April 16, 2002
Once a Coach, Always a Coach
GW Baseball’s Tom Walter Keeps the Game in Perspective
as Mike Bassett Reaches New Heights and Greg Conden Recovers
By Brian
Krause
Like riding a bicycle or breathing air, coaching baseball is second
nature to Tom Walter.
He is not just a coach, but a baseball buff and a New York Yankees fan
as well, who enjoys sitting in the stands as much as the dugout. Trying
not to mix business with pleasure, Walter watches the Yankees play through
the eyes of a fan, not just those of a coach.
But there are times when his coaching instincts take control, and the
thoughts percolating in his head bubble to the surface.
“Once in a while you second guess or get emotional about a play,”
admits Walter. “Not that I could do better than [Yankees Manager]
Joe Torre.”
For instance, he still can’t figure out game seven of last year’s
World Series. Torre brought the infield in during the ninth inning with
the bases loaded as Arizona’s Luis Gonzalez stepped to the plate.
The slugger hit an RBI single to give the Diamondbacks a 3–2 victory
and cost the Yankees their fourth consecutive championship.
Now in his sixth season at GW, the Colonials skipper has transformed
a once struggling team into a consistent squad, shattering the school
record for most victories last season with 38, which secured a fourth
place regular season finish in the Atlantic 10.
A 1991 graduate of Georgetown University, Walter was a four-year starter
behind the plate, was team captain for two years, and was named to the
1991 All-Academic Team. While studying for his master’s in business
at GW, he served as an assistant to former coach Jay Murphy.
Putting his playing experience to use off the field, he led the New
Market (VA) Rebels to the Shenandoah Valley League Championship in 1994
and had a brief stint with the New York Yankees’ Class A affiliate
in Greensboro, NC, before returning to GW in the fall of 1997.
Under his guidance, the Colonials are poised to have an outstanding
season and hope to have a conference championship, a trip to NCAA regionals,
and 40 wins under their belts by the end of the season in May.
“We have the ability to do all three of these things,” says
Walter. “We’ve played our toughest games already and we feel
confident about the rest.”
Having already faced No. 6 ranked Tulane, who appeared in last year’s
College World Series, it could be smooth sailing ahead for the Colonials,
who currently boast a 20–13 record (7–2 in conference) so
far this season and have won the last 18 of 23 games.
Pitchers Greg Conden and Jason Baker have been hampered by sore arms
early this season. Those injuries in the starting rotation led to a
slow start for the Colonials.
Conden, whose 92 mph pitches have been lighting up radar guns from here
to Cooperstown, has been battling tendinitis in his elbow. The soreness
in his arm left him struggling to find the zone and forced him to spread
out his starts and pitch fewer innings than usual.
“You get used to the pain,” says Conden. “It helps me
because it forces me to concentrate more on my pitching, health, and
diet. You have to be really focused to pitch through [an injury] and
keep your pitches to a certain standard.”
With his arm feeling better, Conden is working to regain the command
and mechanics he demonstrated last season when he led the team with
88 strikeouts and eight victories.
Meanwhile, fantastic efforts from the bullpen and strong performances
at the plate have kept the team above .500 while Conden and Baker recoup.
Closer Mike O’Connor has had a phenomenal season so far, recording
five saves with an earned run average (ERA) of 2.08. Adding depth to
the bullpen in his first season, Justin Orenduff is 6–0 with a
1.17 ERA.
A hitting powerhouse, senior Mike Bassett has been having a season that
would make Barry Bonds envious. The home run hitter has been knocking
them out of the park all season, breaking the GW record of 50.
Bassett, an outfielder who hits cleanup, ranks in the top 10 all-time
in seven offensive categories and has been batting .333 with a slugging
percentage of .608. He has secured his place in the GW history books
this season by setting a new record for RBIs, eclipsing Dan Rouhier’s
194, and breaking the total bases record with an astounding 429.
This talented group of players is drawing a lot of attention as scouts
from Major League Baseball teams have been fawning over them. Walter
expects that as many as five players may be drafted — a GW record.
“I would be shocked if we didn’t have three to five drafted,”
Walter says. “As far as talent is concerned, this is the best team
we have ever had. We have 27 legitimate players.”
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
