Tyler Kuresa may have been a part of one of America’s best recruiting classes in the fall of 2010, but only one thing was apparent to the freshman infielder when he arrived at Oregon.
He had a lot to learn.
The older players had been with the program for at least a year, and freshmen like Kuresa were clearly starting behind the curve. High school baseball was one thing; playing for Oregon head coach George Horton was quite another.
Now, with the season fast approaching, Kuresa and his classmates feel right at home with the Ducks. That was made perfectly clear during media day at PK Park on Monday.
“When we first came in, there was kind of a big gap between the freshmen and the older guys,” Kuresa said. “But I think since the fall, us freshmen have been able to close the gap in a lot of aspects.”
A 6-foot-4 infielder from Roseville, Calif., Kuresa is just one member of an Oregon recruiting class that was ranked fifth overall by Baseball America. For Horton, it is difficult to tell which of the freshmen will be able to contribute early on. It all depends on how they respond to coaching.
“We tend to be a staff that asks a lot mentally in our system or signs,” Horton said. “There’s a lot of details to college baseball. Some guys absorb that like a sponge and some guys try to be coach pleasers and do every technique exactly like you’re teaching them, and it gets in the way.”
For this year’s class, Horton estimates that the breakdown is about “fifty-fifty.”
“Some guys are still going through the analysis process and some guys seem comfortable,” Horton said. “As it affects them, the most comfortable first-year guys have the best chance to play … it’ll happen for different individuals at different points in the season.”
For his part, Kuresa is not particularly concerned with playing time early in his career.
“I’m coming in not really expecting anything,” Kuresa said. “I’m working hard right now, and wherever my role falls, that’s kind of where it’s going to fall … the team comes first, and then my personal goals definitely come second.”
Another keystone of last year’s recruiting class is catcher Stefan Sabol. Horton has been impressed with his progress but is not ready to play him right away at his natural position. Rather, he has been taking reps at other spots on the field.
“Sabol’s playing a little outfield, a little third base,” Horton said. “He’s really come on of late, and feels like, to us, he’s relaxing and starting to play like Stefan Sabol is capable of playing. He’s going to be a hard guy to keep out of the batting order for sure.”
Baseball is widely known as a mental game, and Sabol emphasizes that the majority of his improvement has come in the form of understanding what is in front of him.
“Mental game has been a huge part of the learning curve here,” Sabol said. “Especially us freshmen coming in brand new, slates are clean. Coach Horton has just brought a lot of different mental aspects of the game to improve ourselves.”
To their credit, each of the team’s newcomers has committed 100 percent to the system. The team is as cohesive as it has ever been, and the older players are taking notice.
“Team camaraderie is just real good,” junior pitcher Scott McGough said. “We have a great freshman class that is fantastic and has stepped up so far. So I think we’ve got a good mix.”
Indeed, the future is looking bright for these wide-eyed freshmen. Standing alongside Sabol, Kuresa was clearly enjoying the scene at media day.
“I think we’re both just embracing everything that’s coming at us,” Kuresa said. “Media day is really exciting, it’s something that we’ve never really had to do before, and I don’t know about the other guys, but I’m excited to do it.
“I love talking to you guys and just taking in every part of it.”
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Newcomers hope to make their mark for Oregon baseball
Daily Emerald
February 7, 2011
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