North Carolina State University Athletics
TIM PEELER: McConnell Starts Anew For Wolfpack Baseball
2/22/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
BY TIM PEELER
“[Getting drafted] was a dream come true,” says McConnell, a 10th-round pick of the Baltimore Orioles. “Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted to be drafted by a pro team. I didn’t really think I was coming back to school. I was excited and overwhelmed. But it didn’t work out. Hopefully, I can come back, have a good season and do it all over again."
In December, McConnell was named first-team preseason All-America relief pitcher by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers, effectively naming him college baseball’s top closer. But, heading into the 2008 season, McConnell has no plans of seeing the bullpen this year.
No doubt, this is an unexpected and unusual path for the fifth-year senior from
No matter where McConnell pitches, he has produced ever since transferring to NC State from
He stepped into the closer role last year, primarily because of the Pack’s anticipated depth in the starting rotation, with Andrew Brackman, Eric Surkamp and Jeff Stallings penciled in as the Wolfpack’s weekend pitchers. Even as that rotation was shuffled around, McConnell remained the Pack’s bullpen ace, posting a 3-2 record with 11 saves, a 1.72 ERA and a miniscule 1.03 walks/hits ratio.
His performance caught the eye of the major league scouts, but his name wasn’t called until the second day, when the Baltimore Orioles took him in the 10th round, the 309th overall pick.
“That was a travesty,” says NC State associate head coach Tom Holliday. “He was as good a closer as there was in the country last year, and his numbers prove it.
“I thought [McConnell] dealt with it very well. He flat-out said, I am not giving up my education for peanuts,’ and what
Besides, McConnell says, he didn’t want to leave behind any unfinished business. He had invested more than four years in getting a degree in biology, and his parents wanted to see him carry that through. And he has dreamed of going to
“With what I have invested so far, not to get a degree seemed stupid to me,” McConnell says. “I also believe we have a legitimate shot of getting to the World Series, which is also something I've dreamed of.
“I have a friend from high school who played at
To get ready for this season, McConnell has spent more time working out with Surkamp, taking long runs to build up his endurance rather than sprinting in the outfield to improve his explosiveness. He’s re-introduced the change-up into his pitching repertoire and spent time developing his split-finger fastball into a more reliable pitch. He’ll still use his low 90s fastball and slider as his strikeout pitches.
He also plans to take some of what he learned as a closer back to the mound this year.
“I definitely learned some things,” McConnell says. “I learned to use a little more adrenaline, so that if I need to blow a pitch by someone, how to get that done. But, basically, I did the same thing I did as a starter, just throw harder.
“Mentally, I'm just trying to focus on getting one out at a time. There's really no difference there.”
Holliday, who has assumed the duties of pitching coach for the Wolfpack, doesn’t think McConnell will have any troubles switching back to being a starter.
“After closing for a year, if you switch a guy around, everything after that is easy,” Holliday says. “Once you've closed, there's nothing else that is all that tough.”
McConnell is looking forward to his role, and the opportunity to disprove any doubts baseball scouts may have had about his ability to be a starter or reliever. He has no idea which he will be in professional baseball.
“If I get drafted again and they tell me to go catch bullpen sessions, then I'ill do that,” McConnell says. “Whatever they tell me to do, I'll jump to get it done.”
Neither he nor Holliday discount a return to the bullpen this year if the Wolfpack needs him. He is, after all, considered by at least one organization the best closer in college baseball.
“I wouldn’t be opposed to that,” McConnell says. “I just want to win and I just want to help the team.”
And he has no regrets about his decision to return, knowing that he didn’t walk away from professional baseball. He just turned down the first offer.
“I've just sort of postponed the next part of my career so I could come back, go to You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
