Spectators at baseball games usually cringe when they see an errant pitch hit a batter. They think the hitter must be annoyed, angry or in pain after being drilled by a 90 mph throw.
But if the Northwestern baseball team is any indication, the fans are wrong. Most batters actually don’t mind getting drilled. In fact, when NU (18-16) takes on Wisconsin-Milwaukee (20-15) at Rocky Miller Park today, a few players might even be looking to take one for the team.
“It’s a free base,” NU junior Dan Pohlman said. “There’s so much adrenaline when you go up to bat anyway, sometimes it’s good just to take the walk.”
Senior Ken Padgett is especially adept at getting plunked by pitches. The catcher earned his 31st career hit-by-pitch after Illinois pitcher Ted Rowe hurled one into his shoulder during Friday’s game. With seven this season, Padgett is now tied with Neil Piacenti, a catcher for the Wildcats from 1993-96, for first place on the NU career hit-by-pitch list.
“It’s a dubious honor,” Padgett said. “Going into the season, I knew I could do it and it was something I wanted to do.”
In addition to sharing the hit-by-pitch record with Piacenti, Padgett also shares the single-season record of 13 with the Chicago White Sox draftee.
Padgett said his batting stance, which carries him over home plate, is responsible for the many times he’s been hit by pitches.
“I try not to get out of the pitch’s way,” Padgett said. “I guess I’m good at looking like I’m rolling away but then get hit anyway.”
Other times, the opposite happens — the umpire rules that a batter intentionally moved into the pitch’s path. For example, Pohlman took a pitch to the head on Friday and the umpire did not award him the free base.
“Of course I wouldn’t want to get hit in the head with a pitch,” Pohlman said. “But aside from that call, the umps do a good job of being fair.”
With 15 regular-season games left on the Cats’ schedule, Padgett has many more chances to be hit again and break out of his deadlock with Piacenti. Although Wisconsin-Milwaukee boasts a five-game winning streak, the ERA of the Panthers’ pitching staff is only 4.63.
Whether or not Padgett gets drilled again this season, he’s content with tying for NU’s top spot.
“I’m just glad to get my name in the record book somehow,” he said.
