Catching on

By Josh Griffin

The game of baseball has the ability to sharply turn hope into devastation. Few understand this as well as junior catcher Jim Wallace, who suffered a broken left fibula in his freshman year. In a game versus San Francisco, his leg was swiped out from underneath him while attempting a double play.

"I was finally starting to feel comfortable with the college scene, and feeling like I belonged at this level," said Wallace.

The biggest backlash of the injury came when Wallace was forced to sit out the entire summer league season.

"Summer ball is the key to everyone's success at this level, because it is a time where you can just go and relax, get away from the intensities of the season, and go work on the things that you need to work on," Wallace said.

After hitting .253 with four home runs and 18 RBIs in his abbreviated freshman season, he fell to a disappointing .233 average his sophomore year, with just three home runs and 25 RBIs. After his dismal sophomore season, summer ball could not have come fast enough.

"This past summer I played summer ball, and I improved a ton," Wallace said. "It's hard to say how much better I got, other than the fact that by not playing after freshman year, I didn't get any better at all."

The positive effects of summer ball on Wallace's game are clear as he is putting the finishing touches on one of the finest sea

sons in the history of Bronco baseball. Going into the final weekend of regular season play, he is batting at a .335 clip, with 12 home runs and 43 RBIs.

The season's take off came at the outset of spring, as Wallace went on a terror through the month of April that has yet to stop.

In addition to his .444 batting average in April, he hit more home runs (eight) that month than in his first two seasons combined (seven).

"There were two key things that I can pinpoint [as causes for success]," said Wallace. "At the plate, rather than sitting back on everything, I have better balance and I've been getting out in front of the ball a little bit more. It's allowed me to see the breaking ball a little better. The other thing was the mental aspect, in going out there and finding a comfort zone."

While those are two key aspects to success in any sport, a lot of hard work was also responsible for this performance.

"He has come from a guy who hit .240 last year to a guy who has made himself one of the best catchers on the west coast," said head coach Mark O'Brien. "In order to do that, the bottom line is that you're doing that yourself."

While his offensive game jumps off the stat sheet, Wallace's love for the game results from playing defensively.

"If I didn't catch, I probably wouldn't play baseball," said Wallace. "Even if I go 0 for 4 with four strikeouts, I can still contribute a lot behind the plate."

Although defense may keep him playing, the humble Wallace quickly points out where he needs to improve for next season.

"I am a little disappointed in my performance this year behind the dish, and I know that I can do better helping the pitchers," he said. "I have set some goals for myself for the summer, and a lot have to do with my defense."

With a full season of summer ball on the horizon, look for him to reach his defensive goals sometime in 2003.