Crummy enjoys big finish

By John Enrietto
Eagle Sports Editor

OXFORD, Ohio — If John Crummy’s baseball career is over, it ended with a flourish.
The Butler graduate closed his collegiate career at Miami (Ohio) University by winning back-to-back Mid-American Conference East Player of the Week Awards.
He also helped his team capture the MAC East title for the first time since 2005.
“Our seniors had three tough years before this, putting in a lot of hard work with little to show for it,” first-year Miami head coach Danny Hayden said. “They took this program a giant step in the right direction this season and John was a big part of that.”
The Redhawks’ starting catcher to begin his senior season, Crummy was moved to first base as part of a reshuffling of the defense due to injury. He raised his batting average nearly 40 points in the final few weeks of the campaign and wound up hitting .297 with four homers and 30 RBI.
“We had an outfielder get hurt, so our first baseman moved out there and I moved to first,” Crummy said. “I probably caught for 20 games and played first base for 30.
“I got into a groove at the plate over the last couple of weeks. I felt good all year, but the hits didn’t start falling in consistently until late. I can’t explain it.”
Hayden said Crummy was “seeing an awfully big baseball at the plate” over the final three weeks of the season.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a hitter get that hot,” the coach said.
Crummy collected his first MAC East Player of the Week honor by hitting .667 that particular week. He had seven hits in eight at bats against Buffalo, including three doubles, a homer and three RBI.
The following week, his bat exploded during a three-game series against Ohio University. Crummy hit .462 with three homers and eight RBI. He had five RBI in one game against the Bobcats and hit a game-tying homer late in another contest.
The Redhawks swept that series and finished the season at 30-27 overall, 18-9 in the MAC.
Crummy was a three-year starter at Miami and finished with a .305 career batting average.
“I played in more than 120 games here,” he said. “Playing Division I baseball is a good accomplishment and I’m proud of what I’ve done here.
Crummy led Miami hitters with a .360 batting average, four homers, 18 RBI and a ..613 slugging percentage in conference play this season.
Last summer, he played in the California Collegiate League in Bakersfield, Calif., led his team in hitting and represented Bakersfield in the CCL All-Star Classic. The game was televised nationally on FOX.
“That was a great experience,” Crummy said. “I played with and against some top collegiate talent, guys who I know are being looked at for the major league draft.”
That draft begins today and runs through the weekend. Crummy does not expect his name to be called.
“This season didn’t play out quite as I had hoped for me personally,” he admitted. “I’ve come to terms with the fact my playing career is probably over.
“I always told myself that if I didn’t get drafted, I wouldn’t try to play independent ball or anything. If it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen.”
Hayden said Crummy could extend his playing career if he wanted to do so.
“If John’s interested, he could play independent ball or stay active so (scouts) could get a better look at him,” the coach said. “Some players will be move on to pro all who are not as good as him.”
A sociology major at Miami, Crummy has one semester remaining academically and will fulfill that this fall. He plans to play for Mars II in the Eagle County League this summer.
After that, he hopes to get into coaching.
“I’ll stay involved in baseball in some way,” Crummy said. “I love the game.”