As change swirled around him, Morton senior Billy Vukobratovich has remained a model of consistency.
Vukobratovich began his career at Gavit before the school closed as part of Hammond’s consolidation after his freshman year. He played for veteran coach Scott Lush in his debut at Morton. Then Adam Bednarek took over the Governors last season.
All the while, Vukobratovich has started in center field and pitched in each of his four seasons and has continued to produce at a high level.
“It’s been a little weird because I’ve gone coach to coach to coach,” he said. “But I also took it like how it is in summer leagues, switching, moving around, learning new people and new things. I implemented what I knew from that, and it helped me get through.
“As a leader on the field, you have to learn to adapt. You have to learn to adapt and change. Something can happen at any moment. You have to learn to push through it and follow through on your own. Each player has their own job to do, and just because something around you changes doesn’t mean you have to change.”
Vukobratovich, one of Morton’s two senior captains along with infielder/pitcher Niko Rodriguez, ended the regular season batting .342 with a homer, 18 RBIs and 14 of the team’s program-record 105 stolen bases. He has also posted a 4.35 ERA with 64 strikeouts in 37 innings pitched.
Vukobratovich hit .300 with four homers, 36 RBIs and 16 stolen bases last season, building on his initial season at Morton that began with a degree of uncertainty.
“It was rough at the start,” he said. “Coming to a new school, I didn’t know how the team was going to be. I didn’t know if I’d be able to make the team. Then to find out I was going to be the starting center fielder over a senior when I was a sophomore, it was a very big accomplishment. I’ve just kept rolling, doing my job.”
Rodriguez has noticed.
“We’ve been teammates for three years, and he’s really fast, a really energetic guy,” Rodriguez said. “He’s good in the outfield, always puts the ball in play.
“Me and Billy have chemistry. We keep the morale of the team up.”
The team’s morale is up after Vukobratovich and Morton (15-10, 6-0) secured the program’s first Great Lakes Athletic Conference title since 2019.
Next up, the Governors will try to win their first postseason game since 2015, when they were sectional champions. They open the Class 4A Munster Sectional against Merrillville on Thursday.
Morton lost to Hammond Central in the sectional last year to finish with a 9-20 record, setting the stage for marked improvement this season.
“That pushed us, with them being our rivals, to be where we are this season,” Vukobratovich said. “It gave us something to look forward to.”
If the Governors advance, Vukobratovich probably will be at the heart of it. Bednarek, a 2017 Andrean graduate, pointed to him as their catalyst.
“When Billy goes, we go,” Bednarek said. “Whenever he’s going and he’s playing hot, he’s the spark plug. He gets everything going, especially because he hits in the two hole. He’s specifically in the two hole because if the leadoff guy gets on, we have him at the plate.”
Bednarek noted that Vukobratovich can affect a game in a variety of ways.
“If he gets on first, you’re already thinking in your head it’s almost an automatic double because he’s going to steal second,” Bednarek said. “And defensively, if he goes 0-for-3 with three strikeouts at the plate, he’s going to make a diving play in center field, and he might even turn two. He’s done that two or three times this year.
“So no matter what type of Bill you’re going to get that day, he’s going to change the game one way or the other. There’s not many guys who can do that.”
Bednarek also praised Vukobratovich, who has a job at Columbia Gyros, for his ability to juggle the different responsibilities in his life.
“He’s just an impressive young man,” Bednarek said. “Every single day, he goes to school, comes to baseball, goes to work. I know he works late nights, then he goes home and does his homework — he’s a good student too — and he turns around and does it again every single day.
“It’s very impressive from the standpoint of a 17-, 18-year-old to have the discipline to actually do that. And he’s never tired. He’s always on ‘go mode.’”
When Vukobratovich goes to college, he hopes his experience will include baseball. Wherever he lands, he expects to have 15 to 20 credits after taking dual-credit college classes from Vincennes, Ivy Tech and Purdue Northwest.
“I’ve been reaching out to JUCOs and smaller Division III schools, just because I know it gives me a better chance being this late in the game,” Vukobratovich said. “We’re coming up to sectionals in a couple of days, and I’m still uncommitted. So it’s rough. But I’m just going to keep pushing through. Hopefully summer ball does me well and I can find a college home.”
Bednarek didn’t hesitate to advocate for Vukobratovich.
“At the end of the day, we know that if he does go to a college, he’s going to show up there and no one’s going to outwork him,” Bednarek said. “We know that because that’s everything in his track record. Whoever wants to step up and pounce on him, they’re going to get a gem.”