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Baxter Enjoys SEC’s Intensity 4/7/2005 by Meggie Butzow Mike Baxter is on a roll. He leads the team in nearly every offensive category: average (.388); slugging percentage (.694); hits (38); home runs (5); doubles (9); triples (3); stolen bases (13); total bases (68) and RBIs (26). Last week the White Stone, N.Y., native was named the national “Hitter of the Week” after batting .625 (10-16) in four games and going 8-12 against No. 6 rated Ole Miss. In the process he drove in 10 runs, including four vs. Ole Miss in game two. He had a double in all but one game and was 1-2 in stolen bases. Baxter hit two home runs during the week including a three-run blast over right field that was featured on ESPN’s SportsCenter XPress Clips. While this litany of numbers clearly positions him at the center of a Vanderbilt baseball team that is just beginning to swing its bats and score some runs, numbers alone could not possibly do justice in characterizing the way that the junior first baseman has cemented his place within the team. More often than not, it is Baxter who is first out of the dugout to congratulate the teammate who just scored a run — when he is not somehow involved with the run production himself, that is. Just over a year ago, the then-sophomore transfer from Columbia University was splitting time between designated hitter and first base with Cesar Nicolas, who is now with the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. The gradual transition eventually saw Baxter getting most of the starts at first by the end of the season and throughout the thrilling postseason action, as Head Coach Tim Corbin began looking ahead to the next year — to this year. Now, two seasons removed from his experience at Columbia, where he wasn’t satisfied with the intensity of its baseball program, Baxter finds himself anchoring a solid Vanderbilt infield along with his increased role offensively. While he had his choice of schools, he somehow was largely overlooked by major college programs. Recruited by several northeastern schools as well as the University of Richmond, he eventually chose the Ivy League. “It came down to Richmond and Columbia, and I picked Columbia,” Baxter says, “but it worked alright because I ended up here.” Indeed. Ultimately, his decision to leave Columbia came down to a basic need for a different type of baseball environment, and he recognizes that such a need stems as much from the general culture of the area as it is a complaint about his former school. “I was doing well; I had no complaints about playing time or anything, but (the season) kept going and I realized it just wasn’t the kind of atmosphere that I wanted.” “So I started thinking about other programs, and obviously Vanderbilt was up there,” he recalls. “I came down here and met (Corbin), and then I decided to come here and I’ve never looked back.” That forward-thinking attitude has begun to come to fruition, as evidenced by his recent selection as the SEC Player of the Week. But perhaps it is Baxter’s attitude toward the game itself that is truly beginning to be rewarded. Originally a shortstop, he collected experience at third base at Columbia and last summer in the Cape Cod League as well. As a high school shortstop, he assumed that he would always patrol the middle-left side of the infield until an old summer coach told him that he would be a first baseman in college. “I was 16, and he broke my heart because I thought I was a good shortstop,” he laughingly remembers. But when that coach told Baxter that he would begin playing first base for him, in high school summer league, Baxter’s response was typical for him; he simply embraced the situation and said, “okay, I’ll play first base then.” “I’ll play anywhere, I don’t care,” he says. “I’d play outfield if I needed to. I’ve never done it but I would. I’m definitely not picky about that. And especially when I came in here last year, I tried to show that I could literally play every position, whatever was needed.” Baxter brings a similar approach to hitting as well. His great success in the third spot against Ole Miss, for instance, came after a weekend in which he led off for the first time in his career. Not surprisingly, he was open to Corbin’s creative suggestion and took the lineup change in stride. He does, however, regret a small comment that ended up in the newspapers. “The Tennessean quoted me as saying that (leading off) was ‘cool,'” he explains. “I read that and thought, oh great word, ‘cool’.” This is a self-deprecating first baseman that cares about not just his production on the field and his impact on his team, but also the way he comes off to the very general public. “Cool” is just not a descriptive enough word for him. “(Leading off) was something we talked about earlier in the week,” he continues, making sure to avoid the clich? word. “Coach asked me what I thought about it, and it was — not ‘cool’ — it was exciting. Right now, we’re just trying to find (a lineup) that clicks, and maybe we wont even find anything definite; maybe we’ll just take it as it comes, but really, as long as I’m in the game I’m happy. And even if I’m not, it’s not the end of the world, but you always want to play.” When he’s not producing runs from just about any spot in the lineup, Baxter plays lights-out defense at first, probably a result of his many years playing the hard-hit bouncers that explode toward the shortstop. “I think that if you ever play a shortstop at first, he’s going to be okay,” Baxter says. “You’ll have better hands, and the majority of the balls you’ll see are pretty typical for a shortstop; as far as the philosophy goes (at first base), it’s basically just catch the balls, or at least don’t let the ball get by you — block it, knock it down, whatever it takes.” Last spring, Baxter made it on “Sportscenter’s” Top 10. It would be more accurate to say that his glove made the appearance, as the Top 10 play was really a diving stop by then-shortstop Ryan Klosterman in post-season action. When a friend of Baxter’s told him that he saw him on the Top 10, Baxter responded characteristically, saying, “I didn’t do anything good.” “Yeah, your shortstop did,” the friend replied. “You just caught it.” First basemen seem to labor under the radar, with the best ones often underrated or underappreciated, as statements such as this illustrate. With the season that Baxter is having so far, though, he clearly is making a name for himself and his Top 25 team. “When you go to an Ivy League school to play baseball you kind of give away your dreams of Omaha, for the most part,” he explains. “Having that (postseason) experience is something I will never ever forget it, and (getting so close) makes me want to do it ten times even more. Going that far, and then having to go back home before Omaha is not something I want to do again.” From shortstop to third to first base; from White Stone, N.Y. to Columbia University to Vanderbilt, Mike Baxter has made his journeys. And while last year’s 45-19 team fell just two wins short of making that one trip about which college baseball players dream, Baxter has placed his team on his shoulders when it’s been necessary and looks only toward Omaha — but never looks back. |
