410 Forum — Sports
First Baseman Leads Offense
By Jesse Venn
It’s the first day of practice for the UNC Bear’s baseball team.
| Sandberg's 2008 Stats | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Team Rank | |
| Batting average | .328 | Third |
| Home runs | 11 | First |
| Runs batted in | 58 | First |
| Slugging percentage | .597 | First |
| Runs scored | 47 | Third |
| On-base percentage | .440 | Third |
| Hits | 66 | Third |
| Doubles | 21 | First |
| Walks | 31 | Second |
| Source: UNC Baseball Web site | ||
It is 5:15 p.m. in early February. The sun has begun to set and the temperature is quickly dropping.
Kevin Sandberg has been at the plate two times already and has struck out and grounded out to the second baseman. There are two outs already, and Sandberg needs two of his teammates to reach base safely for him to have another chance before the late-day practice comes to an end.
A walk and a blooper over the shortstop’s head bring the senior captain to the plate. All of a sudden there is a crowd of players on the grass. Sandberg, in a meaningless spring training scrimmage, has drawn his teammates out of the dugout and into the cooling air.
The first three pitches hit the catcher’s glove with a thud and the count is 2-1. Then on the fourth pitch, Sandberg sends the baseball on a high towering ride with an enthusiastic, ping! The gathered players all turn and watch as the ball lands in the glove of a freshman outfielder standing with his back against the center field wall. With a smile on his face, Sandberg walks to the dugout to the sounds of his teammates laughing.
Sandberg is a three-year starter for the Bears with the 2009 season being his fourth. Last season he had 11 home runs which were more than double the amount the second person on his team had. The first baseman also led the team in RBI, slugging percentage and doubles. Other than that, Sandberg didn’t do much else for his team offensively except for being in the top three in 10 other categories. The Bears lost half their starters from a season ago and with these losses, everyone on the team as well as their competition will know that Sandberg will be the one that will have to make something happen whenever his team needs a boost.
“Kevin is a guy that we can all count on,” teammate Phil Santucci said. “Whether it’s a home run, RBI, a single or something that he says, he is always there to get us going. He is no doubt, our leader.”
Sandberg needs to be nothing less than great this year to help his young team succeed and to get the recognition he wants from the pro scouts.
“He just needs to be himself this season,” head coach Kevin Smallcomb said. “If another team makes a mistake, they better look out because when the pressure is on and the chips are down, he is a very good clutch hitter, as you can see by the number of RBI that he gets.”
Sandberg says that the team is the most important focal point, but it is not the only item on his agenda. Last year he had a few pro scouts contact him but there were no firm offers or agreements made. He says that it is up to him to continue the things that he has always done to help his team win and make the scouts notice him.
“The team is first and I would like to win more games than last year but I don’t see why I couldn’t put up as good as numbers as I did last year because I am that much more experienced this year,” Sandberg said.
The senior slugger is not the only player on the team who has pro aspirations, but according to his coach, he is closer to that goal than any other player on that team.
“Kevin is definitely a pro type of hitter, with an aluminum bat or a wood bat,” Smallcomb said. “He is a big strong guy that holds his bat in the zone for a good long time, there is no doubt that he could play at another level with the way he hits.”
And I didn’t see any other player draw a crowd of his own peers on a chilly winter day to watch him take an at-bat in practice.
