Brooks Kettering adapting to life as Redhawks’ lone freshman

Much has been said about the makeup of the Southeast Missouri State baseball roster comprised almost exclusively of junior college transfers.

However, standing out in that experienced roster is SEMO’s lone freshman, second baseman Brooks Kettering.

"He's a fantastic kid," SEMO head coach Andy Sawyers said earlier this season. "He cares about the right things. He's going to have a wonderful career.”

Kettering, who was recruited out of Glendale High School in Springfield, Missouri, is enjoying a unique freshman year in which he tries to fit in with a team filled with juniors and seniors. Both Sawyers and SEMO football coach Tom Matukewicz have favored recruiting the 22-year-old adult over the 18-year-old kid.

Kettering is proving to be the exception of their strategy with a solid .277 batting average in 43 starts for the 22-22 Redhawks.

“It doesn’t really feel like I’m a freshman,” Kettering said. “Everyone treats me the same and we all have such good chemistry. It’s just been fun out here getting to play baseball with every guy that I’ve gotten close with over the past eight months.

“I felt like I fit in and it just felt nice to feel that coming into my first year of college baseball,” he said.

With a lot of newcomers on the team, Kettering felt like there was an opportunity when the previous summer started to bond with his new teammates and become one with the team.

“We all just did a bunch of stuff over the offseason, building together, working for each other and that built a lot of relationships,” Kettering said. “It really helps in the long run.”

Kettering said fellow everyday infielders Peyton Leeper and Ben Palmer helped him adapt to life in college baseball the most.

“I’m a middle infielder like they are so I spent the most time with them,” Kettering said. “Peyton helped me out even with non-baseball related things like how to get around campus, like find different places to go. So it’s nice coming in immediately and having someone there to help me out, but not just them, everyone else has impacted me as well.”

Kettering said the increase in pitching velocity has been the biggest difference between college and high school baseball. His recent home run in an 8-5 win over Southern Illinois is proof he has made the adjustment.

“I don’t see too many 90 mph arms in high school baseball,” Kettering said. “Now you see it almost every day, but like just the amount of times that they throw an off-speed pitch, different tendencies. Teams know my weaknesses, teams know my strengths so they’re pitching in a way to get around to me. So like trying to figure out how to change myself as a hitter going from high school to college, it’s a completely different game.”

Southeast Missouri State pitcher Kyle Miller throws against Morehead State on Sunday, April 28, at Capaha Field.Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

After winning the first game of their weekend series against Moorehead State on Friday, the Redhawks dropped back-to-back games on Saturday and Sunday by allowing the best offense in the Ohio Valley Conference to score 10 runs or more in every game and taking advantage of the Redhawks’ bullpen.

On Saturday, Ty Stauss hit his eighth home run of the season to tie the game 3-3 in the fifth inning and Josh Cameron drove in a run in the seventh to later pull the Redhawks within one run in a 5-4 game.

The Eagles then went on to score five runs in the eighth inning and three more in the ninth inning to win 13-4. Isaias Guzman homered and led the Eagles with four RBI while Roman Kuntz added to his OVC-leading home run total with his 22nd.

On Sunday, the Redhawks built up an 8-3 lead in the third inning after a five-run inning highlighted by Cole Warehime hitting his third home run of the season.

Southeast's Cole Warehime hits a home run on Sunday, April 28, against Morehead State at Capaha Field. Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

The Eagles stormed back with a four-run fourth inning highlighted by a two-run home run by Davis Germann. They took a 10-8 lead after a three-run sixth inning, starting with a two-run double by Colton Becker. The Eagles added an insurance run in the ninth inning.

The series loss has the Redhawks (10-8) in a five-way tie for second place in the OVC, one game behind Little Rock (11-7) for first place.

The Redhawks have three weekend series left before the OVC Tournament on May 22, in Marion, Illinois. Fortunately for SEMO, the next two are against the two teams in the bottom of the standings.

The Redhawks host Evansville on Tuesday, April 30, where they will pay tribute to the St. Louis Browns, who held spring training in Cape Girardeau and went to the World Series in 1944.