10-28-08 – Individual headshot photos of the 2008-2009 Vanderbilt Baseball team and staff taken in the baseball classroom at Hawkins Field. (Vanderbilt University / Steve Green)

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Full-throttle, aggressive play is one of the most fascinating areas to study in baseball.

When you see certain teams that utilize this petal-to-the-metal style, it reminds people of wide open offenses in football or basketball which allow points to be scored left and right.

It is almost a high risk, high reward mentality that coaches live by with this system of play.

But when you dig in deeper, being aggressive in baseball is a high percentage move that causes mistakes by the opposition and gives tremendous energy to the teams that utilize it.

In this special report on being aggressive in baseball, Collegiate Baseball talks to one of the masters of this philosophy in Tim Corbin of Vanderbilt.

Under Corbin, the Commodores have appeared in the College World Series three times and won the national title in 2014.

That year, Vanderbilt swiped 17 bases (in 23 attempts) over seven games which was three times more than any team in the field at the College World Series.

The 17 stolen bases tied a College World Series all-time record for most stolen bases by a team. During the 1955 CWS, Oklahoma State also had 17.  

During the championship game, Vanderbilt executed a perfect double steal when Dansby Swanson and Bryan Reynolds pilfered second and third which ultimately allowed the Commodores to score a crucial run.

A second round matchup with U.C. Irvine would be a showcase for Vanderbilt’s running game.

Coming into the College World Series, the Anteaters only allowed 18 stolen bases on 37 attempts over 63 games – one of the most impressive figures of any team ever entering the CWS.

Vanderbilt stunned U.C. Irvine by swiping five bases in six attempts.

During the Championship Finals against Virginia, the Commodores stole five more bases over three games.

Entering the College World Series, Virginia had only allowed 20 stolen bases in 38 attempts over 63 games.

Vanderbilt ended the season with 120 stolen bases which ranked third nationally.

One year later in 2015, the Commodores qualified for the College World Series, and they came one game short of winning another national title.

This time Vanderbilt, with much of the same team returning from 2015, only stole four bases at the College World Series over six games yet were 16-for-16 in stolen bases in 11 games during the NCAA tournament that season. For the season, the Commodores swiped 106 bases.

Being Aggressive
“I think that every coach, for the most part, wants some type of aggressiveness with their team whether it be with the bat or whether it is with their feet,” said Corbin.

“I guess it goes back to how we wanted our program to operate going back to 2003-2005 when I was in my first few years at Vanderbilt. We may have not had the parts to move as fast as what we wanted to, but we tried none the less and trained to do that.

“I think a lot of aggressiveness for teams is cyclical. You can have a team that is physically fast, but yet there are periods of the year, depending on who you play and the time you play, where you can run or want to run. A lot of it depends on the situation.

“We talk to our kids about running a ‘spread offense’ similar to what they have in football today as you see balanced, wide offenses which score a lot of points. In baseball, I define that as bringing a tool kit to the field and pulling out a bunt, slash, fake bunt, run and hit, hit and run or safety squeeze.”

To read the rest of this in-depth article on full-throttle hustle and why it pays off big in games, purchase the April 21, 2017 edition or subscribe to Collegiate Baseball by CLICKING HERE.

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Marc Rardin is one of the elite baseball coaches in college baseball history.

His petal-to-the-metal offensive style has unnerved numerous opponents over the years because of the intense pressure the Reivers put on teams.

Now in his 15th season as the skipper at Iowa Western Community College, he has led the Reivers to NJCAA Division I national titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

This season, his ball club has stolen 63 bases in 71 attempts over 33 games.

In 2014 when the Reivers won their last national title, they stole 146 bases in 67 games.

In the 59-year-history of the NJCAA World Series, Iowa Western is the only Iowa junior college ever to win this prestigious event and the first Northern District representative to win it all.

There’s a reason why his teams at Iowa Western are 665-190 entering the 2017 season.

 “I really like hit and runs and stealing along with utilizing push bunts and drags,” said Rardin who has led the Reivers to nine NJCAA World Series.

“Utilizing the entire offensive arsenal is important in what we do.

“Years ago when Bobby Knight was the head basketball coach at Indiana, his teams played man-to-man, in-your-face defense. When asked why his teams play defense in this fashion, he said this is what his players hate to play against when on offense.

“He utilized the motion offense with a lot of picks. Everybody is moving. The reason is that when Indiana was on defense, players hated guarding that type of offense.

“In baseball, it is difficult to play against a team that has control of the strike zone with a couple of pitches and really change their looks and know how to pick and hold runners. If your third baseman falls asleep at third, they bunt on you. They will move runners and hit and run.

“It’s tiring the whole day when you face teams like this. That’s why we play in this fashion. We want opposing teams to be exhausted by the end of the day. We get in the left lane and try to speed up the game. All we do as coaches with young kids is tell players to slow down. When the game speeds up, these kids can’t hit, field or throw a pitch for a strike.”

Touching The Hot Stove
Rardin’s teams are noted for being aggressive on the base paths.

“There will be some failure, and you have to be good with that. So the first thing I tell my players is that there is aggressiveness and stupidity. Somewhere between those two is where we want to be. That’s the honest truth. The only way we can get to where we want is to run a lot during the fall.

“We are somewhat out of control because our new players have to learn. The only reason a player learns what he can and can’t do on the base paths is to experience success and failure. We call it the ‘hot stove.’ We want our runners to keep touching the hot stove but always be aware that it is hot.

“We work on leads and breaks. Sometimes guys are a little open while others are closed. Not everybody is the same. Sometimes pitchers are good at holding us, and we don’t run as much.

“There are different guys you can steal off. You can run off the pitcher, obviously. You can run on the catcher. You can run on the infielders. You can run and hit because you get people moving around on defense.

“It also goes back to recruiting where you bring in guys who have a little speed. We don’t have barn burners. I give the green light to runners more than people think.

“You always hear that the ‘book’ says never steal third with two outs. I’ve never really seen this book. I go against the book when it comes to stealing. We wouldn’t have won the 2010 national championship if my runners on first and second didn’t double steal with two outs in the ninth inning in the national title game.

“And we stole standing up. There are eight different ways you can score from third than from second. In this case, two pitches later there was a passed ball, and we tied the game up.

“Putting pressure on the other team is absolutely crucial. And this puts them on the defense. My kids love to play that way. If I was a basketball coach, I would utilize the full court press all the time. My team would be up and down the court. If I were a football coach, I would utilize the spread offense and move the ball around. I would put pressure on my opponents any way I could.

“And that’s what I try to do with our team. We are always running, and other teams are consistently aware of that. I can’t tell you how many balls get through the 6-hole because the third baseman is always cheating toward third. The other team knows we will steal third at some time. When you are aggressive on the base paths, you also create these great opportunities offensively.

“During the fall, we work hard on having our runners take off with balls in the dirt by the pitcher. New players to our team might initially watch a ball go in the dirt which is blocked by the catcher and just stand there. But I am furious the young man didn’t read the pitch and take off to the next base.

“The only way they are going to tap into their aggressiveness is being stupid. Then they will be closer to that line of being smart and aggressive.

To read more of this article, purchase the April 21, 2017 edition or subscribe to Collegiate Baseball by CLICKING HERE. The rest of this special report delves into Rardin’s system of aggressive base stealing and why it works so well to score runs. It isn’t unusual to see runners on first and third with the batter/runner getting a base hit. When the dust settles, two runs have scored with the batter/runner now on second.

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

PASADENA, Calif. — The exorcism is complete.

For 29 years and a span of 587 games, California Institute of Technology had not won a single Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game.

That all changed on when Caltech beat Pomona-Pitzer, 4-3 on a dramatic walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth.

Down 3-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth, two quick outs were recorded by Pomona-Pitzer.

Then something magical happened as David Watson singled to centerfield. After Jared Reed pinch ran for Watson, Kai Kirk doubled to left center to tie the game at 3-3.

After a pitching change, freshman Alex Corado singled to left field which scored Kirk with the winning run as bedlam ensued with the walk-off hit.

“It was an amazing feeling to get that huge monkey off our back,” said Caltech Head Coach Matthew Mark.

“You could just feel that the streak was going to be stopped soon. It was the culmination of working hard and persevering.

“The last time we won a conference game was in 1988, and that was a long time ago. I haven’t really had a chance to process what this win means. We never gave up in the game and came through in the clutch after two quick outs in the bottom of the ninth. Amazing.”

What made the win even more special is that all four runs were scored off RHP David Gerics who pitched in the Cape Cod League last summer for the Cotuit Kettleers.

“He is a terrific pitcher, and we hung in there to score four runs off him. That was quite an achievement. I received over 100 texts from various people to congratulate us. My phone hasn’t stopped since we won.”

Mark, who is in his fifth year as the skipper at Caltech, has been charged with making the baseball program competitive.

And he has done a marvelous job of doing just that after taking on the most difficult coaching job in America.

Caltech has a 6-18 record this season which is the highest amount of wins since 1966. And keep in mind that the Beavers have lost six 1-run games this season as well.

Four years ago, a year after Mark was hired, Caltech’s baseball team exorcized another demon as the Beavers knocked off Pacifica, 9-7 in the Beavers’ second game of the year in 2013.

Caltech had not won a game against an NCAA team for 228 games which stretched over 10 years.

The last time the Beavers won a contest was against Cal. St. Monterey Bay, 5-4 on Jan. 15, 2003.

Caltech’s baseball program is unique for a coach because of the massive obstacles players and coaches face.

Caltech is an NCAA Division III institution that only allows the elite of all scholars across the world to enroll.

The school is an absolute Mecca for scientific milestones, including the discovery of anti-matter, the nature of chemical bonds, the foundations of molecular biology, the birth of modern earthquake science, left brain/right brain discovery and the principles of modern aviation and jet flight.

32 Nobel Prizes
The total number of students at Caltech is usually around 3,000, and the school’s faculty and alumni have received wide recognition for achievements in science and engineering, including 32 Nobel Prizes.

The school is so prestigious that typically there are 3,500 applications for a few hundred open spots. Close to half of applicants score 800 on their math SAT scores (the highest score possible). And the admission’s staff at Caltech doesn’t automatically rubber stamp these kids. Usually more than half won’t get in.

The median grade point average of high school kids who have been allowed to enroll at Caltech and play on the baseball team is 3.9, according to former Head Coach John D’Auria who coached the Beavers for 30 years. 

In a typical year, the baseball team will have anywhere from 14-16 players.

Mark’s first team at Caltech in 2013 was comprised of only 13 players. Two of his players never played high school varsity baseball. And one of those individuals had never even played the game of baseball prior to this season.

“It has opened my eyes in working with 13 guys and how you rotate them around to get their work in.”

At times over the years, the baseball program has utilized women to play baseball.

During the 2002-2003 seasons, Kristen Zortman played for Caltech.

“She was a fabulous athlete who probably was tougher than most of the guys on the team,” said D’Auria.

“Kristen later went on to throw the javelin on the track team and did extremely well. Today, she is an engineer.”

In 2012, a lady by the name of Kayla McCue played for the Beavers. Her grandfather played baseball and ran track in Cuba.

D’Auria said that Caltech’s philosophy is to overload their undergraduates with much more than they would ever have at another institution.

“They may be getting 150 percent of the material. If the kids retain 30 percent, they are way ahead of other schools.

“They have homework sessions that are unbelievable marathons. I had kids finish homework at 11 in the morning after being up all night long.

“Then the kids, absolutely exhausted, fall asleep and don’t wake up until after dinner and miss practice. If you go to any of the eight undergraduate houses, you will find half of them with the lights on and kids awake all night long every day of the week.”

Study Marathons
Mark was amazed at the study habits of his players as well.

“Caltech is an extremely difficult academic school,” said Mark.

“But at the same time, it is very rewarding.

“Our baseball players have nights where they do project sets and stay up through the night out of necessity. I want my players to figure out how to organize and structure their days and nights so they get proper rest. These kids are becoming adults and need to learn how to organize their time. During the spring, we have practice from 4-6 p.m. And on weekends, it is 10 a.m.-1 p.m when we don’t play games. That helps them plan their schedule.”

To read more of this story, purchase the April 21, 2017 edition or subscribe to Collegiate Baseball by CLICKING HERE.

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

TROY, Ala. — Troy University sophomore catcher Chase Smartt is one of the amazing stories of college baseball.

Born premature, he suffered from nerve damage in his ear canals.

He had a 98 percent hearing loss which means Smartt is profoundly deaf.

As a baby, he could barely hear the equivalent of a jet engine starting up. Beyond that, there was silence, a frightening prospect for a newborn introduced to a world filled with sounds.

At 16 months old, his condition was confirmed to his loving parents, Mark and Debbie.

Mark is the current head baseball coach at Troy University. At the time, he was an assistant at Livingston University, a school later renamed the University of West Alabama.

Mark and Debbie had to do a lot of soul searching and ask themselves if their son should be sentenced to a life without sound and have him begin learning sign language or research delicate surgery.

After studying all options and consulting with hearing specialists, they decided on Cochlear implant surgery for Chase’s right ear which typically costs $50,000-$60,000.

The big problem was that the facility that had the special surgeon to perform this delicate procedure was in Birmingham, Ala. some two hours away. Any time an issue came up with the device, it meant a 2-hour drive up and back.

With this procedure, a device that is about the size of a quarter and thickness of two quarters, is surgically placed behind the ear within the skull. An external apparatus which has a magnet attaches to the internal device from outside the ear.

This entire hardware structure serves as the eardrum as impulses are sent directly to the auditory nerve which carries sound signals to your brain. The implant doesn’t make you hear normally again, but it can help with sounds.

“The sounds Chase hears must be interpreted through extensive training from a young age,” said Mark.

 “He trained as a young child all the way through elementary school and even to high school to learn how to hear.

“Chase is a remarkable story who has overcome so much in his life to be an NCAA Division I catcher. To see him today, if you didn’t see an external piece around his right ear, you would never know he was any different than anybody else.

“He looks and acts the same as everybody his age.”

Mark said that the decision for his son to go under the knife was hardly an easy one considering Chase received the Cochlear implant at the ripe age of two years and two months.

“We had two choices to make. We could go with the hearing loss community, and that option is sign language for the rest of your life.

“Instead, we decided to go with the hearing world. Quite frankly, the hearing loss community frowns on the use of the Cochlear implant. They feel hearing loss is a natural process, and you should embrace that. I don’t have an argument either way. My wife and I decided, with plenty of study, family counsel and prayer that the hearing world would be better for our son. And that is why we chose the surgical path.

“It has allowed Chase to hear and communicate throughout his 21 years of life. To me, it has helped make him who he is.

“He has learned to deal with adversity and overcome obstacles without even knowing it. It is who he’s been and what he does. So I’m really proud of all he has accomplished. He was a high school baseball sensation and holds several Alabama state records and was drafted by professional baseball (Atlanta Braves in the 35th round) out of high school.”

Chase went to Charles Henderson H.S. (Troy, Ala.) and put up monster numbers as a senior as he hit .523 with 7 homers, 50 RBI and scored 54 runs.

He ultimately decided to play baseball at Troy for his dad and has blossomed into one of the superb catchers in college baseball.

He does a fabulous job of handling the pitching staff at Troy and has only allowed 12 stolen bases in 18 attempts this season.

He started in 54 of 57 games as a freshman in 2016 (40 as a catcher, 13 at third base and 1 at shortstop), and this year has started all 18 games at catcher.

Mark said that Chase has had four surgeries over the years.

To read more of this story or subscribe to Collegiate Baseball, CLICK HERE. The rest of the story explains the four surgeries he underwent, the potential danger in catching, why he shuts off his implant when he hits and how he has become a secret weapon during games as he can read lips from opposing teams like a pro, plus more.

By LOU PAVLOVICH, JR.
Editor/Collegiate Baseball

CHICAGO — When you have one parent who is an undercover cop and another who is a sergeant in the Chicago Police Department, you learn early in life how to go about life the right way.

Marty Bechina, a tough as nails third baseman at Michigan State University who was hitting .387 with 4 homers, 3 doubles and 13 RBI, has been hit by pitches 8 times in 17 games which is tied for seventh nationally in NCAA Division I.

Being raised by two police officers is rare in college baseball. But he is the luckiest man in the world to have such caring, loving parents who also know how to sprinkle in discipline.

Make no mistake about it. His parents have dangerous jobs.

Chicago had the deadliest year in nearly two decades in 2016, according to data released by the Chicago Police Department.

The city saw a surge in gun violence in 2016: 762 murders, 3,550 shooting incidents, and 4,331 shooting victims.

A year earlier, there were 480 murders in 2015, the most in the city since 1997.

Attacks on police officers nearly doubled in 2016.

“The neighborhood where I grew up is filled with police officers and firemen,” said Bechina.

“My mom’s whole family have been cops. I really have never thought anything of it because being around police officers is something that is natural to me.

“My mom (Lori) is an undercover cop, and my dad (Steve) is a sergeant. They don’t share a lot of stories with me about their jobs.

“But I do know that New Year’s Eve is a crazy time in Chicago. They always have to be on high alert. Once it hits midnight, there is a lot of nonsense going on.

“There are a number of people who shoot guns in the air. And those bullets eventually come back to earth and have the potential to hurt someone.

“They try to keep most of the stories away from me because they don’t want to worry me. My mom has always got some crazy stuff going on being an undercover officer. And so does my dad. I am extremely proud of both of them. I know they have gone through a lot over the years.”

To read more of this story or subscribe to Collegiate Baseball, CLICK HERE. The rest of the story explains what his mother does as an undercover officer and dad with the Chicago Police Department.  Their true life stories involve everything from gangs, drug sales, sexual assaults and people diving to their deaths in the subway, plus much more.