By Quintin Harlan
The Herald Bulletin
ALEXANDRIA, Ind. —
Alexandria Tigers pitcher Drew Overman seemed to be in control of any situation on the mound more often than not in his four years on the school’s baseball team.
In his final season in a Tigers uniform, Overman ended with a 5-2 record and an earned run average of 2.23. Overman recorded 65 strike outs to 27 walks. He even tallied a save this year.
“He’s a guy that going to go at you hard, everything he throws is going to be hard,” Tigers coach Jeff Closser said. “He’s a bulldog.”
“I try not to lose my temper on the mound; I just focus on keeping my composure,” Overman said. “Some guys you see will walk a couple of guys and they get mad at themselves and they just lose it.”
When looking for highlights for his senior season, Overman didn’t have to think too long for a memory.
“The CIC games that I pitched in were big to me,” Overman said. “Obviously the win in the (Muller Tournament) against Elwood was huge because they had beaten us like seven straight times. And then we beat them in the conference game.”
The other half of being a bulldog on the mound for Overman was a time-honored belief shared by all pitchers that they don’t want to be lifted in close games. That particular belief was in full effect against Blackford and Mississinewa
“He was telling me ‘Coach I got this, let me go,’” Closser said.
“I don’t want to come out of a game,” Closser said. “You don’t want to hurt the team, but at the same time I don’t want to come out unless I have to.”
As a junior, Overman’s ERA was north of four runs per outing. He ended that season with 53 runs scored against him but only 29 of those were earned. This year his ERA was sliced from 4.65 to 2.23.
“I think that came from working on my location,” Overman said. “I played travel ball for Mike Farrell and I took lessons from him in the fall and that was something we worked on.”
Overman’s ERA wasn’t the only positive change for the Alexandria baseball team.
“I think the program has turned around and it’s not just because of me,” Overman said. “It doesn’t always show in the win-loss record, but we’ve improved over the last three years.”
The Overman family was dealt a tough loss with the passing of Daniel Overman, Drew’s father and first coach. Danny Overman passed away suddenly on Sunday, June 6 at the age of 44.
“I was at Drew’s open house on Saturday, and we talked and spent time together,” Closser said. “Then, I get a call on Sunday around noon and they tell me he’s gone.”
“He was never the overbearing dad, he wasn’t that guy,” Drew Overman said. “He taught me the fundamentals. He was such a good player and he wanted me to learn the game the right way.”
Overman will take his game to the Division I level next season at Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne as a pitcher for the Mastadons.
While most of his goals as a high school baseball player have been accomplished, there are still some to be met before his time as a baseball player is finished.
“It would be nice if I get drafted,” Overman joked. “I just want to get my degree, play baseball and have a good time.”
