The Battalion
Friday
February 16, 1996
xas A&M
ARMED AND
GER
■f?7
ft'
With plenty of
pitching and a
productive off<
the Aggies are
ready to make
another run at
Omaha.
By Tom Day
The Battalion
Over a period of 26 years as a
coach, Mark Johnson has experi
enced and witnessed many changes
in the game of baseball. Picking up a
wealth of knowledge along the way,
the Aggie Baseball Team’s head
coach realized a long time ago that
baseball can be a funny sport.
“One of the unique aspects of our
sport is that you can play poorly
and win, or you can play good and
lose,” Johnson said. “You’re going
to have a lot of frustration out at
the ball park.”
Entering the 1996 season, John
son says his Aggie baseball squad
has the experience and tools to cope
with any problems or adversity
thrown its way this year.
“One of the qualities this group
has is maturity and leadership,”
Johnson said. “We have guys on our
team who have been to Omaha and
who have won regional finals.
They’ve experienced many peaks
and valleys, and when you play
around 60 ballgames, there are go
ing to be a lot of plus and minuses.
“If you aren’t mentally strong,
you’re going to have problems. We
spend a lot of time on our mental ap
proach and hopefully, we can get
through the tough times.”
Already four games into the sea
son, A&M is looking to build on the
success it experienced in 1995. After
a disappointing 31-22 campaign two
years ago, the Aggies rebounded
strongly last season, posting a 44-
22-1 record.
A&M was even stronger in the
postseason, qualifying for the NCAA
Atlantic II Regional and taking the
University of Miami to the final
game before bowing out.
Despite that success, however,
the Aggies had to overcome a slow
17-13 start.
“We were playing with a lot of
pressure because we felt like we
were better than what our record
was,” Johnson said. “We loosened
up, got on a roll and had a great
stretch run. As discouraged and em
barrassed as our players were, they
wouldn’t give in, and at the end, we
were only three runs away from go
ing to Omaha.”
Johnson and the team will look to
avoid another slow start out of the
blocks this time around.
“You always want to get off to a
good start so you won’t have to
challenge yourself mentally,” John
son said. “You want to have some
positive experiences to look back
on. When you start off slow, things
become a little bit of a grind, and
you have to put pressure on to get
it going.”
The 1996 Aggies return 16 letter-
men from last year’s squad, includ
ing six starters and 12 pitchers.
Headlining that list are first base-
man Jeff Bailey (.347, 9 home runs,
47 runs batted in), third baseman
Jason Stephens (.291, 7, 41) and out
fielder Chad Allen (.373, 10, 59).
Johnson said outfielder Jason
Tyner, a freshman out of Beaumont,
will be among of the new faces dot
ting the Aggie lineup.
“Tyner really stands out right
now,” Johnson said. “He’s an excit
ing guy, with speed, that can make
things happen. He’s the prototype
leadoff hitter.”
Despite the loss of starting pitch
er Ryan Rupe to elbow surgery,
A&M has plenty of returning talent
on the mound in the able arms of
Dean Mitchell (8-1, 4.33 ERA), John
Sneed (6-3, 5.08 ERA) and Tim
Clarkson (4-1, 3.86 ERA).
Assistant Head Coach and Pitch
ing Instructor Jim Lawler said to
watch for the emergence of Galve
ston Junior College transfer Matt
Blank among the Aggies’ sea of re
turning pitchers.
“Being a lefthanded pitcher, we’d
like to see Blank be one of our poten
tial starters,” Lawler said. “After
Matt, you’re going to see most of our
pitchers will be returning players.”
Employing a five-man rotation
until the start of conference play,
Lawler said Sneed, Mitchell and
Blank are the team’s top three
starters, while Clarkson will see
time as a reliever.
“Tim Clarkson threw a shutout
against Miami last year in the re
gional finals,” Lawler said. “He’s a
real reliable senior who we’ll use as
either a long or short reliever.”
Although A&M is looking to
spring out to a quick start, Lawler’s
top priority in the early going is to
distribute as many innings as possi
ble to his pitching prospects.
“Our goal in February is to decide
on the final starting rotation, deter
mine who our long relievers and
closers are, and to get them all in
the right order,” Lawler said. “We’re
trying to win right now, but also ex
periment and figure out which pitch
ers will be our top eight.”
Johnson believes this season’s
team is not short on talent and
stacks up with other Aggie teams of
the past. But more importantly,
Johnson said the 1996 Aggies have
experience and leadership, and that
can go a long way in the “funny”
game of baseball.
The Dean of Texas A&M Pitching
□ Coming off an 8-1 season,
Dean Mitchell is prepared to lead
the Aggies' pitching corps.
By Kristina Buffin
The Battalion
Battalion File Photo
Most normal human beings crack under
pressure. But there are some who thrive on
it. A&M senior pitcher Dean Mitchell is one
of those who crave pressure because it
only makes him better.
“There is a lot of pressure with the
pitcher,” Mitchell said. “The play
starts with the pitcher, it is like be
ing a quarterback. At times being a
pitcher is a lot of pressure, but
that is what makes it fun.”
Mitchell did play quarter-
, back at Midway High
School in Waco, but he de
cided to become a one-
sport athlete in college.
Mitchell joined the
A&M squad last year af
ter playing for two years
at Navarro Junior College.
He helped lead the team to
the conference championship
and was named All-Conference
in 1995. A&M Pitching Coach Jim
Lawler said Mitchell made a
smooth transition to Division I last season.
“He made the adjustment to the next level,” Lawler
said. “In the second half of last season, he was our most
reliable pitcher. He is the hardest worker on the team,
and he is always working to stay in the best shape. Most
guys just get ready right before the game, but Dean is
working throughout the week.”
Mitchell posted an 8-1 record with a 4.33 earned run
average last season. He only allowed 23 walks and
struck out 46 batters.
It is a bit ironic that Mitchell is playing collegiate ball.
When he was younger, Mitchell played a variety of
sports and did not really think about playing baseball.
“There was no immediate attraction to baseball,”
Mitchell said. “When I was young, I really didn’t have a
favorite sport. When I got older, I decided that baseball
was more fun than the other sports.”
The transition for Mitchell from junior college to
A&M was a bit easier than he anticipated. Mitchell said
his only goal was to start a few games.
“It was not as hard as I expected,” Mitchell said. “No
one made me feel like I did not belong here. In fact, I felt
quite welcomed.”
Most of the negative publicity surrounding student-
athletes is the inability of most to make the grades.
Mitchell does not have that problem. He earned a GTE
Academic Achievement Award last year for having bet
ter than a 3.0 GPR. Mitchell said balancing school with
athletics is tough, but one just needs to keep priorities
straight.
“It is pretty tough,” Mitchell said. “But it is just like
any other job; it is a matter of time management. I just
have to cut back on my ‘goof-off time.”
Mitchell was not bound and determined to come to
A&M. In fact, Mitchell was the complete opposite — he
wanted to be a Longhorn.
“It was the recruiting trip that attracted me,” Mitchell
said. “I liked the coaches and the atmosphere. When I
was here, I went to a couple of games, and I could really
feel the intensity of the fans. In general, A&M is more
my style than Austin.”
Mitchell does not have an unusually strong arm or an
arsenal of weapons like a 90-mile per hour fastball, but
A&M Head Coach Mark Johnson said Mitchell’s work
ethic makes up for those intangibles.
“We had high expectations for Dean, and he met them
and exceeded them,” Johnson said. “He is consistent and
a stable pitcher who gives everything 110 percent effort.
He is focused and a hard worker. He is one of the few
guys who will come to reach his full potential.” .
Mitchell has only pitched once this season and had a
rough outing. In the second game against the University
of Arizona last weekend, Mitchell was rocked in one in
ning for three hits, four runs, four walks and no strike
outs.
Despite his performance, Johnson said he has total
faith in his senior pitcher.
“I’m not worried about him as I might someone else,”
Johnson said. “I was surprised, but it is still early in the
season and the game was on the road. Of anyone else,
his performance will least likely affect him. I told him
not to worry about it and that it was just a unique situa
tion.”
This season, Mitchell will work on his rhythm, timing
and the delivery of his pitches. Lawler said Mitchell will
be nothing but successful
“He should not be as hard on himself,” Lawler said.
“He expects so much out of himself, but that was part of
our expectations of him. He works on it every day. He is
the type of guy who only will get better. He is someone
we can count on.”
AI
Feb. 8-10
Feb. 13
Feb. 16-17
Feb. 18
Feb. 20
Feb. 23-24
Feb. 27
March 1-3
March 5
March 8-11
March 14-17
March 22-24
March 29-31
April 2
April 5-6
April 9
April 12-13
April 16
April 19-20
April 23
April 26
April 27-28
May 10
May 11
May 16-19
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Mary Ha
UT-Panli
McNeest
at UT-Afl
Nicholii
at Sam Hi
Maine
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Continent
Classic
SWCFintl (Houston
Houston
at Texas 1
Sam Hons
Dallas B;:
Southwest
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Sam Hois
at Rice
UTSA
at Texas
Texas
Baylor
at Baylor
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Feb. 20
Feb. 23-28
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