OPINION |
A dozen years have passed since Nick Petree had one of the greatest seasons of any pitcher in Missouri State baseball history and, for that matter, any pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball.
Now the Bears’ pitching coach, Petree sees a lot of himself in the top starter of Missouri State’s 2024 staff. Brandt Thompson is not overly big and he doesn’t light up radar guns, but like Petree, he always seems to think a pitch or two ahead mentally and has a downright fearless attitude.
“I do see a lot of similarities,” Petree said of the 5-foot-9, 180-pound right-hander. “He’s very, very fun to coach.”
While Missouri State’s pitching staff as a whole has been on a season-long search for consistency, Thompson continues to perform at a high level. The senior tossed six more solid innings on Thursday, April 11, as the Bears beat Illinois-Chicago 17-3 to open a three-game series at Hammons Field.
Happy to be on the mound after injury scare
Thompson immediately tipped his cap to his offense after improving his record to 5-0 in 10 starts. He could easily have a couple more wins to his credit if not for better run support or bullpen backing earlier in the season.
Then again, Thompson is happy to be doing his thing after taking a line drive off his pitching forearm in a March 15 start at Kansas State. The second hitter of the game sent Thompson to the sidelines.
“I thought I was gonna be able to come back sometime later that weekend,” Thompson said. “Then it started to swell up and I knew I was done for that weekend. Everything shifted to getting back the next weekend and I went to work with the trainer.
“I was able to get work done throughout the week and get the inflammation out.”
Since returning, Thompson has won three of four Missouri Valley Conference starts with a no-decision in the other game after leaving with a big lead. His earned run average is 1.80 in 25 innings since the injury scare.
“I’ve thrown the ball well,” Thompson said. “I’m executing pitches and just trying to keep it going and keep my body going.”
Just like Petree did back in 2012 when he threw a variety of pitches for strikes as he was named the Louisville Slugger National Player of the Year by Collegiate Baseball. Petree finished 10-4 with a 1.02 earned run average while leading the Bears into the NCAA Tournament.
Competitiveness, command keys to success
Thompson is also comparable to Petree in dialing his competitiveness up a notch with runners on base.
“I command the fastball and the cutter gets me out of a lot of jams,” Thompson said. “When I get down in the count, I use my cutter and I rely on that pitch a lot. Just mixing a lot. That’s my game.”
Strike-throwing is also his game. Thompson didn’t walk a batter against Illinois-Chicago and has issued only eight walks all season while striking out 48 in 45 innings.
“I’ve had good command for most of my life,” Thompson said. “That’s something that I rely on and I use it.”
Thompson doesn’t mind the comparison with Petree. He even embraces it.
“We’re very similar pitchers,” he said. “We think alike. We get along very well. Just our style of pitching is very similar, executing pitches and commanding the ball.”
‘Brandt wants to get better every time'
Petree said it’s especially interesting for him to talk pitching with Thompson. The conversations probably are similar to those he had with Paul Evans during his playing days when Evans was the Bears’ long-time pitching coach.
“Those conversations I had back in the day, it was about what is going to make me better the next time but at the same time, what is going to keep me consistent? That is the delicate balance you always have to continue. He’s the exact same way,” Petree said.
“Brandt wants to get better every time, whether it’s learning a new changeup or learning how to front-door a cutter or understanding what you have to do a third time through a lineup. All of those things help him be who he is.”
And that is the unquestioned ace on a staff that has to raise its level, from the weekend starters to the relief pitchers, in order for the Bears to make a late-season push. The victory in the series opener was the fifth in the last seven games and drew Missouri State to 15-17 overall.
In each of those five wins, the pitching has held the opposition to four or fewer runs.
“I think we’re building some confidence,” Petree said. “We’re getting some guys out there who are doing what they are capable of doing. Usually when you see some success, the confidence goes up and you keep rolling.”
Big offensive day helps Bears extinguish the Flames
The Bears put on an offensive show in the series opener, hitting six home runs. Two of those came from Lebanon’s Zack Stewart, who hit a two-run shot in the second and a grand slam in the fifth.
“We were happy to give him another win and he deserves a couple of more wins because earlier in the year our offense wasn’t doing so hot,” Stewart said of Thompson. “He’s a dog on the mound. I’m really close to Brandt and he’s a great guy. He knows what he’s doing. He will compete that day. If his stuff is good or if it’s not his best, he’s always going to give us a chance.”
The Bears continue the conference series against Illinois-Chicago with 11 a.m. games on April 12 and 13. The annual home game with Missouri, which usually attracts the season’s largest crowd, is set for 6:30 p.m. on April 16.
Busy baseball weekend downtown
Hammons Field is the place to get a baseball fix over the next few days. Along with Missouri State’s homestand, the Springfield Cardinals continue their season-opening homestand against the Wichita Wind Surge with a doubleheader starting at 5 p.m. Friday, April 11. The Cardinals follow with a 6:05 p.m. game on April 12 and 1:05 p.m. first pitch on April 13.
Springfield improved to a franchise-record 5-0 with an extra-inning victory on April 11, as Chandler Redmond’s single drove home the game-winner in the 10th inning.
Top pitching prospect Tink Hence and Ian Bedell are scheduled to start in the doubleheader to kick off the weekend, with No. 2 pitching prospect Tekoah Roby starting on April 12.
