By Gene Schallenberg
Even though it’s in the thick of summer, several members of the Bearkats baseball team are hard at work playing for various summer league baseball teams across the country and even spilling into Canada.
Though the summer season is approximately a month old, the Bearkats are doing well for themselves.
Most notably is Dallas Gallant, who will be entering his junior season at Sam Houston. The righthanded pitcher from Trinity is playing for the Hyannis Mets of the Cape Cod Baseball League.
As far as summer baseball is concerned, the CCBL is widely considered one of the top leagues and boasts many of the top college players in the country.
“Just last night, I faced the catcher (Micah Gibbs) and the third baseman (Tyler Hanover) from LSU that just won the College World Series,” Gallant said following the Mets’ 9-8 loss to the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox on Sunday night. “There are also other players in our league from Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt.”
Other players worthy of mention are Texas center fielder Connor Rowe and Arkansas pitcher Brett Eibner, who both play for the Wareham Gatemen, and Rice pitcher Taylor Wall, who pitches for the Falmouth Commodores.
In just six appearances and 13 1/3 innings of work, Gallant has allowed two earned runs and has an earned run average of 1.35. He also has struck out 18 batters, which is third-most on the team.
Due to the level of talent every year in the CCBL, Sam Houston State assistant coaches Jim Blair, an alum of the league, and Chris Berry used their connections and submitted Gallant’s name to the league last summer.
“With those summer leagues, rosters often start filling up in June and July,” Blair said Monday. “With Dallas, we wanted to make sure that we get things squared away early. They’re good baseball people over there and treat people well. We also wanted to make sure that Dallas got in with a good host family. You generally hear good stories about host families, but sometimes you hear about scenarios that don’t work out.
“I think this will give Dallas a sense of what pro baseball is like. In college, there are about four games a week, but in the wooden bat leagues and at the professional level, games are every day. We’re glad to see that Dallas is doing well with his team. A lot of times when a player does well playing with those guys, he’ll come back and play on a whole different level.”
“I was just about to pitch against Rice the first time we played in the Houston Regional my freshman year,” Gallant said, “and coach Berry asked if I would be interested. It didn’t really set in because we had a big game ahead of us. Once I got up here, I realized how big of a deal this league is.”
Wanting to make the most of his opportunity, Gallant came in with several goals.
“Mainly, I just wanted to get better,” Gallant said. “I really wanted to improve on my changeup and my command.”
Gallant admitted that he’s pleased with his progress so far.
“My fastball is pretty good,” he said. “I’ve been keeping it down better. My curveball has been pretty good also. I’ve also been working on my changeup.
“I’ve gotten a lot of help during my time here from the coaches and players. Those guys have given me plenty of tips like how to throw a changeup and how to hold the ball for certain pitches. My command has also gotten a lot better. I’ve been keeping the ball low. That was one of my problems last year.”
One of the major differences between summer baseball and the regular season is that wooden bats are used instead of aluminum and composite bats.
That was something that took some time adjusting to.
“I like pitching against wooden bats better because of the challenge,” Gallant said. “There’s not as much room for error. You’re forced to keep pitches low. Even when the swing is not a good one, if it hits close to the hands, then batters can get one into the outfield with the wooden bats. But if you keep it low, the hitters are not rewarded as much.”
The Cape Cod weather was another thing that Gallant had to get acclimated to.
“Our first two games were called early because of fog,” Gallant said. “That was pretty different. The fog came in and it was real heavy. You couldn’t even see the outfielders.”
It’s been an interesting summer so far for Gallant. He has experienced what life is like as a minor leaguer.
“It’s been really cool,” Gallant said. “We live with host families and get up and get on buses and go to our games. That’s basically the routine every day. The good thing is that furthest we would have to travel is 45 minutes, which is a real plus. I feel sorry for Justin (Jackson), who has to sometimes travel four to five hours to get to their games. The whole atmosphere is just great.
“Coming in, I didn’t really know what to expect. There’s not any pressure on you because everyone around you can carry you if you don’t have your best stuff on a given day.”
Even though Gallant will remain with Hyannis through the rest of summer, he already has his sights set on when the Bearkats take the field again.
“I’m really looking forward to it. Hopefully, I can take what I’ve learned here and be able to put it in games when I come back to Huntsville,” Gallant added.
Other Bearkats playing in summer leagues
There have been plenty of other Bearkats that have also been successful in their respective summer leagues.
Ryan Mooney, who anchored the left side of the infield all last season, has had quite a productive summer with the Springfield Sliders of the Prospect League, formerly known as the Central Illinois Collegiate League. Mooney has hit a stellar .439 with eight RBIs.
Jackson is another Bearkat pitcher who has had a good summer. In 14 1/3 innings for the Vermont Mountaineers of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, Jackson is 1-1 with an ERA of 1.26 in four appearances. Jackson also has eight strikeouts.
A couple of Kats, Brent Powers and Cody Springer, headed north of the border to pitch for the Kelowna Falcons of the West Coast League.
Springer has made four appearances and is 2-0. He has amassed a 2.11 ERA in 21 1/3 innings.
In 16 innings, Powers has struck out 14 batters and is 1-0 with a 2.81 ERA.
Peter Goudeau has spent his summer in Virginia playing in the Valley League with the Front Royal Cardinals. Goudeau is hitting .133 and has one RBI.
Incoming Bearkats
Mark Hudson, an outfielder who transfers from Alvin Community College and will join the Bearkats in the fall, has played well for the Victoria Generals of the Texas Collegiate League. Hudson is hitting .344 to lead the team. He has 13 extra-base hits, including a home run and has driven in 19 runs.
John Hale, a catcher who transferred to SHSU from Rice after the ’08 season, has been active this summer as well for the Brazos Valley Bombers in the Texas Collegiate League. Hale has hit .326 with six RBIs and 10 runs.
Doug Oney, another catcher the Bearkats will utilize in the upcoming season, is playing alongside Goudeau for the Cardinals. Oney has a .268 average with three doubles and six stolen bases.
