The aluminum bats will be pinging.

The leather will be flashing.

Still to be determined is whether either of the two city high school baseball teams will have enough pitching to make those two things matter.

Free State High will deliver the opening salvo of the 2006 prep baseball season today when it travels to Blue Valley Northwest, while Lawrence High embarks on its campaign Thursday at Olathe South.

Both squads are confident about their lineups and their ability to handle chances in the field. However, just like any other level of America’s pastime, success in the high school game centers on pitching.

That’s where the question marks creep in for both city programs.

“As anybody would tell you, the pitching is going to be the key,” Free State coach Mike Hill said. “We lost two all-state pitchers from a year ago. : We’re having to replace an awful lot of innings from a year ago.”

Free State senior shortstop Robby Price, above, and Lawrence High senior shortstop Marc Albers, below, are among the leaders on their respective teams that should feature plenty of offense and defense this season.

The Firebirds are riding a string of three state trips to the Class 6A state tournament, which means Hill simply doesn’t know how to rebuild, but reload. And he’ll have plenty of ammunition at his disposal.

A core of five experienced position players returns for Free State, headlined by senior shortstop Robby Price, son of Kansas University head coach Ritch Price and a first-team all-state selection last spring. He has plenty of company in a potent Firebirds lineup including the likes of senior first baseman Lorenzo Ricketts, senior outfielders Brett Lisher and Scott Heitshusen and junior catcher Andy Petz.

“They’re a talented group that’s brought a lot to the table,” Hill said. “Hopefully, they can culminate their careers with another run at a state championship.”

That will depend in large part on senior lefty Travis Blankenship and his ability to slip into the role of staff ace. As a sophomore, he started the state championship game, and he also saw limited time last season as the No. 3 starter.

Now, he must deal with the pressure of being the go-to hurler.

Lawrence High senior shortstop Marc Albers

“Travis is going to have to be our guy this year,” said Hill, who also plans to use Heitshusen a great deal on the hill. “We have a lot of expectations for (Travis). For us to get where we want to be, he’s going to have to meet those.”

“Expectations” is also a buzzword on the south side of town, where Lawrence High coach Brad Stoll finds himself in the same situation as his cross-town counterpart.

A seasoned, power-packed lineup. Steady defense. And no solid answers thus far for his call to arms.

“We feel we’re going to have the ability to score runs and play defense,” Stoll said. “The third part of that is the question mark – on the mound.”

The Lions return their entire outfield in KU signee Brian Heere and fellow seniors Tyler Knight and Michael Sichinger and also welcome back senior shortstop Marc Albers and junior first baseman/designated hitter Nick DeBiasse.

“We think, one through nine, that we can swing the bats and make things happen that way,” Stoll said. “We think we’ve got some guys that can juice the ball.”

The plan is for senior left-hander Daren Parker to be the primary beneficiary of that support. Another lefty, junior Daniel Green, and a handful of right-handers including DeBiasse, Drew Hulse and Jordan Guntert, also should battle for innings.

But the wildcard might be Albers – and Stoll’s ability to pick his spots when deciding to move his anchor on the infield to the center of the action.

“He’s the heart and soul of the team,” Stoll said. “We’ve just got to figure out when we want to put him on the mound.”