Wauconda’s Wagner bursting with ideas, talent
Pitching baseballs occupies Jeremy Wagner right now.
Someday, Wagner hopes to spend his time pitching ideas.
And Wauconda’s senior pitcher has plenty of ideas. About new energy alternatives, of all things.
Wagner’s hope is to study environmental science in college so that he can work with business leaders and politicians to make America less dependent on foreign oil and more energy self-sufficient.
With gas prices rumored to hit $5 a gallon this summer, I say, “Go Jeremy, go!”
“Until I started driving, nothing really fazed me about how much things cost,” Wagner said. “But now, I don’t want to drive anywhere, not even to my friends’ houses. Six months ago, gas was $1 cheaper per gallon.
“We’ve got to look more at wind and solar and even waste, because you can harness energy from waste. Every time you throw something away, you’re throwing away energy. We’ve got to look into all of that.
“We’ve got to do something about the cost of energy.”
The cost of college could use some adjusting, too.
Wagner is already working on ways to help himself there.
He has discovered through extensive research that Southern Illinois is one of the best universities in the country for environmental science. He’d love to be in the program.
If Wagner could also play baseball there, he’d be hitting the jackpot.
He’d fulfill a dream he’s had since he attended his first College World Series at age 11. And maybe he’d even get a break on tuition in the process with some scholarship money.
“That was the coolest thing ever, the College World Series,” Wagner said. “My whole family went to Omaha (Neb.). It was a lot of fun and ever since then, I’ve wanted to play baseball in college.”
Wagner has the means — such as high velocity, command and composure on the mound — to find a home in the Salukis’ rotation. Now, he just needs the method.
He needs marketing.
“I know I can play at the next level,” said Wagner, who has been on the varsity at Wauconda for three years and has played on some highly competitive travel teams in the summer, such as the McHenry County Hurricanes. “It’s just a matter of me proving it to the coaches at Southern Illinois.
“They are just starting to get to know me.”
Even though Wagner has played baseball for a long time, he’s not quite a household name with recruiters. At least not Division I recruiters.
He’s had some contact from Division III schools, but the bigger schools have been quiet.
He’s working to change that.
“We weren’t sure about what you needed to do for recruiting, so I’m kind of late in getting exposure,” Wagner said. “Now, I’ve got a website with videos, I’ve got my stats all in one place. Southern has seven spots available this year and I’m really hoping to get one of them.”
Wagner is off to a good start in trying to impress. He rolled up 10 strikeouts in four innings of work in Wauconda’s season-opening win against Marengo.
A few more outings like he had last year could also help his cause.
Wagner’s most notable successes last season came during a three-game stretch in which he gave up just 1 hit in 18 innings and pitched back-to-back no-hitters.
He started with a no-hitter against Harvard and followed that up with a no-hitter against North Chicago. Wagner then surrendered just 1 hit to a tough Highland Park team in his next outing.
But as luck would have it, Wagner went 1-2 in those outings because the Bulldogs couldn’t give him enough run support in the Harvard and Highland Park games.
That was the story of his season. He took some tough-luck losses, went 5-5 overall and missed making the Stevenson Showcase by just 1 vote.
“I thought I should have gotten into (the Stevenson Showcase) and it was frustrating being left out because that’s a great way to be seen by college recruiters,” Wagner said. “They (the coaches who voted on the Showcase participants) looked at my record and that was probably it.
“The whole thing made me determined to work even harder during the off-season to improve and make myself one of the best pitchers in the (North Suburban) conference this year.”
Wagner worked tirelessly all summer. His fastball is up near 87 mph and he says he’s got great command of all of his pitches.
“Jeremy is throwing all of his pitches for strikes at any time,” Wauconda coach Bill Sliker said. “And he’s able to throw different pitches without changing his arm motion. That’s what throws hitters off because they don’t know what’s coming. Most high school pitchers can’t do that.
“A lot of Jeremy’s success also has to do with his work ethic and his poise on the mound. He puts in so much extra time and he shows so much composure whenever he pitches. He likes the ball in his hands. He just absolutely loves this game.”
Before baseball became such a passion, Wagner was a science nut. Still is, actually.
He used to get chemistry sets for his birthday and he devoured the issues of Popular Science magazine that he found at his Grandma Diane’s house in Spring Grove.
“I think that’s how I first got interested in science and the environment,” Jeremy said. “I used to love reading the articles in those Popular Science magazines about new technologies. I was intrigued by everything I read about alternate energies.
“One day, I asked for my own subscription to the magazine.”
Popular Science still arrives via home delivery. Although, Wagner will be filling out a change-of-address card soon.
“If coaches from other (Division I) colleges start contacting me, of course, I will look into that,” Wagner said. “But I’d really like to get a spot at Southern because that’s where I really want to go to school for the academic programs.
“I think that’s the most important thing. You’ve got to set yourself up for a future beyond sports. I want to give myself a better future.”
In turn, Wagner could end up giving the same thing to the rest of us.
“Go Jeremy, go!”
pbabcock@dailyherald.com