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Extra effort spells success for Defiance pitcher Burgoon

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By TIM McDONOUGH

mcdonough@crescent-news.com

Tyler Burgoon of Defiance hasn"t always had a passion for the game of baseball.

No, the 5-10, -pound senior pitcher/catcher for the Bulldogs thought his athletic endeavors would follow the path of his older brother and sister into track, where during his junior high years he thought he was a pretty good hurdler.

Once in high school, he was faced with a choice between the two sports because they both take place in the spring, but as he put it: "Somewhere along the line I decided to play baseball." The rest as they say ... is history.

Burgoon, now the DHS pitching ace and the leading hitting for the Bulldogs, admits to finding his love and passion for the game the first day of his freshman year. Since that time his hard work has led to success in high school and higher levels, including the college ranks where he will play at the University of Michigan following high school.

"It"s funny, in junior high I ran track like my brother and sister did and I wasn"t sure if I wanted to play baseball or not," said Burgoon. "I was a pretty good hurdler and because of that I didn"t" think I would play baseball because I didn"t have a passion for the game back then that I do now. Somewhere along the line I decided to play baseball.

"That first day at practice my freshman year, seeing the organization and seeing all the guys who had the love for the game changed everything for me," continued the DHS hard-throwing righty. "I realized it"s an honor to put on that jersey every day and I just found a love and a passion for the game ever since that first day."

One person who is glad that Burgoon made the choice to play baseball is Defiance mentor Tom Held. Held has watched Burgoon blossom in the program from the time he burst on the scene as a sophomore until this, his final year where he"s helped lead DHS to a 13-1 record and a mark of 4-0 in the Western Buckeye League.

"Tyler was a kid that came in who was a good baseball player, but what has set him apart is his dedication to working at the game to get better," said Held. "There are kids in every high school in every state who have talent, but what sets kids like Tyler apart is that he"s getting out of the game what he"s put into it.

"There are a lot of kids who specialize in sports the way Tyler has, but what he"s done in his off time was work," continued Held. "He"s just put in so much time to get better at the game. From the time last summer he signed with Michigan, I"m pretty sure he hasn"t missed a day of working on something to get better. To me, that speaks volumes because he could have gotten complacent with his scholarship already in hand."

Although Burgoon didn"t get any time on the varsity team as a freshman, as a sophomore he began to stand out and earn playing time. Because he was so versatile, he made his way into the lineup in the outfield and at third base where he settled in as the year went along.

Burgoon also got some time on the hill, winning four games. As a sophomore he was on a team that finished 30-2 and was just one win away from state. That team featured senior hurler Jon Niese and senior catcher Jordan Schultz, two teammates who helped him as a young player.

"Watching Jon play was amazing because he was a dominant player both as a pitcher and a hitter and watching him made me want to become that type of player," said Burgoon of Niese, who is now in the New York Mets" farm system. "I learned a lot from Jordan too about working hard on and off the field. It"s a mindset and it"s something that I think about every day."

As a junior Burgoon settled into the role of staff ace after all but his innings on the hill were lost due to graduation. On a team that featured just four seniors, Burgoon helped lead Defiance to a record of 27-4 and a berth in the Division II regionals. On the hill, Burgoon was 10-3 and at the plate he batted .380.

"Tyler had expectations for himself going into his junior year and I think he put a lot of pressure on himself," said Held. "But, he really took on a leadership role with our four seniors and he stepped up his game and took it to another level. He"s just got one of those personalities where everyone wants to be around him. I also think he gets as much satisfaction helping other guys succeed as he does when he does well."

Burgoon also remembers his junior year as one in which the team came together in both good and bad times.

"We had something special last year, I don"t know what it was, but we were very close and the seniors were great leaders," said Burgoon. "We were young, but that didn"t stop us at all and I think we just all knew what we had to do. It was a hard year too, and I think what we learned is that you can"t take your teammates for granted. We all realized that it"s a game and it"s supposed to be fun and that"s what we tried to do."

Between his junior and senior year Burgoon found himself with several opportunities to play baseball.

Burgoon was part of an Ohio team featuring top juniors that played in the summer in Texas. He was invited to take part in a showcase in Joplin, Mo. where he had the chance to play with the best players in the country and he was also part of a state ACME championship team and an American Legion team that went to state.

All those experiences, and getting the opportunity to sign a national-letter-of-intent to further his education and baseball career at Michigan, were all eye openers which made him want to become even better.

"Over the summer I had a lot going on with baseball and one opportunity really led to another," said Burgoon. "It was weird how everything strung together. I played with the (Napoleon Legion) River Bandits and we made it to state, I also played on Team Ohio and I got to play in Texas, I got a chance to be on an American Legion team that played in Joplin, Mo. where they picked the Junior National Team, and then I was back here and part of a state ACME championship.

"All those experiences were fun and it was great to play with guys from all over the country who are great players," continued Burgoon. "When you see those guys, it makes you realize that you have to take your game to another level and it really kind of humbles you. It made me realize just how much more I had to work to get better."

Because of his baseball opportunities, Burgoon was able to be seen by Michigan and head coach Rich Maloney, who later offered him a scholarship.

"The Michigan coaches first saw me in a showcase in Cincinnati, where I did pretty well, and they also saw me when I was in Missouri," said Burgoon. "I got a call from coach Maloney the first day I was eligible to be contacted and he was the first one to call me. We talked about what I was looking for and what Michigan was looking for. We kept in touch and later coach Maloney came to my house for dinner and offered me a scholarship.

"After he left I thought about it for about 10 minutes before I realized that really no offer could come along better for me academically or athletically that was better than what Michigan was offering," added Burgoon, who grew up an Ohio State fan. "I called him right back and told him I was on board and I couldn"t be happier."

Burgoon"s parents, Jeff and Karen Burgoon, have also been instrumental in their son"s development. In fact, Tyler and his dad have a motto that says, "champions are made in the offseason," something that Burgoon takes very seriously.

"I have great parents who have taught me so much and above all who want me to be a good person," said Burgoon. "Looking back there wasn"t a big push for me to play baseball, it"s something I fell in love with and it"s something that they"ve given me a lot of encouragement in. I know that I"ll always have their support and that"s what"s great."

Now a senior, Burgoon is hoping to help Defiance win another WBL title, and hopefully make a long tournament run which he hopes includes Defiance"s third trip to the state tournament since 2.

"There"s a lot of love on this team and I think that"s really important," said Burgoon. "We"ve got a good team and I think our hard work is paying off. The coaches here are great and we know what they expect from us. The goals are always the same, we want to win the WBL and try and go farther than we did the year before. We want to make it to state, but we know we can"t look that far ahead.

"The best thing is, though, that we"re playing Defiance baseball, having fun and leaving our own mark on the program," concluded Burgoon. "We all know that the program is bigger than any one of us, but we also know it"s up to us to live up to the expectations and leave it better off than when we got here."