Brownsburg’s Birr works his way to Southern Illinois-Carbondale

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Ryan Birr was undersized and underwhelming during his prep baseball career.

The 6-foot-2, 190-pound third baseman just completed two seasons at Kaskaskia College in Centralia, Ill., and is headed to NCAA Division I/Missouri Valley Conference school Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. 

Last November, Birr committed to the Lance Rhodes-coached Salukis for 2023-24 with two years of remaining eligibility.

When Birr entered Brownsburg (Ind.) High School at 5-foot-5 in the fall of 2016 and even after a growth spirt was still a “very skinny kid.”

“I was very lanky and very weak,” says Birr. “Growing up, I was always overmatched.”

Birr played Brownsburg junior varsity ball for Zach Foley then hit .111 as a junior for the Dan Roman-coached varsity Bulldogs in the spring of 2019. The senior season was missed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since leaving school, Birr has been impressed how Roman has kept up with his former players.

Along the way, Birr received a direct message through Twitter from Adam Akin, an Evansville, Ind., who played baseball at Evansville (Ind.) North High School and the University of Indianapolis, and now connected to Combine Academy in Lincolnton, N.C.

“I thought it was a scam,” says Birr. “I ignored it completely for the first two days.”

Birr learned the Combine Academy provided athletes with the opportunity to take a post-graduate year after high school. 

After doing his research, Birr decided to take that option and got to know Combine Academy President of Baseball & Golf Akin, recruiting director Jeff Birkhofer, Goats head baseball coach Tommy Goodale (now a Georgia Gwinnett College assistant), assistant Jake Sheley (now in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization), Carlos Texidor (who played at Kaskaskia and Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and now helping players in the New York Mets system) and Ian Walsh (who now works in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization).

“I really liked it,” says Birr, who took the maximum two classes through Indiana University in the fall and spring semesters and — with the help of the MyFitnessPal app — bulked up from 170 pounds in August 2021 to 195 in March 2022.

In 2023, he played in 52 games (51 starts at third base) for the Kaskaska Blue Devils (where Purdue University graduate Mitch Koester is head coach and Chris Willsey hitting coach/recruiting coordinator). Righty swinger Birr hit .365 (69-of-189) with one home run, one triple, 13 doubles, 44 runs batted in, 44 runs scored and 19 stolen bases. 

As a freshman in 2022, he split time between third base, first base and designated hitter.

“I’m really aggressive,” says Birr of his offensive approach. “I like to hit the fastball first pitch.”

He gives himself a positive self talk, saying things like “You’re the best in the world!”

“This sport is filled with failure,” says Birr. “I try not to think about anything negative. I clear my mind and visualize success.”

Birr says the time to work on mechanics is during practice — not during the game.

New to third base, Birr is learning quick reaction time is key.

“It’s called the hot corner for a reason,” says Birr.

While he is a Chicago Cubs fan, Birr appreciates St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado.

“I really admire his game,” says Birr. “I also like Nelson Cruz for his swing and approach. Everybody says this, but I was a really big fan of Derek Jeter growing up.”

Born and raised in Brownsburg, Birr played at Brownsburg Little League before travel ball seasons with the Indiana Prospects, Indiana Aces and during his sophomore and junior years of high school the Matt Bowles-coached Indiana Nitro.

“He was a really big mentor for me,” says Birr of Bowles. “He’s one of the favorite coaches I’ve ever had.”

The two remain connected to this day.

Throughout high school, Birr’s personal hitting coach was Ed Woolwine.

“He transferred my swing,” says Birr of Woolwine, who started the Fishers (Ind). Sports Academy.

Birr, who turns 21 in July, played in the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind., for the back-to-back champion Bag Bandits (managed by Caleb Fenimore).

After a brief stint with the Northwoods League’s 2023 Wausau (Wis.) Woodchucks, Birr is back home working at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis and lifting, throwing and hitting at Pro-X Athlete in Westfield. His usual workout partner is Purdue University outfielder Camden Melvin (Avon High School Class of 2020).

Birr earned an associate degree at Kaskaskia and plans to be a Business major at Southern Illinois.

Ryan is the youngest of Martin and Lori Birr’s three sons.

Jamie Birr works in customer service at an insurance agency and Tyler Birr (Brownsburg Class of 2018) at a gym. 

Martin Birr is an accountant and teaches the subject at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Lori Birr is a Brownsburg teacher’s aide.

Ryan Birr. (Kaskaskia College Photo)

Ryan Birr. (Kaskaskia College Photo)

Ryan Birr. (Kaskaskia College Photo)

Ryan Birr. (Kaskaskia College Photo)

Ryan Birr. (Kaskaskia College Photo)

Meaney wants Indianapolis Lutheran to maintain aggressive play

By STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Hustle on the base paths helped Indianapolis Lutheran High School baseball set theft records the past two seasons.
Josh Meaney, who moves up to head coach in 2023 after two years as a volunteer on Adam Gouker’s staff, will again have the Saints running.
“Being aggressive is what wins ball games,” says Meaney, who saw Indianapolis Lutheran go 22-9, win the program’s 14th sectional title in 2022 while amassing 186 stolen bases.
That number eclipsed the mark of 174 set in 2021.
“We’re staying focused at all times no matter the situation — whether we’re down 10 runs or up 10 runs,” says Meaney. “Stay focused with the mission because at any point the tide could change.
“Stay aggressive and never feel like you have enough runs and continue to put pressure on the other team.”
Meaney subscribes to the system established by New York Yankees baserunning coordinator and Fort Wayne Dwenger High School graduate Matt Talarico (who spoke at the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association State Clinic in January and has addressed the American Baseball Coaches Association Convention on the big stage).
“We don’t need to be fast to steal bags,” says Meaney. “It’s all about timing.”
Meaney accepted the head coach job — his first at the high school level — last in the summer of 2022.
The Saints took part in conditioning during the fall IHSAA Limited Contact Period. This winter, players have got in infield and outfield work on the turf football field when the weather has permitted. There’s also been weight and speed training. Pitchers have been getting used to mechanics so they are ready when it comes time to start ramping up their arms for the season.
Indianapolis Lutheran (enrollment around 250) is a member of the Indiana Crossroads Conference (with Beech Grove, Cardinal Ritter, Cascade, Monrovia, Scecina Memorial, Speedway and Triton Central).
The Saints are part of an IHSAA Class 1A sectional grouping in 2023 with Edinburgh, Eminence, Greenwood Christian Academy, Indianapolis Metropolitan and Morristown.
Meaney’s assistants are Russell Parker, Jonas Akers and Jacob Cutter.
The expectation is that there will be 21 or 22 players for varsity and junior varsity games. Meaney says the varsity and JV will not play on the same days and he and Parker will go with the JV to evaluate that group.
Located on-campus next to the tennis courts and softball diamond, Dick Alter Field is the home of Saints Baseball.
Meaney says new fencing is going up down the first base line. Plans call for padding to the be added to the backstop.
Fundraising is being done with the hopes of adding a press box and upgrading bleacher seating.
Alter coached baseball in central Indiana for four decades, including several years at Indianapolis Lutheran.
The high school typically gets most of its students from four Lutheran K-8 school on the southeast side of Indy.
The Junior Saints is a team for Grades 6-8 that is coached by Indianapolis Lutheran alum Bryce Lucas.
“We want him to build that program and run the same style of baseball (as the high school),” says Meaney.
Recent alums playing college baseball include Class of 2019’s Noah Wood (Franklin College) and Class of 2022’s Sean Moore (Lake Erie College).
A 1995 graduate of Martinsville (Ind.) High School, Meaney played the outfield at Decatur Central as a freshman and the last three years with the Artesians and IHSBCA Hall of Famer Bill Tutterow.
“Not too many people can say they played for a Hall of Fame coach,” says Meaney. “At the time — as a young kid — I didn’t understand what it takes to be honest with your players and let them know where they stand and treat them as young men and not children. It empowers them to work on their own which increased their ability to play baseball.
“I take a little bit of that into my coaching.”
Meaney also coaches for the Baseball Academics Midwest travel organization and coached many years in the Little League at Brownsburg and Decatur Central.
After high school, Meaney served in the U.S. Marines from 1996-2000.
He is now a laboratory technician at SRT Prosthetics & Orthotics in Indianapolis.
Josh and Robin Meaney have three children — Ahkena Gaines-Meaney (18), Gage Meaney (15) and Nico Meaney (12). Gage is a freshman baseball player at Indianapolis Lutheran.

Josh Meaney.

Contributing to team success is driving force for U. of Cincinnati’s Cross

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Kerrington Cross produced strong numbers the first chance he got to play collegiate baseball.
After not seeing action for the University of Cincinnati in 2021, Cross played in 52 games (50 starts) and hit .291 (57-of-196) with nine home runs, five triples, nine doubles, 30 runs batted in, 44 runs scored and 17 stolen bases in 2022.
The 2020 Brownsburg (Ind.) High School graduate led the American Athletic Conference in three-baggers and his team in bases pilfered.
In the last game of the 2022 season, Bearcats head coach Scott Googins started Cross at third base and in the lead-off spot in the batting order. The 6-foot, 200-pound athlete began the campaign at second base and hit from many different slots throughout the spring.
The coach holds his players accountable.
“(Googins) likes really gritty players and talks about us being a brotherhood,” says Cross. “He pushes us. He likes people to grow from their failures.”
Cross, 20, enjoyed a productive season with the 2021 Great Summer League Collegiate League’s Cincinnati Steam where the righty swinger wielded a wood bat and hit .419 (52-of-124), four homers, 23 RBIs, 31 runs and 14 steals.
But stats or any of the five tools of baseball are not what drives Cross.
“I’d rather not think about that,” says Cross. “What does this team need? That’s what I’m focused on.
“I apply myself to the team more than thinking about my skill set.”
Helping him hone his skills and more is Cincinnati assistant Kyle Sprague, who guides baserunners, hitters and infielders.
“He’s at the field three hours longer than the players setting up all the drills,” says Cross of Sprague. “He puts his heart and soul into the game.
“I have a weird class schedule so we’ve done a lot of 1-on-1.”
As a student in UC’s five-year Chemical Engineering program, Cross revolves class work with cooperatives. He is getting practical experience on a co-op this summer.
He played in seven games for the 2022 Steam, but the schedule of working from 7:30 to 4 p.m. and then “show and go” every game was not helping him.
“I decided to develop on my own,” says Cross.
Looking at his best athletic qualities, Cross cites brainpower.
“On the field, it’s my I.Q.,” says Cross. “It ties into my major. I’m considered a nerd, I guess. In high school, I was really good with numbers, really good at science and had a good memory.”
To put even more in his tool box, Cross plans to add a Master of Business Administration (MBA) to his resume.
Born in Honolulu, Cross moved to Brownsburg about the time he was starting school.
He played at Brownsburg Little League and then went to travel ball with the Indiana Bulls from 13U to 17U.
Denied a senior high school season in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cross went with the Westfield, Ind.-based College Summer League at Grand Park’s A-Team before going to Cincinnati.
In three years of varsity seasons for the Brownsburg Bulldogs, Cross played one year for head coach Eric Mattingly and two for Dan Roman.
“Both are great guys,” says Cross. “Mattingly gave me an opportunity. He opened my eyes that I could take it to a new level.
“Roman pushed me to be better. He knew I had the potential. We bonded about more than just baseball and stay in-touch. He’s a really good friend of mine.”
Kerrington has an older brother (Kasey) and sister (Clarice). Their parents are Harold and Miki Cross. He is from Illinois and she from Japan. They met in Hawaii. Harold Cross runs a Hometown Mini Donuts cart and Miki Cross is a translator (English to Japanese and vice versa).

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Photo)

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Photo)

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Image)

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Photo)

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Image)

Kerrington Cross (University of Cincinnati Photo)

Daniel brings 1980 baseball season back with lively “Phinally!”

BY STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

J. Daniel was just shy of 13 when the Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series for the first time in 1980.

Even though he was in southwestern Ohio, he followed the Phils from “Mike Schmidt to Ramon Aviles.”

Growing up when he did, Daniel appreciates baseball and pop culture in the 1980’s.

He is a big fan of Dan Epstein — author of Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging ‘70s — and his style.

So much so that the Brownsburg, Ind., resident decided to write a book about baseball and more in the decade he knows so well.

“I’m a total stat geek,” says Daniel, who recalls devouring the box scores in the Cincinnati Enquirer during his youth. “Everything’s interesting to me.”

With so much material, it became books — plural.

Phinally!: The Phillies, the Royals and the 1980 Baseball Season That Almost Wasn’t (McFarland & Company) was published in 2019.

It was 1980 that gave us ….

The primetime TV drama “Dallas” and the cliffhanger summer question of “Who Shot J.R.?”

Movie-goers saw comedy in the “The Blue Brothers” and “Airplane!” and horror in “The Shining” and “Friday The 13th.”

In one scene from “The Shining,” Shelley Duvall wields a Carl Yastrzemski model Louisville Slugger.

Basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was cast as the co-pilot in “Airplane!” If not for filming during the baseball season, it might have been Pete Rose.

A former weatherman — David Letterman — also read for a part but did not land one.

Roberto Duran topped “Sugar Ray” Leonard in a 15-round bout in Montreal’s Olympic Stadium.

Free agent Nolan Ryan became the first baseball player to sign for $1 million a season, signing with the Houston Astros.

Marvin Miller, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, was about to make his clients a lot of money.

The average minimum salary at the time was $20,000.

In the spring of ’80, they went on a mini-strike that wiped out 92 spring training games.

Elias Sports Bureau introduces Game-Winning RBI as a statistic in the spring. The first one credited in a game went to the Cincinnati Reds’ George Foster in the first inning of a 9-0 Opening Day romp against Phil Niekro and the Atlanta Braves.

Atlanta would get off to a 1-9 start and owner Ted Turner (who launched CNN in 1980) benched Gary Matthews and sent Bob Horner to the minors.

It was also on Opening Day, that “Kiteman” hang-glided his way onto the field at Philadelphia’s Veterans Stadium.

Ken Landreaux of the Minnesota Twins enjoyed a 31-game hit streak — the longest in the American League since Dom DiMaggio’s 34 in 1949. A few seasons’s prior to Landreaux’s feat, Aqua Velva gave $1,000 per game to the hitter with the streak. But that changed in 1980. Things were worked out for Landreaux to give the money to charity.

San Diego Padres shortstop Ozzie Smith wasn’t looking for charity, but extra income. He took out a newspaper ad. He had many offers, including one from Joan Kroc, wife of Padres owner Ray Kroc, to assist her gardner. He eventually got supplemental pay from a company on Los Angeles.

There were many bench-clearing brawls and knockdown pitches in 1980.

Fergie Jenkins of the Texas Rangers joined Cy Young, Jim Bunning and Gaylord Perry as pitchers with 100 wins in both leagues.

Freddie Patek of the California Angels hit five home runs on the season and 41 for his career, but he popped three in one game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Left-hander Jerry Reuss did not begin the season in the starting rotation for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but tossed a no-hitter against the San Francisco Giants.

On his way to a 25-7 record and the AL Cy Young Award, Baltimore Orioles right-hander Steve Stone started the All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium and worked three inning in just 24 pitches.

The game also featured the debut of the massive Diamond Vision video boards.

Cincinnati’s Johnny Bench passed Yogi Berra for the all-time lead in home runs by a catcher.

Houston fireballer J.R. Richard suffered a stroke.

The Chicago Cubs fired manager Preston Gomez and replaced him with Joey Amalfitano.

“Super Joe” Charbonneau became an icon for the Cleveland Indians.

A white-hot George Brett was hitting .401 on Aug. 17 and finished with a .390 average. The Kansas City Royals third baseman’s back side was likely warm during the end of the season and the postseason. He finally had to have surgery for hemorrhoids prior to Game 3 of the World Series.

Maverick owners Charlie Finley (Oakland Athletics) and Bill Veeck (Chicago White Sox) announced the sale of their teams.

The White Sox did the unusual when they used the left-handed Mike Squires as a catcher.

Montreal Expos right-hander Bill Gullickson set a rookie-record with 18 strikeouts against the Cubs.

Oakland’s Rick Langford tossed 28 complete games, including a modern-record 23 straight. The Athletics staff completed 94 starts.

Three of the four division races were not settled until the season’s final week. Kansas City rapped the AL West up early. The Philadelphia Phillies edged out Montreal in the NL East. Houston topped the Dodgers in the NL West. The Yankees bested Baltimore in the AL East.

Games 2-5 in the National League Championship Series went extra innings before the Phillies prevailed over the Astros.

New Jersey’s Army staff sergeant Craig Burns took a three-day pass and flew from Germany to see his Phils play the Royals in the first game of the World Series. With Schmidt and Tug McGraw among the heroes, Philly won its first title.

Daniel is shopping his next volume about the 1982 season. The working title is Suds Series: The Brewers, the Cardinals and the year the ’80s became the ‘80s. He is grateful to author and Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis journalism professor Chris Lamb for his help and encouragement.

That era is also kept alive on social media by Daniel with his website (80sbaseball.com), Facebook (Facebook.com/80sbaseball) and Twitter (@80sbaseball) pages.

Daniel, a graduate of Talawanda High School in Oxford, Ohio, and Ohio University, is now employed in communication for IUPUI parking services. More than 20 years of his working life was spent in sports television, including four years as the producer/director of “Rays Magazine” on Fox Sports Florida.

J. and wife Sue were engaged at Clearwater’s Jack Russell Memorial Stadium, a place where he spent two seasons at official scorer for the Clearwater Phillies. The couple has two seasons — Brady (19) and Michael (16). Brady played travel baseball with the Indiana Outlaws and Indiana Hurricanes. Michael played at Brownsburg Little League.

Daniel is an assistant coach this summer for the 17U Indiana Expos with Kevin Barnhart (father of Cincinnati catcher Tucker Barnhart) as head coach and Tim Hampton as another assistant.

J. Daniel, a Brownsburg, Ind., resident, has written Phinally!: The Phillies, the Royals and the 1980 Baseball Season That Almost Wasn’t and has other books planned about the 1980s.

Phinally!: The Phillies, the Royals and the 1980 Baseball Season That Almost Wasn’t by J. Daniel chronicles not only what happened on the diamond pop culture. The author resides in Brownsburg, Ind. (McFarland & Sons Image)

 

Free agent pitcher Storen exploring his baseball options for 2019

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Drew Storen can trace his love of pitching to front-yard wiffle ball games.

It was there in the Geist section of Indianapolis that the son of Mark and Pam and younger brother of Lindsay discovered he could make the ball do what he wanted.

“At a young age, I was just trying to spin the wiffle ball,” says Storen, now 31 with 470 mound appearances in Major League Baseball behind him. “It kind of worked out well. I learned to spin the ball.”

Once little Drew identified himself as a pitcher, his father took him to get help with his mechanics. The right-hander began working with pitching instructor Jay Lehr at 7.

“Jay taught me how to throw an effective breaking ball without the stress on my arm,” says Storen. “I was a really small kid. I respected the process. I didn’t force it at any point.”

With maturity came size and added velocity.

But it did take time and effort.

“If you’re at my level or a little league level, you need to respect the process,” says Storen. “My dad’s advice was to do one thing everyday to get better. You chip away at it. It does not happen overnight. You’ve got to put the work in.

“It takes a lot of mental strength, but that’s what makes it great.”

Drew came up through Skiles Test Baseball and at 11, his family moved to Brownsburg, Ind. That’s where his father grew up and went to high school and that’s where his son shined at Brownsburg Little League. Drew did his part for a state championship team in 2000. That came between Brownsburg’s appearances in the Little League World Series in 1999 and 2001.

Storen enjoyed a decorated career at Brownsburg High School. He won 30 games with a 1.55 earned run average and 319 strikeouts. He was 9-0 as a sophomore in helping the Bulldogs win an 2005 IHSAA Class 4A state championship. Drew played first base while future major leaguer Lance Lynn was the winning pitcher in the title game.

In Storen’s last two seasons at Brownsburg, future big league Gold Glove winner Tucker Barnhart was his catcher.

Recognition came with Storen’s pitching abilities. He was honorable mention all-state in 2005 and first-team all-state in 2006 and 2007. He was a three-time first-team on the all-Hoosier Crossroads and Indianapolis Star Metro West teams.

In 2007, he was the Star’s West High School Player of the Year and an Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association North/South All-Star Series participant.

Summers from age 13 to 18 were spent traveling with the Indiana Bulls.

Storen was selected in the 34th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the New York Yankees but did not sign.

Instead, he took his pitching talents westward and played two seasons at Stanford University (2008 and 2009). He ascended the mound 59 times (all in relief) and went 12-4 with 15 saves and a 3.64 ERA. He struck out 116 and walked 23 in 98 1/3 innings.

As a draft-eligible sophomore, Storen was picked in the first round (10th overall) in 2009 by the Washington Nationals.

He made his big league debut in 2010 with Washington and appeared in 54 games with the Nationals that season.

In eight big league seasons with the Washington Nationals (2010-15), Toronto Blue Jays (2016), Seattle Mariners (2016) and Cincinnati Reds (2017), Storen is 29-18 with 99 saves and a 3.45 earned run average. He has 417 strikeouts and 132 walks in 438 innings (all in relief).

Storen performed a rare feat on April 18, 2017 in the ninth inning of a game against the Baltimore Orioles. With Tucker catching, he pitched an immaculate inning. That’s three strikeouts on nine pitches. The victims were Jonathan Schoop, J.J. Hardy and Hyun Soo Kim.

“As a bullpen guy, that’s our perfect game,” says Storen.

On Sept. 26, 2017, Storen underwent Tommy John surgery. Reds medical director Dr. Tim Kremchek operated to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament in the pitcher’s right elbow. He missed the entire 2018 season.

Recovered from the procedure, free agent Storen has been throwing off a mound — usually to Tucker — for about a month. They often meet at the new Finch Creek Fieldhouse in nearby Noblesville.

“I feel really good,” says Storen. “It’s more than a year out. I’ve given myself plenty of time to respect the process. I was lucky enough to play as long as I did without a major break health-wise. I wanted to make sure I came back better than I was.”

Most of his career, Storen threw from a high three-quarter arm slot to deliver a slider, change-up, four-seam fastball and two-seam fastball.

“I’m able to throw any pitch in any count,” says Storen. “That’s what matters to me.

“That’s why I love pitching. I just play wiffle ball. That’s all.”

With the Reds, Storen did drop down and delivered the ball from multiple angles.

He took feedback from bullpen sessions with Barnhart into the game.

“I still throw to him now,” says Storen of Barnhart. “That’s been great.

“He shoots me straight and know what he’s talking about.”

When Brownsburg Little League moved from Arbuckle Acres in the heart of town to the outskirts, Storen and Barnhart donated a portion of their salaries to the cause and the Reds Community Fund also helped the cause.

“It’s nice to give back in that regard,” says Storen. “Brownsburg is near and dear to my heart. My dad grew up there. I take pride in that. I want to give kids an opportunity to enjoy the game as much as I have.”

A self-described perfectionist, Storen acts as his own pitching coach.

“I’d like to think I know what I need to work on,” says Storen. “I know what I’m not good at.

“I need to make the most of whatever situation I’m in.

“I know I’m not going to be the guy I was back in the day. I know I’m going to be better in a different way.”

While getting his arm back in shape, Storen is also exploring his employment options for 2019.

“With where I’m at, it’s finding your best situation,” says Storen. “I’ll showcase for certain teams and go from there.

“It’s been an interesting couple of weeks. My agent (Brodie Van Wagenen) became the GM of the Mets.”

Storen has been dealing with others in the CAA agency.

“Brodie can’t do both (be an agent and a GM). It’s a really great opportunity for him. He knows the game really well. I can’t knock it.”

Storen is the rare pitcher that was used exclusively in the bullpen in college, drafted as a reliever and has been used in late-inning situations in the majors.

In those high-leverage moments, he knows things can go very well or very bad.

“You’re only as good as the day before,” says Storen. “If I go through a whole year and I didn’t have an interview and not on (ESPN) SportsCenter, I had a very good year

“I would prefer not to be noticed. But I enjoy that challenge. I like perfection

“You have to respect the guy in the box, but not be scared by him and trust what you have. That’s the best scouting report you have.”

Besides a professional ballplayer, Storen is a husband and father. Carmel, Ind., residents Drew and Brittani will celebrate four years of marriage this month. The couple has a 2-year-old son, Jace.

Brittani Storen, who is from Brownsburg and a Purdue University graduate, is a pharmacist. That’s the same profession has Drew’s sister, Lindsay, in Asheville, N.C.

Drew’s father, who goes professionally by Mark Patrick, is a sports broadcaster. Pam Storen is a graphic designer.

While at Stanford, Drew studied product design and has put his knowledge of baseball and mechanical engineering into scheming up the look and performance of own custom cleats.

“I’d like to go back and finish my degree,” says Storen. “I can only be so good at baseball for so long.”

Drew Storen, a 2007 Brownsburg (Ind.) High School graduate, made his Major League Baseball debut in 2010. The Carmel, Ind., resident is now a free agent. (Cincinnati Reds Photo)

Drew Storen pitched for the Cincinnati Reds in 2017. He had an immaculate inning — three strikeouts on nine pitches — in an April game against the Baltimore Orioles. He had Tommy John surgery in September 2017 and missed the 2018 season. He is now a free agent. (Getty Images)

Hartnagel living a legacy, enjoying baseball friendships

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

A young man with a head for business continues in what has been part of the family biz for generations.

Michael Hartnagel graduated with a marketing degree from Butler University in 2017 and began work on his Masters of Business Administration.

Like his grandfather, Ralph Hartnagel Jr., and father, Ralph Hartnagel III, as well as uncles, aunts and cousins, Michael has continued to pursue athletics.

Also a tennis player while at Brownsburg (Ind.) High School, Michael Hartnagel’s latest athletic endeavors have centered around baseball.

After a season at DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind., he played three campaigns for Butler University in Indianapolis (2016-18) and has extended that fun since early July to the professional ranks with the Schaumburg (Ill.) Boomers of the independent Frontier League.

While working on his MBA, Hartnagel played in 51 games and hit .293 with one home run, 16 doubles, 26 runs batted in and 10 stolen bases for Butler in 2018.

For his three-year Bulldogs career, Hartnagel played in 156 games and hit .314 with three homers, 46 doubles, 70 RBIs and 15 stolen bases with five-hit games in 2016 against St. John’s and 2017 against Furman.

Through his first 22 games with Schaumburg, the righty-swinging shortstop was hitting . 264 with no homers, five doubles and five runs batted in.

“I’m living on that legacy of my grandfather and my dad,” says Michael, 23. “They pass that baseball tradition down in the Hartnagel family.”

The youngest of Ralph III and Chris Hartnagel’s three children (after Brett and Justin), Michael played is last two collegiate baseball seasons for head coach Dave Schrage.

“He changed the culture,” says Hartnagel of Schrage. “He helped me be level-headed and have a better approach on the field.

“The coaching staff at Butler helped tremendously with my game. There were a lot of small improvements I needed to make, both offensively and defensively. “

Hartnagel credits Schrage for helping him on both the mental and physical sides. With his offensive, he was able to gain some gap-to-gap power.

When Michael was at Brownsburg Little League (he played there from T-ball through age 12), his father coached and stressed fundamentals. The same approach was followed by for Butler assistant Brian Meyer in working with his infielders.

“We worked on some hand-eye coordination and footwork drills,” says Hartnagel. “That’s a huge part of defense — your hands, your eyes and your feet. If those three things can sync and coordinate, you can do a lot of great things out there.”

Last spring, Butler fielded at a .school-record 970 clip with 59 errors in 1,974 chances with 114 double plays.

Hartnagel was born in Indianapolis and raised in Brownsburg. He played travel baseball his first two high school summers for a team started and coached by his father — the Brownsburg Crusaders. Three Hartnagel brothers — Ralph, Gary and Jeff — played baseball at Ball State University. Ralph also played tennis at Concord High School and has coached the sport.

Michael Hartnagel was going to play for the Indiana Bulls in his junior summer, but a torn left labrum kept him off the diamond.

At Brownsburg High School, where Michael graduated in 2013, he played for head coach Eric Mattingly and recalls the lessons he taught him.

“He told us to enjoy it and have a lot of fun with our friends,” says Hartnagel. “We were to stay level-headed and consistent — not too many highs and not too many lows.

“He wanted to make us the best player he could — on and off the field.”

Besides playing for the family legacy, Hartnagel has relished the relationships he’s made in the game.

“What I enjoy most about baseball is the friendships I’ve made over the years,” says Hartnagel.

Friends made during Little League and high school are cherished as are those from high school and now pro ball.

“It’s a blessing that my road in baseball has led me to play at this level,” says Hartnagel. “In the Frontier League, a lot of these stadiums are really, really good and so is the competition. (Young fans) look up to you.

“Everyone’s friendly. We’ve been having a really good time.”

Since Schaumburg is about three hours from Brownsburg, Hartnagel has been able to have his family or girlfriend, University of Indianapolis student Maddison Hall, visit or go home on an day off. Justin Hartnagel is a salesman at CDW in nearby Chicago.

Brett Hartnagel is an engineer at Rolls-Royce in Indianapolis.

Ralph Hartnagel III is a business teacher at Avon High School and exchanges daily texts or calls of encouragement with Michael.

Chris Hartnagel teaches second grade at Stephen Decatur Elementary in Indianapolis.

Michael Hartnagel says he wants to extend his baseball experience, but does have an eye on the future.

“I would love to ride this out as long as a I can,” says Hartnagel. “Then I’ll find my next passion. I could see myself sales or maybe I’ll get my real estate license.”

Michael Hartnagel (right) celebrates the scoring of a Schaumburg Boomers run.

Michael Hartnagel (center) of the independent Frontier League’s Schaumburg (Ill.) Boomers shares a moment with parents Ralph and Chris Hartnagel. Michael played at Brownsburg (Ind.) High School, DePauw University in Greencastle and Butler University in Indianapolis before professional baseball.

 

With a little help from dad, Sampen pitching in Dodgers organization

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Caleb Sampen, a right-hander in the Los Angeles Dodgers system, is a second-generation professional baseball pitcher.

His father — Bill Sampen — toed the rubber for pay for 10 seasons and appeared in 182 major league games with the Montreal Expos, Kansas City Royals and California Angels.

Selected in the 20th round of the 2018 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft out of Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, Brownsburg (Ind.) High School graduate Caleb Sampen had been in three pro games though July 10 — all with the Short Season Class-A Ogden (Utah) Raptors.

Caleb has picked up pointers from his father. But it hasn’t been too much.

When Caleb was getting started in the game, Bill was coaching his two older sons. Isaac and Sam played for the West Side Crusaders.

“I was just around,” says Caleb Sampen. “(My father) didn’t force any mechanics on me. He let me be an athlete.

“It wasn’t like I had a pitching lesson with him everyday.”

The elder Sampen decided when his older boys were reaching their teens that he would stop serving as a coach for their teams and he never coached any of Caleb’s squads.

“It was best for them to learn to play for other people,” says Bill Sampen, “I thought that was part of the process. I think that’s the best route for kids.

“I got to step back and just be a dad and enjoy watching them play.

“I just played coach when they asked me questions.”

In November, Samp’s Hack Shack baseball/softball training facilities will reach the ninth year in Brownsburg (5,200 square feet) and mark one year in Plainfield (7,500 square feet).

The Indiana Expos travel organization are in their second season and have seven teams in 2018. None of them have fathers coaching their own sons.

Bill Sampen says that policy for Expos coaches achieves a couple things.

“It allows us to be completely honest and give honest and objective feedback,” says Bill Sampen. “And they just get to watch their kid play.

“I know I enjoy the value of just sitting back and being a dad. The truth is they’re not going to play very long. Enjoy the journey. Don’t stress so much.”

Bill Sampen coaches the 16U National team, David Brewers the 16U American, Derek Hankins the 15U National, Nick Spence the 15U American, Isaac Sampen the 14U National, Leo Tobasco the 14U American, Tony Meyer the 13U National.

Calling the teams the Expos was not Bill’s call.

“My family decision informed that was what the name was,” says Bill Sampen. “You can see I have no clout.”

Bill coached the Bethesda Christian School baseball team for about a decade before starting his training business.

“It’s a very pure level of coaching I have now,” says Bill Sampen, “I appreciate that.”

During the school year, he has students from 4 p.m. on. But he is involved seven days a week most of the year as either an instructor or travel ball coach.

His 16U team has been in Georgia, competing against some of the best from all over the continent.

“Our upper age groups do more extensive travel,” says Bill Sampen. “We’re helping them get exposure. They get to see kids committed (to colleges) all over the place.

“It’s good for our players to see the skill level and talent that’s out there. We want to play people that the only way we can beat them is if we out-execute them.

“Do things right day in and day out. If you have a plan and do the routine things, you’re going to be in baseball games, no matter who you’re playing.”

Knowing that some players will not go on to college, they are getting to have experiences they may not have without travel baseball.

“We want to hope them grow and develop — not just as baseball players but as people,” says Bill Sampen. “It’s the life skills that carry past baseball.

“If you’re trying to win trophies, I think you’ve got the wrong purpose.”

Caleb Sampen grew up in Brownsburg and played at Brownsburg Little League until seventh grade when he started his travel ball experiences. He donned the uniforms of the Indiana Outlaws, Indiana Prospects and Indiana Bulls and Indiana Blue Jays.

At Brownburg High, where Caleb graduated in 2015, his head coach was Eric Mattingly.

“He always talked about doing the little things right and an attention to detail,” says Caleb Sampen, who played shortstop when not pitching for the Bulldogs. “You take care of every little piece so you’re well-prepared.”

At Wright State, Sampen had Greg Lovelady as his head coach and Justin Parker his pitching coach his freshman year before both went to the University of Central Florida.

“(Parker) always talks about lower half and using your legs,” says Caleb Sampen.

The next two years, Jeff Mercer was head coach and Alex Sogard led the pitching staff.

(Sogard) didn’t try to change me a whole lot on the mound,” says Caleb Sampen. “He was pretty individualized, which I liked a lot.”

Recently, Mercer became head coach at Indiana University and Sogard was promoted to head coach at Wright State.

Sampen also got the chance this past year to learned from Diamyn Hall, NCAA Division I baseball’s first full-time mental skills coach.

“We worked on routines and being ready to go,” says Sampen of Hall. “He gets you in that mindset and having self awareness.”

In Caleb Sampen, Bill sees a cerebral kid.

“He’s got an idea,” says Bill Sampen. “I can’t take any credit for any successes he’s had.”

The father does see some similarities to himself.

Bill Sampen developed his abilities while playing baseball and basketball at MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Ill.

“I see the way he moves and his athleticism,” says Bill Sampen of Caleb. “He has a long, loose arm and does things naturally.”

In two seasons at Wright State (2016 and 2018), Caleb went 14-4 in 26 games (21 as a starter) with a 2.92 earned run average, 90 strikeouts and 37 walks in 141 2/3 innings. He missed the 2017 season after having surgery on the ulnar nerve in his elbow.

On a pitch count because of the college workload in the spring of 2018, Caleb Sampen, 21, began his pro career with two relief appearances and a short starting stint. He was 0-1 with a 7.71 ERA, seven strikeouts and one walk in 4 2/3 innings.

Jeremy Rodriguez is the Ogden manager. Dean Stiles is the pitching coach.

The next stops on the Dodgers minor league trail are the Low Class-A Great Lakes (Mich.) Loons, High-A Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.) Quakes, Double-A Tulsa (Okla.) Drillers and Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers.

Caleb says he goes to the bump each time with an aggressiveness mindset.

“You’ve got to go out and attack with your strengths,” says Caleb Sampen, who uses a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, change-up, 12-to-6 curveball and cutter.

What about the change-up?

“It’s own own little mix I’ve perfected over the years,” says Caleb Sampen. “I use an off-set two-seam grip and throw it with my ring finger and middle finger. I keep my index finger off the ball as much as possible.”

Amy Sampen, a former Brownsburg teacher, is now an virtual educator and is the “boss” as co-owner of the Hack Shack, according to Bill.

Isaac Sampen (24) and Sam Sampen (23) both played at Parkland College in Champaign, Ill. Sam graduated highs school a semester early and joined his older brother.

Isaac Sampen went on to play at Eastern Illinois University and Sam Sampen at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla.

Besides coaching and helping with the coordination of the Expos, Isaac now helps in many ways at the Shack. Sam has an outside job and also helps out at the training facilities.

In his time around the game, Bill Sampen has seen an increase in research and scientific data related to throwing a baseball.

“It’s validated some things that should have been done all along,” says Bill Sampen. “It can be very valuable in preventing injury.

“It seems that injuries are still there in spite of new data and new science.”

The likely reason?

“It’s the intensity of weight training,” says Bill Sampen. “Velocity is based on arm speed and not body strength.

“There are big, physical guys that can’t throw hard.”

And yet 5-foot-11, 180-pounder Billy Wagner regularly hit 100 mph and won 47 games and saved 422 in the bigs.

Caleb Sampen, a 2015 Brownsburg High School graduate and former Wright State University pitcher, makes a delivery for the Ogden (Utah) Raptors in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. (Ogden Raptors Photo)