Rylan Haider is a student of the game.

He stays focused on every repetition during practice, watches video of himself and major league pitchers who have a similar mix of pitches.

The result was as perfect a season as possible: Haider went 10-0 on the mound for Olympia High School as the Bears won their first-ever 4A state championship. He is both The News Tribune and The Olympian’s All-Area player of the year for 2022.

Coach Derek Weldon calls the pitches for Olympia. He says with Haider commanding his fastball, slider and change up accurately, the job can be easy.

“It’s fun. His execution is so elite,” said Weldon. “It’s like a video game. I can think three or four pitches ahead.”

Haider began playing baseball after watching his brother Tristan, who is six years older, play for Olympia.

“Seeing the team bonding the players all had, how much fun they were having, winning and the lessons they were learning along the way made me want to play, too,” he recalled.

Weldon first saw Haider five years ago, pitching in a club game before he arrived on campus.

“He was the youngest kid on the team, but his stuff was already electric,” Weldon. “I remember texting our other coaches and saying ‘we’re getting a good one’ and he’s been a good one; a leader, a great program guy.”

Haider’s potential earned him a slot on varsity in 2019, when Olympia finished second in the last 4A state tournament played before the Bears won this season. As a senior, he had a 0.89 earned run average and a 0.97 WHIP to go with a 6.7-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He earned victories over Chiawana and Richland during the state tournament.

Playing in the outfield on days he didn’t pitch, Haider hit .327 with nine doubles and 21 runs batted in.

He’ll play for Washington State next season.

Though he has continued to play other positions in high school, Haider was recruited by the Cougars as a pitcher only. He decided early in high school to prioritize his work on the mound.

“I started to realize the talents and gifts I had. The coaches were pushing me along,” he said. “Once college coaches started talking to me, I realized I needed to focus on pitching and perfect my craft.”

Weldon credits Haider’s detailed approach and work ethic for the realization of the potential he immediately saw in him as an eighth grader.

“Rylan’s meticulous, he’s very deliberate about everything he does,” Weldon said. “We talk about having a slight edge in our program, doing things right that maybe other kids aren’t doing. Little things become big things.”

Haider agreed.

“Every little detail matters,” he said. “Repetition, especially of the throwing motion, is key to succeeding.”

Preparation allowed Haider to take an even approach when the stakes rose during post-season play.

“Obviously, the scenario is a little different than a regular league game,” he said. “But you try to keep the mentality that it’s just another start, another day at the office.”

Winning Olympia’s first state championship, in dramatic fashion, 7-6 over rival Puyallup when Haider’s fellow pitcher/outfielder Taber Fast threw out the Vikings’ potential tying runner at the plate from right field, resonated deeply with Haider and his teammates.

“We were told all year we could leave a legacy,” Haider said. “We definitely did. To know all the talented guys and teams that have been at Olympia and we’re the group that finally did it is pretty incredible.”

At 6-foot even and 175 pounds, Haider isn’t the most physically intimidating pitcher. His fastball usually peaks at 86-88 miles per hour, but the durability and consistency he’s honed makes his repertoire difficult for hitters to deal with.

“He worked very hard in the weight room and did get bigger and stronger this year,” said Weldon. “His velocity didn’t necessarily jump up, but he had an ability to maintain it into the seventh inning.”

Haider went through the regular season throwing primarily fastballs and sliders but as the postseason brought on tougher hitters, made some adjustments.

“There’s no need to throw a changeup when you can blow batters away, but later in the year, he started throwing his change more, which I think is his best secondary pitch,” Weldon said. “When guys have the ability to sit on a 90 mile per hour fastball, you need to change speeds.”

With a pre-college to-do list that includes lots of work in the weight room and a focus on improved velocity and command of all his pitches, Haider will continue to follow the Mariners’ Marco Gonzales and Houston’s Justin Verlander as pitchers to emulate.

“Their pitch execution rates are extraordinarily high. They’ve got stuff to beat you and they can put you out on any pitch, they can put it wherever they want it,” he said. “A lot of pro guys are able to do that, but they stand out most.”

Haider will get a chance to see where he specifically needs to improve to succeed in the Pac-12 when he plays for the Corvallis Knights in a collegiate summer league.

“It’s a pretty big deal. He’ll face a lot of good hitters,” Weldon said. “He’ll get a chance to find out what things he got away with in high school he’ll need to fix. I think he’ll eventually have tremendous success in college.

“I can’t say enough good things about that kid.”