Bowling Green State University Athletics
A big hit at BG: Start grad Hudak Falcons' top hitter
April 27, 2005 | Baseball
April 26, 2005
Bowling Green, Ohio -
Andy Hudak has often used others as inspiration.
When Hudak couldn't stand up straight in the weeks before his back surgery two years ago, he thought about Keith Laughlin, his Bowling Green State University teammate who had elbow surgery the season before.
When Hudak worked on his hitting in the offseason, he thought about Derrick Peterson, his best friend and fellow Start alum who was a 2004 Cleveland Indians draft pick.
When Hudak plans for life after baseball, he thinks about Danny Schmitz, his BG coach who is closing in on 400 wins, and how much he has helped him.
This season it's others who are looking to Hudak for encouragement. In trying to help his team return to the Mid-American Conference tournament, Hudak, a senior, is leading the MAC in hitting and runs batted in, and is in the top five in six other offensive categories. The Falcons (23-11) play Xavier tomorrow at Steller Field at 3 p.m.
"If the young players on the team are smart, they're watching to see how Andy does things," Schmitz said. Rotating between first and third base for the Falcons, Hudak has been providing the kind of senior leadership he wanted, from the field instead of the dugout. After missing all of 2003 recovering from back surgery to alleviate a herniated disc he suffered from lifting weights, no one was sure if Hudak could return to the level glimpsed in his sophomore season.
In 2002, Hudak hit .374 with 57 RBIs and the Falcons won the MAC regular-season championship. He wasn't sure exactly when he injured his back, but he had months of pain leading up to the surgery. The February 2003 procedure took Hudak six months to recover from physically. And mentally, he realized later, his focus wasn't ideal in last year's spring season. Hudak's batting average stayed up, but he had just 32 RBIs and wasn't happy with himself.
"I think I kind of used my injury as an excuse," Hudak said. "When I looked back on it, it just kind of made me sick, really. It's not like I was lazy, I just don't know if I gave that extra something."
So Hudak set a goal to work out a couple more times a week and get in the best shape he's ever been in. Working with Schmitz, he also changed his hitting stance to give him more power. The day after fall baseball season ended, Schmitz suggested to Hudak that he was doing fine using his strong upper body, but he could get a lot more if he used his lower body too. So they closed his stance a bit and implemented a front-leg kick. Schmitz said he noticed the stance by watching Baseball Tonight highlights. The hitters using it were all over them.
The change has helped, with Hudak hitting .381 with 39 RBIs. Hudak has had two multi-homer games this season, including last week's three home runs against Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne. He was named MAC West player of the week yesterday for the second time this season, for his 5-for-7, 6-RBI week.
Hudak wants to finish his college career with another MAC tournament appearance, and the Falcons are contending. Bowling Green is third in the MAC West, with the top six teams in the MAC making the conference tournament.
But he's also thinking about the next level. It's easy to keep the pros in mind when he talks to best bud Peterson, currently in extended spring training with the Indians. Hudak and Peterson were part of Start's 2000 Division I state championship team.
"He keeps telling me that I can play there," Hudak said. "He tells me to keep hitting, every time I talk to him."
Hudak also talks with former BG star Kelly Hunt, currently in the Detroit Tigers organization.
"Whenever I hear about those guys, the things they're doing, it connects that I know people that are doing it well, and it gives me a little extra motivation," Hudak said.
Not only has Hudak enjoyed the luxury of hitting just ahead of popular prospect Nolan Reimold in the lineup, he's benefiting from his teammate in other ways. There are pro scouts at almost every BG game observing Reimold, but they watch others as well.
"The nice thing about having a guy like Nolan, who is getting the attention he is, the right people are coming out to see the team play," Schmitz said. "Everybody's getting that opportunity."
Hudak has filled out a few questionnaires for pro teams, and he is optimistic.
"It only takes one," he said.
Contact Maureen Fulton at: mfulton@theblade.com or 419-724-6160.
