A year ago, Lewisberry’s Cole Wagner was a lanky first baseman and an aspiring pitcher. His father, Bret, and his uncle, Kyle, pitched at Wake Forest in the 1990s but his pitching future appeared in jeopardy.

“He wasn’t a pitcher,” Bret said. “He saw himself as a pitcher, but dad was a little doubtful.”

Cole was not. He kept working, kept practicing, kept improving. Now he is one of the country’s best pitchers.

And one of its best hitters too.

Wagner has put on a show thus far at the Little League Baseball World Series. He went 4 for 4 with two home runs and six RBIs in his debut against Missouri before striking out 10 in five innings against Taylors, South Carolina, on Sunday. Now he and his teammates are one win from reaching the U.S final and play Southwest champion Pearland, Texas, in today’s winner’s bracket final.

Wagner is a huge reason why. His persistence especially has made a difference. He has been untouchable throughout the summer and did not allow a run in nine innings at the Mid-Atlantic regional, throwing a complete-game shutout in the championship.

“He worked so hard this offseason. He’s gotten a lot stronger and filled up into his body,” said Bret, a 1994 St. Louis Cardinals first round draft pick. “He always kept working at it, believing that one day it would click and it certainly has. He saw himself as a pitcher and was going to work as hard as possible to make it happen. He didn’t hold back.”

Wagner never does. He is immensely talented, a five-tool threat who excels in every facet. But what has made Wagner so good, so feared, is his insatiable desire. He never grows satisfied and always wants more.

This player is all business all the time. If someone sees him take a pitch or take off a play, it likely will be the first and only time he or she witnesses it. That is the intangible that really has helped Wagner soar.

“Bret was very good and worked hard at it, but Cole has more of his uncle’s personality,” Lewisberry manager Tom Peifer said. “He’s very hard-nosed, very serious and no-nonsense. He works hard for everything he gets.”

Wagner wanted to be a pitcher and did not stop until he was not just a pitcher, but an elite one. He has been Lewisberry’s ace all all-star season and rarely has allowed runs. He is part of a staff that has allowed only 21 runs in 18 games and is a dominant left-hander who mixes a mid-70s fastball with good breaking stuff.

He also is a bulldog. Wagner struck out 10 against undefeated South Carolina and battled on a night when he might not have had his best stuff. Twice South Carolina had the tying run at the plate, in the fourth and fifth innings, and twice he ended the inning with strikeouts.

Wagner ended his night in emphatic fashion, facing power-hitter Terrence Gist, who hit a 380-foot home run last Friday. Gist fouled off three straight two-strike pitches and worked a full count but on his 85th and final pitch Wagner reared back and blew a fastball by for his 10th strikeout.

“He’s a man-child,” Missouri manager Eric Parker said after Lewisberry defeated his team, 18-0. “He’s just a great all-around player.”

Parker learned that Friday as Wagner dazzled the 32,634 fans in and around Lamade Stadium. Wagner singled and doubled his first two times up, but he was just warming up.

Wagner hit two mammoth home runs in his last two at-bats, both traveling in the 380-foot range. His third-inning grand slam nearly reached the top of the hill beyond the center field wall. The grand slam traveled so far that Missouri pitcher Mekhi Garrard simply smiled and appeared to yell, “Holy Cow!”

He is not the first one to have such a reaction. Wagner has worn out pitchers all season and hit nearly .700 at regionals while adding three home runs.

“I was just trying to keep the same approach I’ve been using all all-stars and hit the ball hard and keep it up the middle,” Wagner said. “I expect to win. Every time I step on the field I expect to win, but beating these teams, the Midwest by so much, was kind of beyond my expectations.”

“His swing looks like a junior or senior in high school,” Parker said. “You can’t jam him. He keeps his hands inside and has a quick bat. You throw him away and he reaches out with his long arms and takes it to dead center.”

Lewisberry, two hours from Williamsport, drew 33,672 fans Sunday against South Carolina when it rallied in the sixth inning for a 9-8 win. Even neutral fans wanted to see Wagner swing away but he was intentionally walked three times.

Wagner came up with runners on second and third base in an 8-7 game during that sixth inning. When South Carolina manager Kevin Tumblin had his pitcher walk him it drew a loud chorus of boos. But it also made perfect sense. No way was Tumblin going to let Wagner make another highlight and win the game.

Jaden Henline won it three pitchers later, hitting a walk-off, two-run double, but with first base open the decision remained a good one.

“He’s a great player, a great hitter,” Tumblin said. “We were lucky to have situations where we were able to pitch around him. If you have a base open, you would be a fool to pitch to him.”

Expect Texas to be careful dealing with Wagner too. He has become the talk of the Series and, arguably, its most popular player. He has come a long way in a year’s time.

And Wagner has become the poster child for old-school values.

“He was really persistent and hit the weights and grew stronger,” Bret said. “From a dad’s standpoint, when a kid works as hard as Cole and it pays off like that, it definitely reinforces the value of hard work.”