Deep Creek grad and ODU slugger is in the zone

NORFOLK

Frustration was creeping up on Old Dominion first baseman Chris Baker early last season.

A four-year varsity player and standout at Deep Creek High School, Baker hit .238 and played sparingly as a freshman at ODU, then missed the 2009 season because of a broken left wrist.

When Baker started the 2010 season in an 8-for-42 rut, it cost him a spot in the starting lineup.

"It wasn't really a doubting thing, it was more of: 'What do I have to do?' " Baker said. "I felt I was seeing the ball pretty well. I felt I was swinging pretty well. I just wasn't getting results."

Monarchs assistant coach Tag Montague, who works with the hitters, realized Baker didn't need to adjust his swing. He just needed to stop pressing.

"When you fail, you start to question yourself," Montague said. "He was rushing himself and getting beat on pitches I knew he could hit. I just had to calm him down."

On March 23 of last season, Baker went 1 for 3 in a loss at Norfolk State. He wasn't written into the lineup in the Monarchs' next three games, but his mind was at ease. It was his first hit in three weeks.

What followed was one of the nation's best hitting exhibitions last season. Including the NSU game, Baker recorded a hit in each of his final 28 games. He went 51 for 118 in that span and finished with a team-high .369 average.

"It just seemed like whatever they were throwing me, I wasn't really thinking much," Baker said. "I was just sitting there, seeing pitches in the zone and hitting them."

Baker has remained in the zone this season. He started the year 11 for 24, and his hitting streak grew to 34 games, briefly tied for longest in the nation.

Though his average has tailed off to .299, his power numbers are up. After hitting eight home runs last season, he already has six, tied for ninth in the Colonial Athletic Association heading into Wednesday's games. His 72 total bases rank eighth, his team-high 35 RBIs rank fourth. His 14 doubles rank first.

That success doesn't surprise ODU interim coach Nate Goulet, who came to ODU as an assistant before the 2006 season.

"He's such a smarter hitter now than he was his first two years for us," Goulet said. "He knows what pitchers are trying to do to him, and he'll make adjustments throughout the game."

Deep Creek coach Bill Partain likes to tell a story about a game during Baker's sophomore season.

Partain said at times, Baker let his elbow fly out while swinging, and struck out in his first at-bat. So Partain reminded him to stay closed in his swing.

"Chris took about 10 practice swings after that," Partain said. "Next at-bat, he hit a home run. He's one of those kids that was teachable."

Baker has needed to make adjustments this season. The hitting streak raised opponents' awareness. They're throwing him more off-speed pitches and fewer pitches in the strike zone.

The cleanup hitter in almost every game, Baker admits he often tries to do too much. After the streak reached 34 games, he went 1 for 12.

"They were making good pitches to get me out, and I was also getting myself out by swinging at pitches I shouldn't have," he said.

Before this season, Goulet had individual meetings with players. His main message to Baker was don't try to do too much. It's a message he's needed to reiterate throughout the season, but, it seems to be sinking in.

Baker has hit .300 during a current six-game hitting streak, compiling five RBIs and four runs in that time. And his hitting is a main reason the Monarchs are a game out of first in the CAA after being picked to finish seventh.

"I've felt a little bit better lately," Baker said. "Hopefully I can get back on the right track here heading into the last stretch."