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ULM Baseball’s Melting Pot Stirs Hope as 2019 Season Arrives

ULM Baseball’s Melting Pot Stirs Hope as 2019 Season Arrives

Baseball Feb 13
By Paul Letlow, ULMWarhawks.com Online Columnist
 
MONROE, La. – Louisiana cooks have a knack for taking a variety of ingredients and creating amazing one-pot dishes. 

ULM coach Michael Federico is stirring up his own version of baseball gumbo at Warhawk Field this season with a new-look roster, featuring 27 newcomers representing 13 states along with two players from Canada. 

"I think our guys have done a good job of accepting the diversity that we have here," Federico said this week. "We have people from all over the country and two Canadians as well. They've accepted that and the biggest thing they've instilled in each other is, 'Hey, we came here to work. We came here because we wanted to be here, and we want to make this place great again.'" 

First baseman Cam Horton, a product of Benton (La.) High School who transferred in from LSU-Eunice, said ULM's improving baseball culture made the transition easy for him.  

"All the guys who have been here in the past made it really easy for us to come in here," Horton said. "They welcomed us with open arms. After the first two weeks, it was like we'd been playing together forever."

Said relief pitcher Justin Barton, a product of Caldwell Parish School and another LSU-Eunice transfer: "We have people from everywhere. How they were raised and how we were raised might be different. But opposites attract, so everybody has bonded good." 

"It's been really cool," added Carson Klepzig, the transfer catcher from Hinds Community College who started his college career at Ole Miss. "We've got two dudes from Canada and literally all over the country. Everybody comes from different walks of life. Seeing us bond together has been awesome." 

Outfielder Trent Tingelstad is making the jump from the Pacific Northwest so the warmer climate on campus hit him hard when he arrived in August. But inside the ULM baseball program, the transition was easy. 

"It's my first time away from home but a lot of us are from a similar background and came from a junior college," said Tingelstad, who hit .346 with 26 doubles, eight home runs and 65 RBI in two seasons at Everett (Washington) Community College. "It's easy to adapt and get to know each other. It's been a really accepting atmosphere and all the guys returning want the team to be better, so they are accepting of everyone coming in."

Federico's first batch of baseball in 2018 finished 23-31, 10-20 in the Sun Belt Conference. In selling their continuing rebuilding efforts, ULM coaches emphasized opportunity and a fresh start to the players they recruited. 

"They were positive and energetic about what they were trying to do in the future," Horton said. "That really resonated with me. That's the main reason I wanted to be here."

Said Tingelstad: "When I came on my visit, I saw the culture. A couple of the guys I talked to like Kolton Childress, who was my host, talked about all the changes and told me why it's a great place to be." 

Federico's second ball club will have a heavy junior college flavor with a base of returning talent for seasoning. In reworking his roster, Federico and staff added dashes of pitching depth, athleticism to the middle infield and left-handed bats. 

"There are a lot of different breeds of baseball around," said senior pitcher Jacob Barton, a transfer from Mississippi State who played locally at Caldwell Parish High School. "Some guys might come from a bunting conference and some guys might come from a home run league. Now, we're all meshed together. Being around all this different kind of baseball, we teach each other and learn even more. Chemistry-wide though, it's still baseball. We get along great." 

The newcomers join 11 returning lettermen, including infielders Chad Bell (.283, 7 HRs, 40 RBIs), Joey Jordan (.262, 12 SBs), outfielder Braedon Barrett (.235 5 HRs, 12 SBs, 44 runs) and pitchers Cole Gray (1 SV), Trey Jeans (3 wins, 5.20 ERA, 67 Ks, 62.1 IP), Kolton Childress (1 win, 7.40 ERA) and Miles Dunn (3 wins, 4.28 ERA). 

"Bringing in a bunch of new JUCO guys, we're all going to be experienced," Justin Barton said. "We all know how to be on a team and we're all older. I think we only have two freshmen on the team, so that's going to be an advantage for us."  

The Warhawks open their season Friday night at Alex Box Stadium against LSU and will also face Air Force and Army over the weekend in what promises to be a regional atmosphere.   

"There's nothing like that for a college game," Jacob Barton said. "They're hollering at you while you're out there. It's an awesome environment."

So what will it take for ULM baseball to serve up a few more wins this season? 

"We're going to have to have strong pitching, and they've been strong all fall and they came out strong this spring," the new catcher Klepzig said. "From an offensive standpoint, we're going to be scrappy. We've got some guys who can drive the ball in the gaps too. Overall, there won't just be one guy to focus on in the lineup." 


Sizing up the Warhawks: Federico will unveil his Opening Day lineup and starting pitching rotation later this week, but here are some of ULM's early options.

Depending on matchups, Federico lists right-handers Jacob Barton, Conner Deeds, Kayleb Sanderson and left-handers Cole Martin and Trey Jeans as his top starting pitcher options. 

"We've got some potential guys who can step up and do it, and we've got a little depth in the bullpen and a little diversity with a lot of different arm angles and different looks we can do," Federico said.  

Looking at the lineup, Federico projected an early mix that includes Andrew Beesley at designated hitter, Carson Klepzig at catcher, Cam Horton at first base, Chad Bell at third base and some combination of Colin Gordon, Nathan Miranda and Masen Prososki in the middle infield positions. The outfield could feature Trent Tingelstad in right, Ryan Humeniuk in left and Braedon Barrett or Jake Kaufman in center. 
 
 
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