Swank's return from injury bolsters Wolves
Prairie Ridge senior pitcher T.J. Swank is more laid back than a 78-degree summer afternoon.
However, his mellow persona merely conceals the fierce drive lying within the 19-year-old Crystal Lake resident, a senior submariner who relishes being back in action after a junior year spent mending from injury.
His comeback season has been an unmitigated success. Entering sectional play this week, Swank led all area pitchers with a record of 9-1. He boasts an ERA of 1.86 in 64 innings pitched with 52 strikeouts and 17 walks in 11 starts.
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Swank's pitching statistics -- along with his .458 batting average, 11 doubles, 2 triples and 5 home runs -- have earned him the co-captaincy of the 2008 Daily Herald Fox Valley all-area baseball team alongside travel ball teammate Ben Palmer of Westminster Christian.
Swank was one of the area's top pitchers as a sophomore in 2006. He burst onto the varsity scene with a record of 8-3 and an ERA of 1.04 in 62#189; innings pitched. He struck out 47 and walked just seven hitters all year.
The right-hander was anticipating an even better season as a junior. Unfortunately, one of those signature, blustery, gray, miserable, northern Illinois baseball game days turned Swank's junior season upside down.
"Towards the beginning of the season, the second or third start, I came out and threw on a cold day when I didn't completely warm up all the way," Swank said. "I strained the serratus muscle under my arm."
The serratus muscle, according to the National Athletic Trainers' Association, originates at the top of the ribs and runs along anterior length of the scapula. In other words, Swank had a strained muscle that started at the ribs and ran under his arm, which made pitching more painful than an unexpected pop quiz first thing Monday morning.
"That kind of held me down for most of the season," Swank said. "I was down for about a month and, obviously, I wasn't able to start and help the team as a pitcher. That handicapped me for the whole rest of the season."
Though he wasn't close to top form after four weeks of inactivity, Swank returned to action in late May and eventually started against McHenry in a Class AA regional championship game.
He pitched well but a determined McHenry squad -- the same team Prairie Ridge had beaten for a regional title a year earlier -- saddled him for a 4-2 defeat despite the fact Swank had allowed just 5 hits and no walks.
He finished his junior season with a 3-2 record and 3 saves.
Swank showed no lingering effects from the injury during summer ball with the McHenry County Hurricanes, however, and soon seven Division I colleges were knocking on his door.
After a summer visit to Coastal Carolina and another visit in the fall to meet his prospective teammates, Swank committed last fall to the Chanticleers, a team that won 50 games the past two seasons and is 47-12 entering today's NCAA Tournament opener against Columbia.
"I love the campus and the atmosphere," Swank said. "The guys are great down there. It seems like a good place where I can fit in. Hopefully, I can help the team get further because they're on the rise right now and continuing to do well. I'm looking forward to possibly being a part of that success."
Coastal Carolina coach Gary Gilmore is pleased to have the PR sidearm-to-submarine-style pitcher signed to play in Myrtle Beach, SC.
"I haven't had a below three-quarters guy like T.J. Swank at Coastal that has started that way," Gilmore said in a release on the school's Web site. "He's going to be a stellar guy with a different look and good velocity."
The switch to Swank's rare pitching style came about during a training lesson about five years ago. Swank was taking lessons from PR coach David Haskins, who at the time was a Palatine assistant.
During Swank's session, longtime Palatine coach Paul Belo suggested he try a sidearm approach. The rest is history.
"I'm glad the change was made because I've had a lot of success and I've had a lot of fun, too," Swank said.
Swank is having loads of fun on the mound now that he has reverted to his sophomore form, much to the disappointment of the Fox Valley Conference competition.
"His arm angle has a lot to do with his success," Dundee-Crown coach Fred Bencriscutto said. "Guys are not used to it and it's hard to pick up. He gets good movement on his pitches, uses both sides of the plate so well and has good control of his pitches. He competes and takes his pitching seriously."
Swank is pleased his senior year was injury free.
"It's definitely a blessing," he said. "I'm definitely glad I haven't gotten hurt again. I've been hoping and praying for good health and so far this season it's been good. This year has been fun."