By CONOR NICHOLL

cnicholl@dailynews.net

Hays Larks manager Frank Leo instituted a few new team rules once his club climbed on the bus for its two hour trip to Junction City on Wednesday afternoon.

Throughout the summer, Larks' pitchers, if they weren't throwing that game, were allowed to sit in the stands and wear shorts. Sometimes players would head down into the bullpen to talk with fans. But Leo ended that practice.

He told the team that players aren't allowed to wear shorts. Everyone must wear baseball pants and no one is allowed down in the bullpen or in the stands. The entire team stays in the dugout.

"He let us know that things were going to be a little different," second baseman Rich Michalek said.

The early returns after the new rules were positive. On Tuesday night, the last game before the rule changes, Hays lost 12-0 at home to Junction City, its worst loss in more than a year and its worst home loss since mid-June, 2007.

The defeat marked the third time the Larks had lost to the Generals this summer and the second time they had been shut out. A night later, after the rule changes, Hays pounded out 21 hits and defeated Junction City 13-11, the first time the Larks defeated the Generals all season.

"I think it is kind of helping the chemistry where we are getting together now and we are ready to go," Michalek said.

The rule changes could have an effect on this weekend's key three-game road series at Liberal. Hays is 24-12 overall and 18-8 in the Jayhawk League, two games ahead of Derby for first place. Liberal, led by former major league manager Mike Hargrove, has been one of the league's hottest teams in the last few weeks. The Bee Jays are in fourth place in the Jayhawk League at 14-11 and 19-14 overall.

A Hays sweep would assert control in the league as Hays seeks its sixth league title since 2000, and its first since 2006. If Liberal wins all three games, though, it becomes a four-team race among Hays, defending champ Derby, Nevada (Mo.) and Liberal with just two weeks (six league games) left in the season.

"We know that Friday, Saturday and Sunday is pretty much going to determine the season," Michalek said. "I think that we win two out of three games here, we pretty much will be assured of first place."

Hays is 4-0 against Liberal this summer, but hasn't played the Bee Jays since June 13 to 15 when Liberal didn't have its full roster set. In the four wins, Hays has outscored Liberal 26-16, including a 9-5 victory at Liberal on June 4, the fourth game of the season.

Since then, the Larks, about two-thirds of the way through the season, have developed well-defined strengths and weaknesses. Michalek, along with first baseman Dusty Washburn, is one of two three-year Larks. In 2006, he played on a team that won the Jayhawk League title and finished 40-16. They hit 41 homers and had five regulars hit over .300, including two at .400 or higher. Last year, the Larks were a speed team, hit 12 homers, and were 38-18, including a second-place finish in the National Baseball Congress World Series.

"Last year, I don't think this was our most talented team, but we came together at the right time," Michalek said.

This summer, the strength all season is the pitching, especially the bullpen.

"I think we have the best bullpen and the best pitching in the league," Michalek said.

As a team, Hays has struck out 310 batters in 305 innings and has a chance to break the all-time Larks record of 457 strikeouts in a single season. Steven Mazur (3-0, 1.14 earned-run average) could finish in the top 10 or top 5 for best ERA in Larks' history, while Mazur, Chase Johnson and Kevin Hennessey are all on pace to break the all-time record for strikeouts per nine innings. They have 105 strikeouts in 64 innings so far.

The top three starters have all been effective and will all start one game after having at least a week off from their last start. Patrick Cooper (5-2, 2.11 ERA) will throw tonight after posting a 3-0 record and 1.34 ERA in his last three starts. Jason Stacy (1-1, 2.32) is expected to throw Saturday, while Eddie Carl (3-2, 4.18 ERA) will go Sunday.

Offensively, Michalek, a returning all-Jayhawk League player, has led the team in batting all season at .386 -- until Mike Brownstein took over the lead Wednesday at Junction City. Brownstein, also a returning all league player who has played in just 12 games because of injury, went 6-for-6 against Junction City with a grand slam and is now batting .413 this summer.

This weekend's series also will mark the start of the home stretch for Hays, a point punctuated with the new rules Leo put in place Wednesday that produced a turnaround from a 12-0 loss.

"It is good because it makes you feel more a part of the game instead of removed from the game, if you are just chilling in shorts, you don't have too much invested in the game," pitcher Sam Elam said. "It just makes you feel part of the team and part of the game. Everybody together -- I guess we are working on team chemistry and everything.

"There was definitely a difference between (Tuesday) and Wednesday. We felt like we had something to prove, like no one comes in and beats you 12-0," Elam added.

Two weeks remain in the regular season to clinch another league title and prepare for the NBC World Series.

"I think now everyone is starting to understand that now it is getting down to the end of the season and we got the NBC coming up and it is time to get more serious," Michalek said.