DAILY EMERALD: Ducks baseball returns to action with renewed COVID-19 protocols (1 photo, article)
Mojo Hill
Ot 20, 2020 Updated Oct 20, 2020
It’s been a long, restless offseason for the Ducks baseball team, but after persevering through quarantine, they’ve come out the other side and are finally getting to play some fall ball.
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic of course, their activity hasn’t been without its limitations.
“It’s pretty extreme,” head coach Mark Wasikowski said. “We’ve gone to lengths of even having five different practices a day...We’re not able to scrimmage, we’re not able to do a lot of live baserunning at all.”
Despite the limitations and the guidelines they’re required to follow, Wasikowski is grateful for what they’re able to do and is excited to get rolling with this year’s group of guys.
“The great news is we’re able to practice,” he said. “And we’re able to be outside, and we’re able to be with our student-athletes.”
Wasikowski admitted to some mental fatigue for both him and the players due to the abnormally long break from playing.
“This six-seven month stretch has not been good mentally for...the staff, but specifically the student-athletes. It’s really had a damage, and being out there is the best therapy.”
After going 8-7 in the abbreviated season earlier this year, Wasikowski and the team feel like they have some unfinished business to attend to.
“The guys when they left, they were challenged,” he said. “And as a staff, we challenged our players to not only be a Pac-12 player, but can you be one of the top three players in the league at your position...that’s a difference maker...And that’s one area of emphasis from last year moving into this year.”
Redshirt junior Kenyon Yovan, who opted to return to Oregon over the summer, believes in the team that they fielded last season and thinks they have the potential to perform even better this time around.
“We could have went undefeated last year with the way that we played,” he said. “At the end of the day, we played great baseball...we played well, hit the ball well, pitchers were attacking the strike zone.”
Yovan has continued to work on both pitching and hitting after a strong rebound from an injury-shortened 2019 season.
“My goal is to go out there and be the best two-way player in the country,” he said.
Senior Gabe Matthews also elected to return for what will be his fifth year. The NCAA granted spring athletes an extra year of eligibility, something Matthews has decided to take advantage of. He felt that the team still had a lot to accomplish.
"I didn’t feel like I was finished here exactly,” he said. “I felt like there’s been a lot of cases where we’re one step away...I feel like I want to be a part of that team that takes that transition to the next step, and I think we have a good team this year and I’m excited to see where we can take things.”
The team has been under strict orders to stay six feet apart at all times during practices. This eliminates a bunch of what they’re able to do such as tag-up drills and most things involving baserunning. The players are frequently tested for COVID-19, though not as regularly as the sports that are starting up sooner such as football.
“Whatever they tell us to do, we’re all in and we’re going to stick with the rules,” Wasikowski said. “From our standpoint, it’s real simple...they tell us to wear masks, we wear masks. It’s not a debate.”
For now, they will continue to comply with the rules that have been set out for them and stay in shape as much as they can as they prepare for the season down the road.
