In The Dugout – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/17/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 17, 2002
Most freshmen student-athletes feel the need to make an immediate impact on the program, but for some, the jump from high school to college is too great and they redshirt the first year to get acclimated. Redshirt-freshman Mike Rabin sat out his freshman year to get used to college baseball.
“Being redshirted last year was the best thing that could have possibly happened to me,” Rabin said. “I came to Ohio State and I don’t think I was ready to play as a hitter or defensively, and working with the coaches on both aspects really helped.”
The West Chester, Ohio, native’s .377 batting average in conference play currently ranks him seventh in the Big Ten, but Rabin said hitting is the biggest difference between high school and college. When Rabin came to OSU, he was a left-handed batter and as he recalls, a “slap hitter,” but Buckeye coaches helped him become the hitter he is now.
“The coaches really worked with me to develop my swing and eventually I switched over to just hitting right-handed,” Rabin said.
The Buckeye coaches also helped him adjust to the overall better pitching he would face in college play.
“I got used to seeing the pitches, and the pitching location is much better in college as compared to high school,” Rabin said. “It is not so much the velocity, it’s more that the pitchers spot the ball and the pitchers put the ball where they want it. They are always in command of their pitches.”
Although the hard work put in during the offseason did not pay immediate dividends in terms of playing time, Rabin decided playing more aggressively might prove he could start for OSU this season.
Rabin didn’t disappoint. Not only did he prove to the Buckeye coaches he could start, he was named the Big Ten Player of The Week for his performance the week of April 15th. That week, Rabin batted .727 (8-11) with four runs batted in and an on-base percentage of .800. Rabin attributes his success at the plate to his teammates batting around him in the order. “In order to hit the ball I have to be seeing my pitches,” Rabin said. “I usually hit in the ninth spot with Christian Snavely hitting after me, so the pitchers want to throw me strikes and not walk me. The pitchers do not want to give me a free pass if Christian is coming up because he is one of the best hitters I have ever seen.”
Though Rabin is playing more like a sophomore than a freshman, he wasn’t as poised his first at bat of his college career in the first game of the 2002 season against UAB. He stood in the batters box in the top of the ninth inning with catcher Joe Wilkins on second and two outs in a 1-0 game.
“The pitcher threw me a fastball right down the middle but some how I got jammed and the ball fell into right field for a base hit,” Rabin said. “I ran to first but I did not round the base because I was so excited, and I just stood there while Joe scored. I just stood there, got reamed by the coaches for not rounding the base or going to second, then a couple of batters later I got picked off at second.”
