Buckeye State Baseball

Courtesy of titans.uwosh.edu

Name:  Justin McDowell

Position:  RHP

Year:  Junior

School:  Wooster

I have a confession to make.  For the past week or so I’ve been raving about the quality of the pitching at the DIII level in Ohio.  I’m not ashamed of this.  There are some great pitchers taking the mound every weekend.  But what I need to confess is that when we decided to name a preseason Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year my mind instantly leapt to Justin McDowell.  

Like any fan of baseball, I was caught up in his meteoric rise from projected 3rd or 4th starter to DIII World Series game 1 starter.  It’s exactly the kind of story that makes sports great.  It’s also precisely why Tim Pettorini’s Fighting Scots are never out of the discussion for a national title each spring.  

So despite the great talent of our other selections, we found that after thoroughly researching and discussing our options we always landed on the Wooster junior as our choice for DIII Preseason Pitcher of the Year.  

After posting an unblemished 3-0 mark in his freshman season, McDowell entered his sophomore year eyeing a spot in the rotation.  With only three starts under his belt going into 2009, he would have likely been slotted in behind senior Mark Miller, junior Matt Barnes and, possibly, senior Anthony Trapuzzano if things had gone according to plan.  

In terms of long-term planning this is exactly how you’d like things to play out.  Let your talented sophomore cut his teeth in the back end of the rotation while your proven veterans take the bullets at the front end of the rotation.  Then in 2010 McDowell would be seasoned and ready to take over a much larger role.  But this is baseball and, as they say, anything can happen.

Before the Willard product even toed the rubber in 2009 he had already been thrown into slightly deeper waters.  In a heart wrenching turn of events, Matt Barnes was injured during his first start of the season in Chillicothe prior to their trip to the Sunshine state.  The five outstanding innings he threw that day would be his final outing of the season.  

With Mark Miller suddenly shouldering an unbelievable load, the Fighting Scots needed someone to step up.  Miller certainly did his part as the de facto ace.  He posted an 11-2 record with a 2.51 ERA and earned ABCA All-American honors.  But if the Scots wanted to make a deep tournament run they needed more help.  Senior Anthony Trapuzzano made a team high 14 starts going 5-1.  Junior Matt DeGrand (7-2) helped right the ship as well.  But it was McDowell who emerged as the surprise savior of the Scots’ season.

The 6′2″ righty didn’t just answer the bell, he did so in historic fashion.  In racking up a program record tying 13 victories, McDowell threw a record setting 113.2 innings in 2009.  Not only that, but he also led the team in ERA (2.38) and punch outs (94).  McDowell’s .239 opponents’ batting average was also best among the starters.  For all intents and purposes, McDowell stood shoulder to shoulder with Miller giving Tim Pettorini two legitimate aces.

To carry the torch as a true #1 at Wooster you have to not only be great, but be great in big games.  If McDowell had any nervousness his first time running the postseason gauntlet he certainly hid it well.  He started his magical postseason run by winning three games in the NCAC tournament.  McDowell was named NCAC tournament MVP to go along with his 1st team All-NCAC selection.

Heading into the unfamiliar territory of the Mideast regional at Adrian did little to slow down the momentum McDowell had built up.  Tim Pettorini handed the ball to his young sophomore in their first game of the NCAA tournament and McDowell responded with a dominant win (8.1 IP, 1 ER) over Concordia.  He came back and eliminated host Adrian with another gem (9 IP, 2 ER) in his other start.  To no one’s surprise, McDowell added the Mideast regional Most Outstanding Player award to his resumé.

The regional is a big stage, but the DIII Baseball Championships are another level.  Even a program with the storied tradition of Wooster would likely admit as much.  That’s what made McDowell’s performance in game 1 of the 2009 Championships all the more impressive.  Shutting down Carthage (8 IP, 1 ER) set the tone for the Fighting Scots from the outset.  For good measure McDowell also notched a two inning save during Wooster’s runner-up finish.  He ended the postseason with a 3-1 record, a save and a 2.27 ERA in NCAA tournament play.  Describing it as clutch doesn’t even begin to do that performance justice.  

Despite a heroic complete game from Miller, Wooster fell one game short of the Walnut and Bronze after a 3-2, 12 inning loss to St. Thomas (MN) in the title game in 2009.  McDowell and his teammates watched the Tommies celebrate 50 feet in front of them.  The Scots were that close and it slipped away.  With Justin McDowell back in 2010 the Fighting Scots are looking to finish the job.  Given his penchant for pitching his best when it matters most it would be foolish to bet against the black and gold no matter how big the game.     

Honors & Awards:

2009 All-NCAC, 1st team

2009 NCAC Tournament MVP

2009 All-Mideast Region, 1st team

2009 Mideast Region Pitcher of the Year

2009 NCAA Mideast Regional Tournament Most Outstanding Player

2009 D3baseball.com All-American, 1st team

2009 ABCA All-American, 2nd team

2010 D3baseball.com Preseason All-American, 1st team