Oregon second baseman Kyle Kasser has flown under the radar for much of his baseball career. At 5-foot-10, 176 pounds, he is routinely one of the smallest players on the diamond. But since getting an opportunity to start, he has been the Ducks’ most reliable hitter.
On March 19 against Utah, manager George Horton started Kasser in the second spot of the batting order, in search of “a little spark” on offense. Up to that point, his team’s two-through-five hitters combined for a .181 batting average.
Kasser provided that spark. He broke out with three hits, a walk, two RBI and a run in five plate appearances. He started in the two-hole again on March 22 and has been a staple in the lineup ever since. He leads the team with a .400 batting average.
Patience has been key to Kasser’s success. He was barely recruited by college programs in high school despite hitting .434 and earning first-team All-League honors his senior year.
“Being small was definitely one of my downfalls,” he said. “I was always overlooked.”
As the end of his high school career neared, Kasser hadn’t been recruited to play anywhere, so he sent a highlight tape to “pretty much all schools, just trying to go anywhere.” Because of that, he received a few offers, including one from Horton.
“Kasser, as a baseball player, is a winner. He’s a scrappy guy that bunts, hit-and-runs, executes, walks,” Horton said. “It’s not ice skating for him — it’s not style points or anything else. He just finds a way to beat you.”
Kasser started one game as a freshman, but made the most of limited opportunities. In the first game of the 2015 Civil War series, the score was tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Horton called on Kasser to pinch hit.
With just six at-bats to his name, Kasser worked the count full and watched the payoff pitch run just off the outside corner of the plate: ball four. The runner on third scored and Oregon won 3-2 on his walk-off walk.
Kasser remembers that pivotal at-bat as one of his greatest baseball accomplishments. Now when he’s struggling at the plate, he thinks back on that moment to regain his confidence.
“It kind of came out of nowhere, really, but it definitely gave me some confidence and let me know basically that I can compete at this level,” Kasser said. “It was just one at-bat, but it kind of settled me in a little bit. I realized I belong here.”
Kasser said his teammates were surprised because he hadn’t contributed much prior to that at-bat.
“People kind of gave me a little more respect,” Kasser said. “I believe that I’m a hard worker and stuff, but to have that show on the field I think kind of opened some people’s eyes to see what I can do.”
In addition to batting average, Kasser is the team leader in on-base percentage (.514) and slugging percentage (.533).
“I’m not the biggest guy, so I have to win it with mentality,” Kasser said. “I have to be up there saying I’m the toughest person out there — you can’t beat me. I’m going to give you everything I have, and I’m going to beat you with that.”
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