The chemistry between a pitcher and catcher is one of the most important connections on a baseball field.
For Thunderbird baseball’s Jake and Kyle Rohrer that bond is extra special. The Rohrer brothers are twins born four hours a part.
“From the time they could pick up a glove and ball the boys have been playing catch together,” Pam Rohrer, the twins mother said.
Jake has been catching, while Kyle has been pitching since the two began playing baseball.
Now juniors at Thunderbird, when Kyle is on the bump and Jake is behind the plate, the two feel at ease.
“I feel like it just puts my mindset in a better place, instead of worrying about pitch placement, I just can worry about playing catch with my brother,” Kyle said.
Head coach Michael Jacobs sees the unique bond the two share as pitcher and catcher.
“You can see (Kyle) a little more relaxed,” Jacobs said. “I think that he definitely has a lot of trust and confidence in Jake. There will be times when we let Jake call pitches and I think that he knows what Kyle feels comfortable throwing in certain counts, so you definitely kind of get that extra ESP between those guys.”
The brothers feel that as twins they have a bit of an advantage of being able to read each other when they are playing.
“We know each others perks and we know when each other are feeling the best at all times,” Kyle said. “We know if we’re having a good day, bad day, we have a connection that you don’t feel with anybody else.”
For Jake, being able to catch his brother is one of his favorite aspects of the game.
“I love it, it’s one of the coolest things ever,” Jake said. “You don’t really get that opportunity a lot and it’s just really cool to watch him pitch and I get to be behind there.”
Jacobs knows the benefit of having a family member to connect with between the lines. His father, Jeff Jacobs, is an assistant coach for the Chiefs.
“It definitely makes you more comfortable,” Jacobs said. “It gives you somebody to lean back on, that you know you can trust.”
The competition between the twins is seen the most when the two step into the box. Jake said it’s offensively that the twins try to get ahead of each other.
“I remember we were 10 or 11, it was our last year of our majors in little league,” Jake said. “(We) were always fighting to see who would hit before one another. That was one big thing that I always wanted, to hit in front of him.”
No matter how competitive the brothers get, their bond as twins is unbreakable.
“We love each other,” Kyle said. “It’s always a competition, but at the end of the day, we go back to each other and we know that we’ll help each other out, we’ll pick each other up.”
