BELTON — When the UMHB Baseball program wrapped up its annual banquet this past Sunday evening, head coach Mike Stawski took to X/Twitter with a couple quick thoughts.
“Banquet night tonight,” he began. “What a great night every year to remember the accomplishments of last season and get momentum going into this season.
And on the last line, he wrote: “The overall theme of the night…this group is special.”
“It’s coming more from the guys than me,” Stawski said, when asked about what makes this year’s squad stand out. “The players have told me, I’ve heard it in the dugout, in the stretch line. We had our banquet and so I heard it from parents as well. This group has really meshed and gelled. They’re pulling for each other. Guys at the same position that are fighting for spots cheering each other on when there’s success involved, and are picking each other up when there’s failure involved.”
That characteristic, even for as much as buzzwords like “culture” and “chemistry” are used when talking about the ideal foundation of a team, is difficult to find. Competition for playing time, whether it be increased innings out of the bullpen or a starting spot in the lineup, seems to naturally breed rivalry.
There is no question that this group—a balanced combination of multi-year veterans, up-and-coming freshmen, and quality transfers—is pushing each other every day. But the approach to competition within the spring training portion of this season has seemed far healthier.
“We had two guys fighting it out for the same spot, and one guy hit a home run,” Stawski recalled. “The guy that he was fighting it out with was the loudest one on the field cheering him on. It’s that kind of vibe that’s going around the team.”
Stawski was recently asked by an observer how he managed to put together a team that fits so well together. Without hesitation or a hint of sarcasm, he replied simply, “I don’t know.” The coaching staff’s recruiting philosophy certainly plays a role, identifying freshmen and transfers that aren’t just talented but have the intangibles needed to coalesce with what Stawski & Co. are continually building in Belton. But once everyone gets on the field, the chemistry almost has to happen naturally. It can’t be forced.
“Hunter Jones and I have been handling all the hitters, so we’re around them a lot,” Stawski noted. “I just keep saying that we have to keep our attitude the same, keep our energy the same, keep our process the same. Because what we’re doing is obviously helping that energy on their end. But the players are the ones creating this gel. It’s exciting. I know we’re going to put 10 guys out there who are going to help us literally win the game on Friday, but it’s going to take a lot more than those 10 guys to really win this season. The players know that, and I think that’s why it’s been important for them to mesh in the way they have.”
Coming off a 24-17 campaign in 2024, one that saw numerous program milestones reached and UMHB record its best win-loss mark in a decade, a new season begins for The Cru on Friday afternoon. In the program’s earliest start to a season in Stawski’s tenure, UMHB faces Austin College in a three-game set, with Friday’s 7 p.m. opener followed by a 12 p.m. Saturday doubleheader.
Opening the season against the ‘Roos for the third time in the last four years, UMHB’s roster has some notable differences this season, following the graduation of a few key position players. That graduating group includes Rhett Grosz (50 RBIs, 7 HR in ‘24), Kaden deBerardinis (.324 batting average in ‘24), but the voids left behind will be offset by the returners. Senior Carson Hagan headlines the infield, after leading The Cru in runs scored (38) and stolen bases (38) last spring, and fellow seniors Cam Talburt (.282 batting average in ‘24), and Riley Bender (5 HR in ‘24).
That trio, along with a handful of others, provide UMHB with a solid foundation from an offensive standpoint. But the incoming transfers should factor into the lineup early on as well. Stawski brought in 10 transfers, with seven of those listed as position players, including John Van Huis, who was ranked as the No. 40 outfielder in Texas in the Class of 2024 by Perfect Game. Alejandro Sanchez III, from D-II Oklahoma Christian, and Jasson Hemmerling Jr., from D-II UT-Permian Basin, will also be newcomers to watch.
Even with several new faces in the program, Stawski made mention of the fact that the transfers have found their fit quickly. Even the players who joined the roster in January have meshed well, which gives hope that UMHB will hit the ground running in this 2025 campaign.
“It’s funny because transfers in most groups are just that,” Stawski began. “They transfer in and you have to get them acclimated to the program and it takes some time. But because we recruit high-character guys, their transition into the program is so unique and easy.
“Sometimes I forget who the transfers are and when they transferred in. We added seven new guys at the break, and I promise you, if you came to practice right now, you wouldn’t be able to say, ‘Oh, I can tell that guy right there isn’t meshing. You can see he’s an outsider and doesn’t know anyone else yet.’ It’s a testament to the guys we have on the team.
“The talent we brought in is tremendous. It will help right away and we’re going to count on some of those guys to not only hit in the middle of the order, but some of those guys will pitch in the rotation and be first out of the bullpen. It’s a cool combination of returners, guys like the Carson Hagans of the world, and Cam Talburt, Riley Bender, and James McGlumphy, who are all familiar names to our fans. But then you have a guy like Jasson Hemmerling, who is going to catch a bunch. And Alejandro Sanchez, who will play short. Then there’s JC Hughes, a freshman out of China Spring, who is going to hit in the middle of the order a bunch and play some first base.”
The same sort of balance is visible in the structure of the pitching staff, which lost two of its three primary weekend starters to graduation. For both the starting rotation and the bullpen, UMHB will rely on a mixture of its experienced returners and newcomers. James McGlumphy returns for his senior year after starting 12 games in 2024, throwing 72.1 innings with a 2.61 ERA that earned him Second Team All-ASC honors. Nicklas Fenner came out of the bullpen in 19 outings last spring, striking out 22, and Jacob Haynes will also be a frequent call in relief, having executed fairly well in 19.2 innings as a sophomore.
“James [McGlumphy], and Nick Fenner, and Jacob Haynes, and all those guys who have been pitching for their whole careers are going to play a vital role in our success, that goes without saying,” Stawski said. “But a freshman last year who got minimal time who we’re relying on this year is a guy like Mason Semmelman. We’re going to give him the baseball a lot more [this year], because A) he’s older, B) he has more of an idea of what to expect and how to get college hitters out, and he’s also developed his game.”
The presence of those returners on the mound forms a solid backbone for The Cru, who at this point appear to have more depth from a pitching standpoint than in past years. Factor in a group of incoming freshmen that have turned some heads in the preseason, and UMHB’s pitching staff has the makings of being very difficult to beat.
“This could arguably be our best freshman class of pitchers we’ve ever brought in,” Stawski said. “They’re more college-ready than we’ve ever had before. It’s just like the offense, where it’s a combination of returners, some transfer guys who are going to get time, and some freshman arms that are going to play a vital role in the success of our team. That’s how you want your system built.”
There’s another reason why UMHB’s depth on the mound—particularly with its bullpen—will be so important as the season goes on. With the ASC dropping from eight to five member institutions this season, the league shifted from its traditional three-game weekend series format to four-game weekend series.
It alleviates a need to play a double round-robin schedule while getting each team 16 league contests, but in turn, puts more pressure on the pitching staffs. Considering each series runs from Thursday through Saturday, having enough reliable arms for Game 4 could present a challenge, with the majority of relievers throwing no more than twice over the course of a weekend.
In past seasons, UMHB played Tuesday night non-conference games in the middle of its league schedule, but with a later start date for conference play and the impact of starting the weekend slate on Thursday as opposed to Friday, Stawski scheduled the bulk of his non-conference contests in February and early March. While that should free up some arms for the weekend who would normally throw on Tuesday, the crunched timeline doesn’t necessarily allow for the same tactics, where a reliever might throw 2.0 innings on a Tuesday and be fully ready for another 3.0 innings on Saturday afternoon.
That said, UMHB doesn’t see it as a disadvantage, considering the teams with the most pitching depth will likely have a leg up.
“I think it puts an emphasis on having strike-throwers,” Stawski answered, when asked about the impact on pitching the new format may have. “In the past, you’d see some of the Game 3 guys for other programs were “stuff” guys—throwing 91 with this big-time slider. But it’s like trying to catch lightning in a bottle. If he’s got it that day, he can dominate for 3 or 4 innings and we’ll get him out of there. Now, I think when you get into Game 4, it’s going to be about throwing strikes and playing defense.
“Everyone is going to hit. It’s just a matter of, are you getting hits with two free bases? Was it walk, hit-by-pitch, and then let them get a hit off you? That’s when people start putting up crooked numbers and it gets away from you. But if you can throw strikes and play defense, you can win Game 4.
“I think the way you line up Game 4 is going to be, ‘Who can you count on—doesn’t have to have the best stuff or a big strikeout pitch—but is going to fill up the zone consistently? He’s going to give up some hits because he’s [throwing] in the zone, but as long as he doesn’t give up four or five walks and two or three hit by pitches before those hits, we can live with it. Game 4 isn’t going to be 3-1. There will be some runs scored, and we know that. That’s how we’re going to attack it this season.”
