Clark College starting pitcher Travis Eckert has thrown five complete-game shutouts this season. At one point, he pitched 28 straight scoreless innings.
When: Thursday through Monday
Where: Lower Columbia College, Longview
Clark: First round vs. Bellevue, 9:35 a.m. today
Tickets: Adults $8, students $5, kids $3, tournament pass $25.
Though he was close to his Texas roots, Travis Eckert’s baseball career was barren.
It has flourished since his transplant to Clark College.
As the ace of the best pitching staff in the NWAACC, Eckert has been simply dominant.
His 0.70 earned-run average is best among the league’s starting pitchers. His 10-1 record includes five complete-game shutouts and a 28-inning scoreless streak.
Next spring, Eckert hopes his career further blossoms in some of the most fertile college baseball soil around. The sophomore will join Oregon State, currently the top-ranked team in the nation.
It’s a rapid rise. Last spring, Eckert was a relief pitcher for Temple Junior College, where he had an ERA of 6.05 in 38.2 innings.
“Recruiting-wise, things just weren’t happening for me in Texas,” Eckert said. “It’s a good program, but it wasn’t really my cup of tea. I wanted to venture out.”
Clark third baseman JL Tourville, a high school friend from Austin, told Eckert good things about the program in Vancouver. Eckert figured it was worth a visit.
Eckert didn’t blow Clark coaches away with his velocity, but he could consistently throw four pitches for strikes.
Over the winter, Eckert dove head-first into a conditioning program to add arm strength. Clark coach Don Freeman recalls many times during workouts where Eckert would do conditioning by himself while others were goofing off.
“Guys started to feel guilty,” Freeman said. “Now they see that he’s pretty darn successful and think ‘Maybe we should try that too.'”
By spring, Eckert had added five miles-per-hour to his fastball, which now reaches 91.
“All of the sudden, people started noticing,” Clark pitching coach Mick Ellett said. “And he’s got movement.”
When: Thursday through Monday
Where: Lower Columbia College, Longview
Clark: First round vs. Bellevue, 9:35 a.m. today
Tickets: Adults $8, students $5, kids $3, tournament pass $25.
On the web: <a href="http://www.nwaacc.org/baseball/championship/">www.nwaacc.org/baseball/championship/</a>
Though the extra velocity helps, Eckert believes his true growth has come in his mental approach to pitching.
“Confidence on the mound is everything,” Eckert said. “The biggest thing that helps me is just breathing. You just take a big breath, live in the moment, relax and do your job.”
Part of living in that moment, pitch-by-pitch, is knowing when to take a little speed off a pitch.
“For so long I thought velocity was the biggest thing,” Eckert said. “But it’s definitely not. You have to put the ball where the mitt is. A lot of times, that means taking a little off your velocity.”
Eckert isn’t the only high-quality pitcher on Clark. Fellow starters Colton Krueger, Nick Gagner and Kevin Hamman have helped the Penguins post a league-low ERA of 2.27.
Pitching is the main reason Clark (31-13, 21-9) is the No. 1 seeded entering the NWAACC Baseball Championships, which run today through Monday in Longview. Clark opens at 9:35 a.m. against Bellevue.
Clark’s stellar pitching is supported by an offense that finished near the middle of the league with a .258 batting average. Brayden Maney led the team with a .363 batting average and 33 RBI. Kyle Vanderkin hit .359 and scored a team-high 35 runs.
“It’s always nice to have someone out there that you trust isn’t going to give up a lot of runs,” said Vanderkin, who will play for Gonzaga next season. “It definitely helps us hitters relax.”
While Eckert might help Clark’s hitters relax, he excites pitching aficionados such as Ellett, who has coached for more than 30 years.
“I’ve been doing this a long time,” Ellett said. “He’s the best I’ve had.”
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