Mitchel Patterson, the crafty left-handed pitcher from Byron Center, has established himself as one of the top players in West Michigan over the previous three years.

After seeing playing time on the Varsity squad his Freshman year, Patterson stayed on the top team his Sophomore year and proved himself as the team’s top hurler.

He went 6-2 that season with a sterling 1.23 ERA while striking out 87 batters.

His Junior season was just as successful when he had 94 strikeouts and a 1.67 ERA. The highlight of his Junior campaign was a no-hitter he threw against a very good Zeeland East team.

When not pitching, Patterson is the Bulldogs starting centerfielder where his good glove and strong arm makes him one of the best in the area.

He’s also one of the area’s top hitters. His Sophomore season saw Patterson hit .423 with 4 triples and 33 stolen bases.

In his Junior season, he raised his average to .438 with 6 triples and only struck out 4 times all year.

For his work, Patterson was named First Team All-Conference as a pitcher and First Team All-District as an outfielder his Sophomore year.

In his Junior year, he was named First Team All-Conference and First team All-District as a pitcher.

Playing for the top Diamonds summer team that went 47-7 in 2010, Patterson got plenty of exposure to college recruiters as the team including some of the area’s best players including fellow “2011 Players to Watch” Ryan Elble and Robby Enslen as well as graduated seniors Zak Wilkerson, Alex Lakatos and Jerry Ferris.

With the goal of playing college ball clearly in sight, Patterson will need to choose between one of several schools that are recruiting him.

Interested colleges include Oakland University, Michigan State University, Hillsdale College and Olivet Nazarene University.