Drive To Play D-I Baseball Ends In Miami For Harrison

CLEVELAND - At the age of 14, Tommy Harrison went to a baseball camp at Miami.

“That was when I first decided I wanted to play Division I baseball,” the St. Edward junior related. “My dad and I went there and we drove around and checked things out. I remember I loved the field. That was my first love of college baseball.”

It is also where the third-rated 2021 catcher in Ohio will be attending college after a recent commitment to the Mid-American Conference school.

“I started talking to them back in June at LakePoint, Ga.,” Harrison reflected. “Since then we’ve built on that relationship. I went to a couple of PBR events and they saw me and liked my arm strength.”

That is an area the 6-2 180-pounder has been focused on improving.

“They really wanted to continue to see my arm strength so I sent them videos of my throwing,” Harrison noted. “That’s a big factor in my game. During the quarantine my dad and I would go to the park four times a week and that helped make my arm stronger. My dad helped a lot through all of this. I’d go with him to hit every day at my uncle’s field at Baldwin-Wallace.”

The head coach at B-W, Brain Harrison, helped in regard to recruitment as well for the 44th-ranked 2022 in the state.

“He has some friends at Miami, so those connections helped,” Harrison said.

Hard work has been a big part of it as well.

“Since the quarantine and all that throwing I have a much stronger arm and my bat speed has gotten better,” Harrison pointed out. “I’ve tried to improve in every baseball way possible. When I get there I want to be bigger, stronger, faster. I have the tools, I just need to develop as a man.”

The 16-year-old has longed to play baseball at the next level, inspired by an older sister.

“The thing that edged me on was when she committed to Division I,” Harrison said of his senior sibling, Molly, who is going to Cincinnati to play volleyball. “She showed me this is a great thing in life but you have to work hard for it.”

Coach Matt Rosinski is another that has helped pave the way to Miami.

“He went to Miami to pitch,” Harrison said of his high school coach at St. Ed’s and summer coach with Release. “He gets lots of players to go to Miami. He’s very influential. I’ve wanted to go there and be like him.”

A position change at the age of 13 helped the cause in the long run.

“I’d played infield my whole life but when one of our catchers got hurt I said I’d go back there,” Harrison related about the first time he tried the position. “I’ve worked at it since then, but I still have a ways to go. I know I have good hands back there. If it doesn’t work out I can play infield or outfield, I’ve always played everywhere.”

But the opportunity to be a catcher at Miami is intriguing to Harrison, the 13th-rated uncommitted 2022 in the state prior to his college decision.

“As a catcher I try to be a team leader, be as vocal as I can,” Harrison noted. “In the dugout I try to pick things up. I try to stay locked into the game and try to hustle as much as I can. Play the game as hard as you can every game. You don’t know when it’s going to be your last one so I play hard, play fast and hustle everywhere I go.”

The left-handed hitting Harrison believes those strong qualities can prove beneficial for the Mid-American Conference program in Oxford.

“Off the field is really important,” Harrison said. “The education there at Miami is amazing. On the field I will be a team leader. I’ll make an impact not only with my play but my positivity every day. As a freshman I want to be the guy who shows up, works hard every day, has a positive mindset every day and smiles every day.”

The recruiting process has been, for the most part, enjoyable for Harrison.

“It was great for me, it boosted my confidence knowing colleges wanted me,” Harrison noted. “It was also very stressful. After all, it was a big life decision. But I think going to Miami is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

“For me it happened quickly,” Harrison added. “I went to PBR and got attention from other schools and that also helped me a lot getting exposure and my numbers out there. It was great to see where players are at, not just me. Sometimes it’s a reality check. I did really well at the first one but the second one didn’t go as well. It just motivated me to get better.”

Miami is the beneficiary of that drive to be the best player he can be in college.