Rams' Schmidt commits to Yale

Two words can strike fear in even the smartest of students: Ivy League.

That's why when Yale popped up on the radar as a school that was interested in recruiting him for baseball, Grayslake Central shortstop Matt Schmidt initially took pause.

And this is a kid who boasts a 4.1 grade point average and is ranked in the top 6 percent of his class.

"Thinking about taking classes at a place like Yale is intimidating," Schmidt said. "But my dad and I took a trip out there to the campus and sat in on a calculus class and I realized that I actually knew some of the stuff. That made me feel a lot better."

Good enough to sign on the dotted line, in fact.

Schmidt decided late last month to accept an offer to play Division I baseball next year at Yale. He chose the Connecticut-based school over Bradley, Villanova, Valparaiso and Oakland.

For Christmas, he received a Yale sweatshirt and two Yale T-shirts to make his selection all the more official.

"I really liked the whole atmosphere at Yale," said the 5-foot-9, 155-pound Schmidt, who wants to focus on mathematics and economics in college. "I liked the campus, the prestige of the university. And I really liked the coaches and players.

"The coaches remind me of the coaches here (at Grayslake Central), really laid back and down to earth. They're very into the players and they're also really knowledgeable about the game. I think I'll have a lot of fun playing for them."

Then again, Schmidt would probably have fun playing for anyone at this point. He just wants to play, period.

He missed the last fourth of the spring season last year with a severely sprained ankle.

"I'm really anxious to get playing again," said Schmidt, who has been starting for the Rams since his sophomore year and was a part of their 2006 supersectional team. "I've been working out everyday. It was hard sitting out. I felt like I let my team down. I had a role to fill and I didn't fill it."

Yet, Schmidt, who hit .410 from the leadoff spot and led the team with 22 runs and 15 steals, still managed to earn first-team Fox Valley Conference honors. He was also named to the Daily Herald's all-area team.

"One recruiting service rated Matt as the No. 1 infield prospect in the state and I can see why," Yale coach John Stuper said. "He has great hands and feet and plenty of arm strength that will improve as he gets bigger and stronger."

Schmidt says that he generated most of the interest he received from college coaches last summer, after he recovered from his ankle injury and started playing with a traveling team based in Lake Forest called Top Tier.

The team played tournaments all over the country in front of dozens of scouts.

"I just played really well and made some pretty difficult plays out in the field," Schmidt said. "There was this one game in Georgia where I made this diving catch over my head and some of the scouts actually stood up and applauded. I think that's where I started getting (noticed)."

When Yale jumped in the mix, Schmidt figured he had to at least take a look, despite his academic ... and personal concerns.

Schmidt says that he is tight with his family and gave a lot of thought about being so far away from his parents, Kurt and Kelly, and his younger brother Kurt.

But the younger Kurt, who filled in for Matt last season when he was injured, has shown his own promise in baseball. And he's a standout in the classroom as well.

"We're just waiting for his test scores," Matt said of Kurt. "I think he could also play somewhere like Yale. We've talked about how cool it would be if we were both out there.

"We love playing together. I would love for him to come out east."