Fresno State Athletics
Slamming The Door Shut
3/1/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
With a solid starting pitching staff of seniors Tom Graham and Shawn Hannah and sophomore Beau Hintz, the Bulldogs enter every game with confidence to win. If the starters can get into the sixth inning with the lead, chances are a Bulldog victory is within reach.
Why? Because a 6-foot-9 left-handed pitcher who knows how to shut the door, that is, slam the door. Senior southpaw Hans Smith, the school record holder for single-season appearances with 38, is one of the WAC's top firemen.
In Smith's 38 appearances last season, he was 5-5 with 60 strikeouts and a team-low 4.48 earned run average in 72.1 innings pitched. He was named WAC Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 1 last year when he recorded two saves against then-No. 6 Stanford in the season-opening series.
"Hans gives us some security," Fresno State head coach Bob Bennett said. "If we get into the seventh or eighth innings with the lead, I feel we can put it away when he comes in.
"He's a good leader too. Everyone knows he works hard everyday and I think he earns respect because of that. He shows leadership through his actions and performance."
Smith appeared in a team-high 27 games as a sophomore. He pitched in 33.2 innings, rarely pitching more than one inning per appearance. Smith now has the endurance and the ability to hold the fort for three innings at a time, if necessary.
The liberal studies major from Central Point, Ore., was a two-sport athlete at Crater High School. He played on the baseball and football teams for three years each. As a tight end, he caught 15 passes for 150 yards during his senior year. On the diamond, he was 12-3 with a 1.20 ERA while batting .390 in his final season.
Following high school, Smith decided to become a Bulldog. He was familiar with the prestigious Fresno State baseball program and believed it would be a great place for him to play out his baseball dreams.
"It's definitely been a good move," Smith said. "I wanted to come here for the baseball tradition and it's turned out to be what I expected."
Since his arrival, Smith has improved each year. With a tall body and long arms, he has learned to control his abilities and maximize his skills.
"I've improved my mechanics a lot," Smith said. "With the improvement, my velocity has increased and I've become a better pitcher. My off-speed pitchers are sharper, but I still believe my fastball is my best pitch."
Bennett said he agrees.
"He has really worked hard on his mechanics," Bennett said. "I think he has maximized his skills with the tools he has."
Smith already looks like he is in midseason form, as he has posted a perfect 3-0 record with a 2.20 ERA in 16.1 innings of work. He has struck out 11, walked only one and limited opposing hitters to a .237 batting average in his seven appearances this season. Smith had a string of 13.2 scoreless innings snapped in a 12-10 loss against California on Feb. 29.
However, the only numbers Smith cares about are outs.
"I have the same objective every time I step onto the mound," Smith said. "I need to have a slightly different mentality in every situation. If there's a guy on third with less than two outs in the ninth, I am going to try to strike him out or get a pop up. Coming in as a reliever, I definitely have to be well aware of the situation around me and what I can do to improve it.
"I'm just as happy to see the starters go nine innings because that means we're having success."
Smith said he feels the same way about his school record for appearances. Getting the opportunity to take the mound that many times indicated Bennett had great confidence in the giant flame thrower. However, all that counts is whether the job gets done properly.
"It's a nice record to have, but I don't really think about it much," Smith said. "It doesn't really matter to me how many appearances I have as long as I'm getting the job done when I pitch."
Smith was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 30th round of the Major League Baseball Draft following last season and hopes to get another shot at professional baseball. However, his focus is on the season at hand, and with Smith on the mound, there is no telling how far the Bulldogs can go.
"This has been a great experience this year," Smith said. "We have already been down in a few games but have come back to win. That really helps our confidence. We're off to a good start and we have good team cohesion. I think we can take this all the way to the College World Series this year."
-- by Curtis Webb, Fresno State Media Relations
