Baseball: Donovan extended the family dynasty at Westmont
Joe Donovan stepped to the plate for his first at-bat as a Westmont High School baseball player.
Season opener. A freshman up on varsity. The continuation of a family dynasty.
Donovan lofted a flyball to right field for an easy out. The forgettable "can of corn", as he describes it.
It turned out to be one of the few times anybody got him out during 567 plate appearances the last four seasons. That may be an exaggeration but, in baseball terms, not by much.
The 47 program records Donovan holds attest to that. Same with Donovan's place in IHSA baseball history: Top five in all-time hits, doubles and runs scored, tied for 10th in all-time home runs and tied for 13th in RBI.
Listing all of Donovan's achievements would require chapters, not paragraphs. But add one more to that list.
Donovan is the 2017 Daily Herald DuPage County All-Area Baseball Captain. The Michigan-bound senior catcher joins 28 previous honorees, including older brother Charlie, the 2015 recipient who played shortstop for the Sentinels.
"It's super impressive to see a high school player do what he does," said IC Catholic Prep coach Frank DeAngelis. "He's a total leader. He's got a great arm behind the plate. He obviously has a good stick at the plate. It's a pleasure to watch him play."
Between Joe and Charlie, opponents spent six years dreading the challenge of containing their abilities while admiring them at the same time.
The big season
There's little more Joe Donovan could have done this season for a rebuilding Westmont team brimming with the youth of six sophomores.
He claimed the Triple Crown in DuPage County, leading the area with a .523 batting average, 16 home runs and 49 RBI. Behind the plate he threw out 60 percent of the 40 runners who dared try to steal a base.
Donovan developed into a coach on the field. He called his own pitches and vocally guided teammates through game situations.
It's a role he embraced.
"I've never really been a shy kid, so I've always been a vocal player," he said. "One of my strongest attributes is that I'm a cerebral player. I'm able to see the game a few plays ahead and I play out the different scenarios in my head."
Joe graduated in the top 10 of his class academically at Westmont and, after tagging along on Charlie's visits to Michigan years ago, Joe joined his older brother in committing to the Wolverines.
Eventually.
"I committed Dec. 11 of my sophomore year, the day before Charlie's birthday," Joe said. "He just said, 'Get it over with. You know you're going to Michigan. It'd be a good birthday present for me.'"
Charlie
In November 2015, five months after playing his last game for Westmont, Charlie died suddenly at the age of 18.
Through the heartbreak, Joe and his family - parents Jim and Karen, and older brother Jack - persevered.
Charlie, two years older than Joe, was selected in the 30th round of Major League Baseball's 2015 draft after notifying pro teams of his intention to attend Michigan. Joe has given pro teams similar notification and, while he also may be drafted next week, Joe plans to be on the Ann Arbor campus this fall.
Like his Westmont debut when he followed in Charlie's footsteps, Joe's arrival will be met with high expectations.
"Honestly, I always tried to be better than (Charlie)," Joe said with a laugh. "I never really saw myself as modeling myself after his game, but in terms of hustling and trying to play the game the right way, we're the same."
Knowing he'd be playing his final two years at Westmont without his graduating older brother, Joe went to Charlie and said he'd like to continue family tradition and switch to Charlie's iconic No. 0 jersey.
Joe proudly wore the number the last two seasons.
"Joe's had a lot of support, and that's been great to see," said Westmont coach D.J. Cocks. "He could have gone in the wrong direction after Charlie died, but he went in the right direction because of the type of person he is.
"Joe knows his brother would want him to live his life to the fullest and get as much out of his talent that he can."
Westmont retired Charlie's No. 0 last season. Going forward, Cocks said the number may be retired in both Charlie and Joe's honor.
"Considering what they did for the program, I think that'd be fitting," Cocks said.
Michigan and beyond
No opposing coach knows the Donovan brothers better than Lisle's Pete Meyer, whose teams faced them 13 times the last six years. Each game was a pleasure for Meyer.
"It's always a challenge, but I'll miss competing against Donovans," Meyer said. "They're special, obviously, and it was nice to build a relationship with them."
If you think coaches like Meyer will miss them, put yourself in Cocks' shoes.
"They both wanted to put Westmont on the map," Cocks said. "As a coach, I can't thank them enough for believing in our program."
The Donovans led Westmont to 128 wins, two sectional titles and a third-place finish in Class 2A in 2014.
Six years of excellence with the Sentinels.
"I was really happy to play for Westmont and help put some wins in the book," Donovan said. "I just hope that if people came out to see me and Charlie play, they saw that we did it the right way."
Joe Donovan stepped to the plate for his final at-bat as a Westmont baseball player.
Playoff game. Senior leader trying to spark a rally that'd fall just short. The close of Westmont's Donovan dynasty.
Home run.
Donovan rounded the bases one last time, leaving no doubt about the ball and, in many ways, the last four years.
He crushed it.
Follow Kevin on Twitter