Army 'An Amazing Opportunity' For Beidelschies

CANFIELD - Army was not on the radar of Landon Beidelschies.

That is, until interest developed after the Canfield junior touched 90 on the gun in mid-December.

“Coach (Mike) Grady posted me hitting 90 at his pitching school and they followed me after that,” Beidelschies said.

Phone conversation brought a feel for what it would be like being a member of the program at Army and the ninth-ranked 2022 left-handed pitcher in Ohio began the process of deciding if it was right for him.

“I spent a lot of time talking and thinking about it,” Beidelschies noted. “I was skeptical at first, but my mom thought about it and felt it was the perfect fit. I talked to some that are there and also talked with family friends that attended West Point and after that I felt like it was the perfect fit.

“I think it will be great for me as a person,” Beidelschies continued. “It will develop me well and that education will be good for me.”

After all, being part of the United States Military Academy is an honor to behold for a 16-year-old still in high school.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to play and serve my country,” Beidelschies explained. “To play at that high level seemed like a no-brainer.”

One trait about the 62nd-rated junior in the state stood out to the coaches at Army.

“My competitiveness and grit on the mound,” Beidelschies related. “I like to compete. I’ll bring a lot of competitiveness to the program. I’m someone who is able to go out on the mound and give it all I’ve got.”

A strong work ethic has brought improvement to his game.

“I’ve been working on my velo, that’s one of the biggest things,” pointed out the 6-2 210-pounder. “I’ve also developed my off-speed pitches to turn me into a complete pitcher, not just one who throws hard.”

Georgia Tech, Oakland, Pittsburgh, Youngstown State and Cincinnati are “some of the biggest” schools that also had an interest in the fourth-ranked uncommitted 2022 southpaw in Ohio prior to his decision to make West Point his future home. Much of the interest came after playing for Team Select in the Future Games.

“That was awesome to play with some of the best players in the country,” reflected Beidelschies, who pitched against Team Massachusetts at the PBR event in early August. “Video from that is what I used to get on the radar of a lot of coaches. Some watched me there that had never seen me before.”

Grady along with his high school coaches and Ohio Elite are credited with being influential in the development as well as recruitment of Beidelschies, who only recently considered college baseball as part of his future.

“Once I got to high school we had a few seniors that were looking at playing college baseball,” Beidelschies said. “I was a freshman and it seemed like something I wanted to pursue. By sophomore year when my velo got higher colleges started noticing me.”

Law and legal science are majors being considered by Beidelschies, a 4.04 student that continues to work on bettering his game.

“My velo still needs to improve,” Beidelschies admitted. “I’m also working on being able to throw strikes with my off-speed. I’m looking for better control and growing as a pitcher and an athlete.”

Making the official commitment to the United States Military Academy was a memory that won’t be forgotten by the Canfield junior and his family.

“It was surreal,” Beidelschies said. “We always couldn’t wait for me to commit and when it finally happened it was amazing for us.”