Friday, April 20, 2001
Mason's Hammond in control
Michigan-bound pitcher has one career loss
By Dave Schutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer
When it comes to senior pitchers, Mason's Paul Hammond is in a class by himself this season in the Cincinnati-area. A 5-toot-11, 195-pound left-hander, Hammond is 3-0, having allowed one earned run in 21 innings.
“When Paul is on the mound, Mason is the best team in Cincinnati,” said Loveland coach Dave Evans, who coaches Hammond in the summer on the Midland Redskins.
In more than three years as a starter for the Comets, Hammond has a 24-1 record with a 0.91 earned run average. He has struck out 279 batters, an average of two an inning.
As a junior, Hammond struck out 102 batters in 54 innings while compiling a 6-0 record.
Hammond's only loss was to Lebanon as a freshman. Since then, he has won 22 consecutive games, prompting the University of Michigan to offer a grant-in-aid that he accepted.
“Going back 26 years, Paul's as good as I've coached,” Mason coach Ken Gray said. “He has a big time major-league curve, good speed and excellent control.”
This statement has more magnitude when considering that Gray coached such standout pitchers as Jerry Bentley, Adam Redwine and Matt Davis in this tenure.
Part of what makes Hammond tough is his strong desire for perfection and to win.
“Paul is as much or more of a competitor that I've ever coached,” Gray said. “He loves the game and doesn't like to lose.”
Hammond got into baseball (T-Ball) in kindergarten and started pitching three years later while playing Knothole in Morrow.
“Back then, the coach pitched most of the game with the players given a chance late in the game,” Hammond said. “I did pretty well and liked the position.”
Hammond's best pitch is the curve that is supplemented by a change-up and fast ball. His fast ball has been timed from 85 to 88 miles per hour by professional scouts.
“I have two curves,” Hammond explained. “One goes from left-to-right and the other North-to-South. I throw the North-to-South curve harder and it breaks much later.”
Although professional scouts from the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians hinted they might draft Hammond in June, he'll probably wear a University of Michigan uniform next season.
“Unless the money is right, I'd say there's a 99.99 percent chance that I'll attend Michigan,” the 18-year-old Hammond said.
“I love Coach (Geoff) Zahn. He was a left-handed pitcher and played professionally 15 years. He will know and understand what I'm going through and know how to solve my problems.”
Hammond also was impressed with Zahn's recruiting demeanor.
“He was relaxed and didn't push me to make a decision,” Hammond said. “There's a lot of talented players at Michigan, and I got along with all of them.”
Like most young players, Hammond's has the goal to play professionally.
“I plan to learn a lot under Coach Zahn and become a better player,” Hammond said. “He told me that if I decide to turn pro after three college seasons, it won't be a bad decision. I'll also get a good education, which also means a lot to me.”
Once a player starts college, professional baseball won't draft that athlete until after the junior season. If a players quits the college team, he is eligible to sign professionally.
Although Hammond is looking to the distant future, he hasn't lost sight of the Division I sectional tournament that begins in two weeks and the goal of pitching the Comets to the state championship.
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