Nathan Minnich knew this could happen. Already a candidate for one national award, the Shepherd University senior was the recipient of one this past weekend.
On Sunday, Minnich ? a 2008 graduate of Waynesboro Area Senior High School ? was named National Player of the Year by D2baseballnews.com. Earlier this week, Minnich was named WVIAC Player of the Year and a semifinalist for the Tino Martinez D2 Player of the Year Award.
It?s hard to say that the fun has really begun for the 6-foot-3, 240-pound first baseman/designated hitter. He?s been having fun in his chosen sport since he was a youngster. The only difference between swinging the bat as an eight-year-old and aiming for the fences as a collegiate superstar hitter is he?s that much closer to even bigger things. The stakes are getting higher and higher, and, with it, the glare of the spotlight and the accompanying chatter and attention and prognostications of future success ? or hindrances to future success ? will only become hotter as Minnich gets closer to the June amateur draft.
In the meantime, it?s pretty much business as usual for the soft spoken Waynesboro resident. In fact, he found out from a teammate about the national award, who found out on the Internet. When he learned about it, he didn?t have much time to bask in the afterglow. The Rams are preparing for the NCAA tournament, which begins Thursday in the NCAA Atlantic Regional at West Lawn, Pa.
?Before this year, I didn?t see it coming, but with my numbers this year, I still didn?t expect it but I feel I did produce enough to win this honor,? Minnich said Monday morning from Shepherdstown, W.Va., a day after Shepherd won the WVIAC tournament championship and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II? tournament. ?I didn?t know at first. One of my teammates came up to me and said, ?Congratulations.??
That Shepherd is still playing no doubt makes the award more meaningful, since Minnich plays on a team sport. Awards are funny that way, like a Best Actor Award when it takes hundreds of people to make a movie. To single out one person on a team raises that individual above other players, leaving open the possibility of bad feelings. Minnich said he hasn?t seen that. He also is guarding against complacency.
?I have to keep the same demeanor like I have all year,? Minnich said. ?It?s pretty easy when all the guys on the team are easy going. They congratulated me. Some of them gave me a hard time about it, but they just make it easier.?
It also poses a challenge to the major league prospect, who now steps up to the plate against opposing pitchers who know they are pitching against a national player of the year.
Awards, in so many words, are by-products of talent and potential. Throw in some word-of-mouth advertising (kind of like the campaigns for the Heisman Trophy), consistency on the field, putting up the numbers and a relatively trouble-free life and, voila, it?s ?congratulations? time.
?It?s hard not to think about it,? Minnich said. ?Everybody who is up for it wants to get it.?
It also helps when Minnich can still say he?s having fun in the midst of the ups-and-downs of playing a team sport with mixed results, until the Rams got hot down the stretch and won their conference.
?After last year (and being a semifinalist for the Tino Martinez D2 Player of the Year Award) I just wanted to be able to produce again ? go out and have fun.
?The last four years have been fun. Obviously, we had ups and downs. We set goals every year ? team goals and personal goals. The team goal was to win the WVIAC. My personal goals were to hit above .450 and hit 20-plus home runs, plus be All-American.?
So far, all the goals were met. The All-American award will probably soon follow, and, in a couple weeks when the Heisman Trophy of D2 baseball is announced, Minnich?s name may (or may not) be on it. He was a finalist last year (the top eight). The finalists will be announced next week.
Minnich has a .493 batting average with 71 hits in 144 at-bats. He paces the Rams in hits (71), runs batted in (68), runs (68), total bases (144), walks (56), home runs (21), slugging percentage (1.000) on base percentage (.645), and batting average (.493).
Minnich tops the NCAA II in batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, and home runs per game (0.46) in the latest statistics. He is ranked in the top six nationally in seven other categories. Minnich has set numerous career and season records for the Rams this season.
?We had to overcome a lot this year ? people quitting, being kicked off the team. We had a lot of drama on this team. We had to forfeit three games in the league because of an ineligible player. That just makes winning the conference even sweeter. We were projected to finnish eighth in the conference. We used that as a drive to get better.?
Minnich?s approach to baseball has ensured his continued success. From his steadfast belief in perservering to his tireless efforts to keep improving, Minnich is a clinic in uniform.
?Baseball is designed on failure,? he said. ?You have to bounce back. In baseball, you can have a hit three times out of 10 and be a hall of famer.
?The best thing is to stay in shape. Bad habits are going to come with playing so often, but you just have to keep at it. Everybody is going to have an off day eventually. You can?t let that get to you.?
The subject of the MLB draft is somewhere in Minnich?s mind. That, like winning post-season awards, is something that will take care of itself after Minnich has already taken care of what he can take care of.
?Obviously, I expect to get drafted just from what I?ve heard,? Minnich said. ?I really don?t know what to expect and by who. There is interest. It?s just pretty much the waiting game. It?s on my mind. I have to finish college before I get drafted
?It hasn?t sunk in yet. If I get selected ? or when I get selected ? it?s like ?Wow.? A bunch of teams are looking at me, giving me questionaires.?
Minnich has already answered some pretty relevant questions. The only real unanswered question is: Can he evolve one step further into a Big League player? That question will arguably be answered in the not-so-distant future.
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