The Last Time

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Originally posted by ClevelandDad:

I managed to hook a fish that was so big, it broke a 12 lb test line as I was reeling it in - and that is no fish story The interesting part was that I had just hooked another fish and was reeling it in and it jumped two feet out of the water and got off my hook. As I was reeling the line in from the first fish a second monster fish hit that eventually broke my line

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Thursday, May. 28, 2009
Bortnick's heart set on taking Coastal Carolina to College World Series

By Josh Hoke - jhoke@thesunnews.com

CONWAY -- After motoring around the bases and sliding head first into home plate for an inside-the-park home run at last week's Big South Baseball Championship, Tyler Bortnick jumped up, pumped his fist and let out a yell.

It was a rare moment of flash during a career built on substance.

Coastal Carolina coach Gary Gilmore has molded his program with players many of them a little too small or a little too slow who share his blue-collar principles. Bortnick, the team's 5-foot-10, 175-pound senior third baseman, may epitomize that mold better than any other player in Gilmore's 14 years as head coach.

"He wills himself to be the best player on our team," Gilmore said. "Whatever he weighs, a large portion of it is in his heart. We're going to miss what he brings to us in passion and desire far more than what we'll miss in ability, even though he's a great player."

Bortnick is the unquestioned heart and soul of this year's Chanticleers. Players like David Anderson, Cody Wheeler and Nick McCully have more star power, but Bortnick's desire to lead his team to Omaha is unrivaled even on the coaching staff, a point that Gilmore made on Senior Day two weeks ago.

His desire to reach the College World Series is why he has willingly changed positions twice since his junior season ended.

After playing both third base and shortstop as a freshman in 2006, Bortnick started all but one game at shortstop in 2007 and 2008. But he moved to second this year, allowing talented freshman Taylor Motter to fill his shoes, and then moved to third after Scott Woodward was injured midway through the season.

"I'm here to do whatever it takes to get this team to Omaha," said Bortnick, whose team begins its quest against Kansas today in the NCAA Chapel Hill (N.C.) Regional. "If it means I've got to play short, third, second or catcher, it doesn't matter. As long as it puts the best nine out there, I'm all for it.

"And I like being that utility guy, being able to play here and play there. Hopefully that gives me a better chance to get on the field at the next level."

Bortnick has been an integral part of the cause this season, morphing himself from a role player into one of the team's most consistent hitters.

He is batting .374 with 11 home runs and 44 RBIs, all career highs since he became a regular starter as a sophomore. Now batting cleanup, Bortnick's production at the plate has helped protect Anderson, who bats third behind Rico Noel and Adam Rice.

He spent hours upon hours many of them by himself honing his swing in Coastal's batting cages.

"The way you get better is when no one else is watching," said Bortnick, who models his game after a player with similar intangibles, Boston's Dustin Pedroia. "You can do all you want for the coaches and let them see what you do, but the only way you'll really get better is when you're out there on your own."

Though his Coastal career will end after the Chants' final postseason game this season, Bortnick's work ethic and competitiveness have left an indelible mark on Gilmore's youth-laden roster.

"He works hard every day," Motter said. "He's the hardest worker on this team. He loves the game. He loves winning. He wants this program to win a national championship more than anybody in the world."

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Thanks for sharing CD. So true! The “last times” are special ---but so are the “first times”. My son ended his baseball career this spring. He called this 4th of July on his way to a lake house in the mountains of North Carolina. Lake Norman I think. He seemed very happy when he said this was the “first time” he has been able to go on a non-baseball vacation. He learned to water ski and ride a tube which he had never done in his previous 24 years. I have enjoyed this summer as much as any. No baseball trips after 20 years of carrying or following my son around. At last I can do some “other” things ---- or maybe I’ll just do nothing. Those times were special and I agree with you that we need to never forget the last times and enjoy them while they “are”. However the memories become sweeter with age.
Fungo

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Originally posted by ClevelandDad:
We were not complaining in this role however because it beat the redshirt role he had earlier in the season.

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A tip of the cap to TB

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Originally posted by MN-Mom:
"He loves the game and the story is no more complicated than that."

I'm not sure why I am sobbing right now, but I am. That kid TB is a special young man, special player. I hope I see him on a big league field some day.

Julie