Charlie Barnes does most of his talking with his play for the Mahar Senators.
Whether it’s wide receiver for the football team, point guard for basketball or the center fielder on the baseball diamond the soft-spoken Barnes leads by example.
“I feel like baseball is my best sport,” Barnes said. “A lot of the sports translate to each other and you can learn different skills. Tracking down a baseball and having to go get a football in the air. If you only do one sport you only know that sport.”
The mostly running Mahar football team had a reliable weapon in Barnes, and the basketball team needed his skills at point guard badly this past season. But the sport that he is drawn to the most is baseball.
“I like baseball,” Barnes said. “I like the hype that surrounds basketball. It’s the most crowd fueled sport. I just always liked baseball since I was a little kid.”
The early baseball memories include vacations in Maine near a lake with nothing but a wiffle ball bat and a handful of rocks.
“When I was three or four years old, I would hit rocks into the lake for hours,” Barnes said.
The basketball team needed Barnes for leadership, as will the baseball team this spring.
“I like to lead by example,” Barnes said. “More than having a voice. I just try to work hard as I can in practice and lead that way. I would talk to the guys before practice and after the games and that kind of thing.”
The Mahar baseball team is coming off a 7-13 season and hasn’t made the playoffs since Barnes’ freshman year. With a solid core of returners with more experience the Senators have a clear goal of making the postseason this season.
“We only had one senior last year and a handful of juniors,” Barnes said. “We had multiple freshman starting. We built a lot last year. We should have a good team this year. I think we should definitely be a playoff team.”
Barnes mostly played centerfield last season filled in a shortstop and even pitched for the Senators. The goal at the plate is to hit for a little more power in his junior season. Barnes has proven that he can get on base with a .420 average last season.
“I think I can be a power hitter this year,” Barnes said. “I just want to play to the level that we can and come together as a team. We haven’t had a good season in a while.”
Mahar last made the playoffs in 2017 when the Senators finished 11-10 and lost in the first round of the Division III playoffs to Palmer. The Senators are only into their first week of practice as of publication.
“We just have to get the work in now,” Barnes said. “Everyone is a little rusty right now. But you can’t tell what’s going to happen on the first day.”
Barnes also said he would prefer to be in center field this season for Mahar, using his athletic ability to get under balls hit to the outfield.
“I like tracking balls down,” Barnes said.
Favorite Food: Chicken Bacon Ranch pizza from Antonio’s in Amherst
Favorite Animal: Owl
Favorite Professional Athlete: Mookie Betts
Favorite Social Media: Snapchat
Favorite TV Show: Stranger Things
Favorite Vacation Spot: Seward, Alaska
Role Model: My father
Favorite Movie: Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
Pet Peeve: Someone clicking their pen
Career Aspirations: Uncertain
Favorite Website: Netflix.com
Best Pizza in Athol/Orange: Zeda’s Pizza
Gameday Ritual: Football: Get hyped up with music. Basketball: I go into the locker and get my head. I do a little thing with my shoes. Baseball: Tap the plate, swing, and get in my stance.
Favorite Music Genre: Rap
Favorite Artist: Felly or Mac Miller
Best School Subject: Math
Worst School Subject: Science
Favorite Athletic Shoe: Nike
Hidden Talent: I don’t have any
If I had a million dollars: Buy a car and save for college
