Crowell’s Love of the Game Leads to Improvement

4/21/2006

By Jennifer O’Neill

As the national pastime, baseball is a sport which has a unique bond between its stars and America’s youth.  As soon as they are old enough to go to the ballpark or watch a game on TV, children pick their favorite professional players and then try to emulate them.  Vanderbilt sophomore Cody Crowell is no different.

“From the first time I touched a baseball, I loved everything about the sport,” said the left handed pitcher.  “My friends and I would play forever in our neighborhood and at the park, so I developed a love for the game.

“Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez are my two favorite players.  They have both been successful, and they both were Red Sox at one point in their careers.  I try to model myself after them and think about how I can improve to their level of play.”

While Crowell admits he has a lot of room to develop before he is ready to take the field at Fenway Park for the Red Sox or one of their Major League opponents, he has improved with almost every game he has played in since arriving at Vanderbilt.

In his freshman season with the Commodores, Crowell pitched just 16 innings.  With lots of baseball left to play in the 2006 campaign, Crowell already has pitched 59 innings.  Whereas he started just one game in 2005, he has started nine games this season and is now a mainstay in Vanderbilt’s starting rotation.  Crowell attributes his improvement to his love of the game and the friendly competition amongst Vanderbilt’s pitching staff.

“I came into the year knowing I was going to have a great year, but also knowing I was going to have to compete hard to earn a starting spot,” said the Harwichport, Mass. native.  “I love the sport, so working to improve is fun for me.  I entered this season with a lot of confidence and that has helped me be successful.  I have gotten a lot stronger and improved overall.”

Head Baseball Coach Tim Corbin agreed with Crowell’s personal assessment.

“Cody is maybe the most improved pitcher on the team,” Corbin said.  “His velocity and breaking ball have both jumped up.”

Crowell says he has gone from just wanting to throw the ball well to wanting to develop other aspects of his game.

“(Assistant) Coach (Derek) Johnson works with us on everything from mental aspects of the game to the little things like picking off runners,” Crowell said.  “He has taught me that it is not all about pitching.  It’s about pick offs and catching short hits and other things like that.  I have gone from just throwing the ball over the plate to being an all around pitcher.”

This newfound mental toughness has thrust Crowell to the top of the Commodore rotation.  He is undefeated this season with a record of 4-0 and an ERA of 2.29.

Crowell plans to take the rest of his sophomore season one game at a time and not worry about his record, but he hopes his passion for the game helps return the Commodores to post-season competition.