game against Cottage Grove.

That's now three cancelled games and three games played in the first eight days of the season.

The Vikings have persevered, despite the weather.

"We have a lot of good kids who love baseball, have a good heart, and there is no quit in anybody," Paredes said. "They all battle, and it's going to be a team effort.

"We have a couple of guys who might stick out from the pack a bit. Other than that, it's going to to take a whole team to deliver from top to bottom."

The Vikings feature three league all-stars from 2015, seniors Scott Gordon, Caleb Paredes and Kenneth Thrall. Gordon and Thrall were all-league second team and Paredes was honorable mention.

Siuslaw's team strength is up the middle, with second baseman Gordon and shortstop Thrall forming a veteran keystone combination, Paredes in centerfield and junior Kyle Rose at catcher.

Paredes, Rose, Thrall and junior pitcher Michael Larson are team captains.

"Twelve guys is a good number for a varsity team," Randy Paredes said. "You've got three guys coming off the bench, and we can always pull from the JV if we need."

Gordon will lead off for the Vikings, followed by either Paredes or newcomer Darren Stinnett, a sophomore.

"Kenny Thrall's going to be stuck at a solid No. 3 hitter for us," Randy Paredes said. If Stinnett bats second, the younger Paredes likely will bat fourth. Larson and junior third baseman Jared Brandt will bat either fifth or sixth.

The Vikings pitching includes Larson, Mapleton freshman Gabe Simington and a player to be named later.

"Michael Larson is the No. 1 starter, and he needs to come through," Paredes said. "He's the key in that regard."

Simington is a 6-foot-2 lefthander who played for the Sailors' varsity basketball team, which featured his cousin, Hunter Simington.

Thrall may be called on to pitch, as well as senior catcher-first baseman Michael Mason.

"We're not dramatically fast, and we don't have a dominant pitching staff, so we'll have to play good defense behind them," Paredes said.

The Vikings expect to improve on last year's record of 7-18 overall, 5-10 in league, when Castro, Paredes and assistant Dave Snow were all in their first year.

The trio is back, and expects better things.

"We're further ahead by far than we were last year," Paredes said. "The coaching staff knows each other, and we're in a good spot with that.

"These guys have been together, they know each other, and they're ready to go."

All they need is a little sun, and the Vikings' dirty dozen will be ready for battle.

NOTES

New uniforms, courtesy of the Siuslaw Athletic Booster Club, should arrive in time for the start of Far West League play, April 8 vs. Marshfield. ...

Sophomore Jakob Hickson, expected to be in the Vikings pitching rotation, will miss the season with an injury. ...

Next home game for the Vikings is 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 29, against Elmira.