Baseball may not be the most popular sport among high school kids in the St. John Valley – when Fort Kent met Van Buren in a doubleheader on Monday, Van Buren had the minimum nine players on its roster while Fort Kent had just 11, seven of them seniors.

But don’t confuse quantity with quality, particularly when it comes to individual talent.

Fort Kent’s Tom Desjardins is tearing up the County midway through his senior season. The third baseman and pitcher has had three hits in each of his last four games for the Warriors.

Through Fort Kent’s 5-4 start in its first season in Eastern Maine Class C, the 6-foot-3 Desjardins is batting .642 on an 18-for-28 performance with three home runs and 18 RBIs out of the No. 3 spot in the batting order. In addition, the lefthanded-hitting Desjardins has drawn 10 walks while striking out just once.

“He’s just a natural hitter,” said Fort Kent coach Jeff Kinney after the Warriors swept Van Buren 8-5 and 19-9. “He goes with the pitch very well.”

Desjardins had three singles, two doubles and a home run with seven RBIs in the doubleheader against Van Buren. That followed Saturday’s 10-0 win over Southern Aroostook of Dyer Brook in which he singled twice, hit a two-run home run and drove in three runs overall – not to mention pitching a six-inning one-hitter with no walks and two strikeouts.

His current hot streak started last Wednesday, when Desjardins singled twice and doubled as Fort Kent took an early lead but fell to Class B Presque Isle 15-6 after the Wildcats took control with an eight-run rally in the fifth inning.

“He’s a legitimate player,” said Kinney. “He wouldn’t be hitting .600 at Deering [of Portland], but he’d be hitting .300 there.”

Fort Kent, rated ninth in the Eastern Maine Class C Heal point ratings before its doubleheader against Van Buren, is scheduled to resume play at home Wednesday against Caribou, currently ranked fourth in Eastern B.

Unbeatens a shrinking lot

Only five high school baseball teams statewide began the week undefeated with the second half of the regular season now under way. Two Eastern Maine teams, Class B Ellsworth and Class C George Stevens Academy had unblemished records, while Class A Portland and Class B Greely of Cumberland Center and Mountain Valley of Rumford from Western Maine similarly remained unbeaten. …

Ellsworth will face its toughest test to date this afternoon – weather permitting – when it squares off against Hancock County Class B rival Bucksport. The teams originally were scheduled to meet last Friday, but that was postponed due to inclement weather. Ellsworth, which began the week 7-0, features a senior-laden roster sparked by righthanded pitchers Matt Homich and Cory Smith, as well as a top-flight catcher in Louden Jellison. Bucksport, now 7-1 after a 5-2 win over Class C contender Searsport on Monday, is largely an underclass team led by senior pitcher-catcher Joe Robichaud and junior pitcher-infielder Chris Maguire. The Golden Bucks have won seven straight since an opening-day loss to George Stevens. …

Looking for balance? Look no further than Eastern Maine Class A, where no unbeaten or one-loss teams remain and only two clubs – Bangor and Skowhegan – have as few as two losses. Skowhegan is 9-2 after a 4-3 win against Messalonskee of Oakland on Monday, with seven of the Indians’ victories coming by one run and their last four wins coming in their final at-bat. Further evidence of the balance in the division came Monday when No. 16 Cony of Augusta knocked off No. 5 Gardiner. Bangor is 8-2 after a victory over Erskine Academy on Monday, losing only one-run decisions to Skowhegan and Brewer. Coach Jeff Fahey’s Rams, slated to visit Hampden on Wednesday, likewise have shown considerable ability to come from behind when necessary. …

The hottest team in the Eastern A ranks may be Brewer. Coach David Morris’ Witches have won eight of their last nine games since an 0-2 start and has knocked off No. 1 Skowhegan and No. 2 Bangor in the last week.