Via Grinnell College Baseball:

Grinnell College catcher Mike Nodzenski ’12 has been named a Preseason First-Team All-American by D3baseball.com.

Nodzenski, from Naperville, Ill. (Naperville North) earned All-America recognition as a junior from both ABCA/Rawlings and D3baseball.com. He claimed spots on the second and third teams, respectively.

Nodzenski is a three-time Midwest Conference South Division Player of the Year and ranked among the national leaders last season in several categories. He was fourth in slugging percentage (.850), fifth in batting average (.465) and on-base percentage (.556) and sixth in home runs (12).

He led the MWC in batting average, slugging percentage, home runs, RBI (47) and total bases (91) and was second in on-base percentage and runs scored (38). He established Grinnell school records for RBI and home runs in a career, as well as RBI in a game (nine), home runs in a game (three) and home runs in a season.

Nate Pierce as a high school sophomore

In the middle of watching “Catching Hell” for the first time the other night, I had to do a massive double-take as they showed all the Niles Renegades players–the team that Steve Bartman formerly coached–picketing in support of their coach.  As one player spoke, another emerged from the left-side of the screen on crutches; a familiar face and longtime friend and reader of The Golden Sombrero.

I paused the film, turned to my girlfriend, and said, “Holy shit! That has to be Nate right there!” Quickly, I fired off a text to him hoping for confirmation.  Sure enough, Nate confirmed that he was coached by Bartman and that was him in the documentary.  Here is our exact conversation:

Me:  So dude, I’m watching “Catching Hell” and swear I saw you in it.  Am I crazy?

Nate: Haha, yeah that’s me. You know he coached me, right?

Me: I knew it was you! Holy shit! Is that the Niles Renegades?

Nate: Yeah, Niles, and he went to Notre Dame HS too.  It’s funny, I had so many people recognize me.  People at work saw it and were like, you played for Bartman?

Congratulations Nate, you’re officially famous (kind of).

In conjunction with Dee’s post about our recent Grinnell College alumni weekend, I thought it would be a nice change-of-pace to post some videos from our glory days.

We’ll get things going with a yardball from Dee circa 2008.  He may have only hit a couple in his college career, but that no-doubt trot would have you think otherwise.  Things to look for: the light wind that accentuates his flowing mane; his Brandon Phillips-like speed around the bases; Dee screaming “Gotta Eat!” right before touching the plate.

“It’s gotta be the hair, Cotton. It’s beautiful! Feathered and lethal.”

Here’s a double-dose of Dee.  In this video, he demonstrates his defensive prowess:

Next up is yours truly, going yard and unabashedly pumping my fists before hitting first base:

I know, tough act to follow. But this just might top it. Here’s Ryan Harris getting knocked cold while trying to catch an infield pop up.  This is precisely why the pitcher needs to get the hell out of the way, unless you’re Harris, who lives for these plays.  Not only did he catch the ball, but he also received a few stitches to commemorate the play.

And now for the Sombrero’s newest staff writer, Jim Malewitz. In 2008, Jyme Tyme was an extra-base machine. He also happens to be a ginger, which frankly frightens the crap out of me.

And last but not least, me again.  This might be the best catch I’ve ever made (in the outfield). I was told I should have pimped it and flipped the ball to our fans, which would have only been for show.  It’s not like we can afford to just give away game balls like that in Division III baseball, folks.

 

Labor Day weekend across the United States marks in many ways the end of summer.  For students this means a return to the lab and the classroom.  For working Americans it means, well, I’ve never really been a “working American”, so I’m not exactly sure.  Regardless, at Grinnell College in central Iowa, Labor Day meant, at least for a collection of baseball alums, a return to the town and school that was our home for four years.  For this particular alum, it marked the first return trip since 2008.  In fact, despite frequent communication via text, email, and this blog, I had not seen Arlo (Mike) since we bid farewell to Robbie prior to his departure to London for veterinary school around three years ago.  Words simply cannot explain what it meant to see these people again.  In many ways the entire weekend truly felt as though I was still a member of the GC baseball team getting used to a new semester back in Iowa with my friends and teammates.

Grinnell College and Tim Hollibaugh, the head coach of the Pioneers, have shaped the lives of each player who has stepped between the lines for GC.  It is impossible to say what each of us would be doing had we not been teammates at Grinnell, but what each of us has done since we graduated is rather inspiring, at least, for me.  We all seem to be moving in directions that will allow us to be happy adults and positive contributors to each of our environments.  While we all probably had very busy weeks and months ahead, everyone seemed able to let go of work/school for the weekend and very relaxed as a result.  During our time together, I’m not sure any of us had what could possibly constitute a serious conversation.  Amidst an entire weekend full of inside jokes and recollecting our times shared years ago, we walked away from Grinnell still in nearly every way the same kids and ballplayers we were during our time in the scarlet and black.

The good fortune and persistent recruiting that somehow was able to land us all in the same small town in Iowa will never fully be accounted for by any of us, but there is no way to really describe how thankful I am now for spending my collegiate experience there with the group of guys that I did.  In talking with some of the current GC players, I was reminded of just what it felt like to be a student and athlete there.  They surprised me with how aware they were of who they are and what the game and the team meant to them.  The Pioneers of today make me endlessly proud to call myself an alum.  I am very confident that they will hoist the MWC trophy in 2012.

I don’t think the game ever leaves our lives, even after our play between the lines comes to an end.  During fungo work over the weekend, I was reminded of what it was that made me a valuable member of the Pioneer team and even before.  My hands in the infield allowed me to stay on the field well beyond what my bat could justify, and picking the ball up was always something I could do pretty well.  In watching Robbie and Arlo take cuts, I was reminded of just how well they swung the bat.  Robbie got more out of his set of tools than anyone I’ve ever known and continues to do so in London today.  Mike may not even be done improving.  His arm has held up better than any of the rest of the other alums’, and I think his bat has a little more lift in it than it used to, although it’s a little tough to recall since I had not seen him take a cut in three years.  It is my belief that if not for baseball and constantly trying to grip four-seams as quickly as possible that my hands could not adequately control a dental handpiece or forceps.  Labor Day weekend reminded me of that, but this time it likely was dentistry that had kept my hands in decent shape for groundball work instead of vice versa.

My experience at Grinnell is something I am very proud of, but I don’t think I understood how proud until I returned after some time away.  Seeing the new yard and the new athletic center as well as the current crop of players reinforced in me the positive direction in which the program is headed.  I feel very proud when Coach Hollibaugh suggests that Rob, Mike, and I helped begin the program’s climb, even though it is my belief that Kevin Byrne essentially taught us how to be captains.  As we’ve moved into our own lives independent of one another, this weekend, more so than perhaps anything else, reminded me that we are not and will never be fully independent of our teammates.  My time at Grinnell particularly shapes what I do on a daily basis, and I could not be prouder of the friendships I made while I was there and the time I spent as a Pioneer.  I would like to thank all of my fellow baseball alums for making Labor Day weekend as meaningful as it was for me.  Marsh, special thanks to you for helping organize it.

GO PIONEERS!

While most of the The Golden Sombrero’s writers and contributors remain involved in the game (coaching, scouting or playing), Robbie Unsell is in a league of his own.

Since moving to London to attend the Royal Veterinary College after graduating from Grinnell in 2008, Unsell has emerged as a star two-way player in the British Baseball Federation.

Earlier today Joe Gray published an article highlighting the league leaders, and Unsell’s name is practically plastered everywhere. The shortstop for Richmond, he leads the league in runs scored (29), triples (4), walks (20), and is currently tied for the lead with 26 stolen bases – he captured the stolen base crown in 2009 and 2010.

And we’re just getting started. Unsell also leads the league with a .463 batting average, and is two points off the lead in slugging percentage with .780.

On the bump, the right-hander’s five wins are two shy of the league lead.  He also leads the league with a minuscule 0.61 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 11.22 K/9.

Continue to check back as we track Unsell’s progress toward becoming one of the most dynamic and successful players in the history of the BBF.

This may sound cheesy, but we’re damn proud of you, Bob.