College Players Make Big Impacts in Postseason

Kelly Kulina: Your Link to the Colleges

Take one look at the World Series rosters for both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Philadelphia Phillies and you’ll notice one thing: there are a lot of former college players! Whether coming from powerhouse Division I programs or the Division III ranks, college players have played impact roles for teams competing for baseball’s highest honor. Just take a look at both teams’ rosters:

Philadelphia:

Joe Blanton - Kentucky
Clay Condrey - McNeese State
J.A. Happ - Northwestern
Brad Lidge – Notre Dame
Jamie Moyer – St. Joseph’s (PA)
J.C. Romero – Mobile
Chris Coste – Concordia (MN)
Eric Bruntlett - Stanford
Greg Dobbs - Oklahoma
Chase Utley – UCLA
Ryan Howard - Southwest Missouri State
Pat Burrell – Miami (FL)
Geoff Jenkins – USC

Tampa Bay:

Chad Bradford – Southern Mississippi
Matt Garza – Fresno State
J.P. Howell – Texas
David Price – Vanderbilt
Andy Sonnanstine – Kent State
Dan Wheeler – Central AZ
Jason Bartlett – Oklahoma
Evan Longoria – Long Beach St.
Carlos Pena – Northeastern
Gabe Gross – Auburn
Eric Hinske – Arkansas
Ben Zobrist – Dallas Baptist
Fernando Perez – Columbia

In earlier blog entries, I’ve discussed the benefits that attending college can have on a baseball player. While it’s easy to concentrate on the player development benefits, one can’t ignore the learning opportunities that exist off the field. Learning to balance the training for the future with today’s performance and everything in-between takes time to master, and college is simply the best environment for that type of education.

Chase Utley is an excellent example of raw talent that had a chance to develop into All-Star performance in a college setting. Coming out of Long Beach Polytechnic High School as a shortstop, Chase was drafted in the 2nd Round of the MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, he opted to attend UCLA, where there were plenty of lessons for him to learn away from home. While hitting 15 home runs his freshman year, Chase’s grades were a major problem and put him at academic risk. When Coach Gary Adams showed no pity, Chase learned to balance his baseball career with a solid approach to academics and returned for his sophomore year a man on a mission. His success with the academic piece brought new confidence to the field, an increased work ethic (he learned a new position, 2nd base, at the request of Coach Adams) and a propensity for leadership. Not only is he now a perennial All-Star, he’s known as one of the hardest-working players in the game, and a clubhouse leader: three important ingredients for a postseason player!

Not only does collegiate competition prepare players for a career in professional baseball, but it gives them the experience needed to have success in the postseason. For the most part, college players are simply more composed in crucial game situations than players coming out of high school. They’ve competed at a high level, facing major league-quality players in college with success. More importantly, they have learned from failure on major national stages.

For an example of tough lessons learned, look no further than David Price. After helping to lead Vanderbilt to the #1 ranking in the country and striking out 17 Austin Peay batters in the 1st game of the Nashville regional, Vanderbilt was upset by Michigan with Price on the mound, who surrendered the game-winning home run. That’s not to say that Price lost the game all on his own, but in the 15 months since the ’07 Draft, wouldn’t you think that David has been using that tough loss for motivation? For an answer to that question, just look back at his ALCS performance.

As a wrap-up, I’m not making a case against high school players. Talent is talent, no matter what level you’re playing- just look at Cole Hamels, who has shown unwavering discipline in tough situations and simply dominated this October. Still, you can’t ignore the fact that overall, college players are more likely to move through the Minor Leagues and are more prepared to make an impact early at the Big League Level!

Kelly Kulina is the Senior Vice President of College Recruiting at Baseball Factory. Kulina is a former Associate Head Coach and recruiting coordinator with the University of Maryland. As a former recruiting coordinator for ten years in the ACC, Kulina has vast contacts and is widely respected throughout the nation. From 1989 to 2000, Kulina coached 46 players who were selected in the MLB draft.