A day removed from sitting in the office of Vanderbilt University head baseball coach Tim Corbin, Andrew Dutkanych IV was in a rural banquet hall in his home state being honored by prep coaches as the best player of 2022. Committed to play at Vandy, Dutkanych had a meeting with the Commodores coach in Nashville, Tenn., on Thursday, June 23. “It’s always cool to go down to Vanderbilt,” says Dutkanych. “I’ve been in-contact with them for so long. It’s becoming more and more real as it comes up on the next few months. “We were just talking about what the fall will look like if that’s what my decision comes to.” The 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-handed pitcher who went 8-1, struck out 114, walked 25 in 54 innings and led his high school team to the 2022 IHSAA Class 3A championship game could find himself back in Music City in the fall as part of a traditional college baseball powerhouse. Or Dutkanych’s name could be called early in the 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft (slated for July 17-19) and cause him to go the pro route straight out of Brebeuf Jesuit High School in Indianapolis. On Friday, June 24 — the eve of the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches AssociationNorth/South All-Star Series at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion — and with parents Andrew III and Caroline and brothers Sam, Jack and Luke plus high school head coach Jeff Scott in the audience at Roseburg Event Center, Dutkanych was honored as the 2022 IHSBCA Player of the Year. “Duke” knows many of the All-Stars from high school and travel ball circles. He will root on other South invitees, but he will not play in the games (two Saturday and one Sunday). After his time in Marion he will head back home and be a regular visitor to the weight room. “Right now I’m focusing on building some massive in my upper body a little bit,” says Dutkanych. “I want to get stronger up here and take a break from throwing.” Dutkanych says he will coordinate his training with PRP Baseball’s Anthony Gomez will doing most of the work at the gym next to his house. “The last week all I was focused on was the State Finals,” says Dutkanych. “It was obviously a heart-breaking (5-1) loss (to Andrean). “But it’s also been really cool to kind of reflect on the whole high school career and the relationships I had with the seniors and the whole team. I just felt a lot of pride in the last week for just being part of that team for four years.”
Brebeuf Jesuit’s Andrew Dutkanych IV is the 2022 Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association Player of the Year. (Steve Krah Photo)
But Kody Hoese, who has 21 dingers for Tulane University in New Orleans, does not consider himself a home run hitter.
“I’m a gap-to-gap guy,” says Hoese, a righty swinger from Griffith, Ind. “I focus on hitting the ball hard.”
Hoese, who heads into an American Athletic Conference Friday-Saturday-Sunday series against East Carolina in Greenville, N.C., hitting .417 with the 21 homers, 15 doubles, 52 runs batted in and a .881 slugging average in 40 contests, says he worries more about the process than the results.
In 2018, Hoese was usually in the No. 3 or No. 4 slot in head coach Travis Jewett’s Green Wave lineup, and hit .291 with five homers, 13 doubles, 34 RBIs and slugged .435 in 58 games and was selected in the 35th round of the 2018 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Kansas City Royals, but opted to go back to Tulane.
He chose the school because of the coaching staff and the warm climate.
“Going down South has benefitted me,” says Hoese, 21. “I can do all the little things outdoors, like seeing live pitching. It’s helped me a lot.”
Jewett is in his third season in charge at Tulane (26-14 overall, 8-3 The American) after assistant stints at Gonzaga, Washington, Washington State, Arizona State and Vanderbilt. He led the hitters at Vandy and he does the same with the Green Wave.
“When it comes to hitting, he’s a pretty open guy,” says Hoese of Jewett. “He let’s us do our own thing and I respect that a lot.
“He let’s us play to your strengths. He let’s hitters figure out their swings and what their abilities are in their swings.”
With a similar build to Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant, the the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Hoese also sees that the big leaguer also uses long leverage swings to create power.
That power once launched a homer that went over the left field scoreboard at Greer Field at Turchin Stadium — a shot estimated at least 460 feet.
Where he hits in the order is not a big concern to Hoese.
“I don’t change much,” says Hoese. “I stick to my approach. I stick to my plan.”
Many factors go into that approach, including how the pitcher is throwing, the score, the count etc.
As a freshman, Hoese hit .213 with no homers, six doubles, 10 RBIs and a .281 slugging mark while appearing in 44 games with 32 starts (17 at shortstop, 13 at third base and two at designated hitter).
The last two seasons, Hoese has been a regular at third base.
“The major league teams I talk to, I let them know I am versatile,” says Hoese. “I can play short.”
“He’s a great guy,” says Hoese of Jennings. “He’s helped me not just on the field but off.
“He’s a great mentor.”
As a Griffith Panther, Hoese was an all-state honoree as a junior and senior. He was team captain and received MVP honors his sophomore, junior and senior years. He helped Griffith win a regional title as a senior while hitting .400 with four homers, 14 doubles, 30 RBIs and 20 stolen bases and being rated the No. 1 shortstop in Indiana by Prep Baseball Report and Perfect Game.
Hoese was born in Merrillville, Ind., and grew up in Griffith, playing at Griffith Little League and the Region-based Indiana Playmakers before going with the statewide Indiana Bulls in the summers before his junior and senior high school seasons. He reported to Tulane to get acclimated in the summer before his freshmen year.
While much of his time is spent at the park or in the class room (he is a finance major), Hoese has gotten a chance to see the sites and enjoy the hospitality of the Big Easy.
“The people there are terrific,” says Hoese. “A lot of players on the team are from New Orleans.
“It feels like home.”
Back home in Indiana, Hoese took lessons from Dave Griffin at the Dave Griffin Baseball School in Griffith as a youngster and has also received help from former Indiana University and pro player Eric Blakely at the Diamond Kings facility in St. John. He still does some hitting at their places when he’s in the area.
Kody is the son of David and Susan Hoese. His father is an account. His mother is in sales. His older sister, Kristi, is married with two kids.
Kody Hoese, a Griffith (Ind.) High School graduate, has been a regular at third base in 2018 and 2019 for Tulane University. Hoese was a four-year starter at shortstop in high school and has played short for the Green Wave. He was selected in the 2018 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, but opted to go back to school for his junior season. (Tulane University Photo)
Kody Hoese, a Griffith (Ind.) High School graduate and Tulane University junior, goes into the weekend hitting .417 with the 21 home runs, 15 doubles, 52 runs batted in and a .881 slugging average in 40 contests. He leads NCAA Division I baseball in home runs. (Tulane University)
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