'Comfortability' With BG Was Right For McKenzie
August 21, 2022
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‘Comfortability’ With BG Was Right For McKenzie
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Cooper McKenzie
Class of 2022 / C
Rankings
StateRank: 278 / POS: 30
Player Information
-
Graduating Class: 2022
-
Primary Position: CSecondary Position: 3B
-
High School: WheelersburgState: OH
- Summer Team: Ohio Elite 2022
-
Height: 6-4Weight: 215lbs
- Bat/Throw: R/R
Statistics
Position
1.97 - 2.03
Pop Time
(06/29/21)
74
INF Velo
(06/29/21)
73
C Velo
(06/29/21)
87
Exit Velo
(06/29/21)
4.87
H-1st
(06/29/21)
![Trackman](/images/stat_logos/trackman.png)
Trackman - Hitting
86.5
Exit Velocity (max)
(06/29/21)
73.6
Exit Velocity (avg)
(06/29/21)
242
Distance (avg)
(06/29/21)
308
Distance (max)
(06/29/21)
Sweet Spot %
(06/29/21)
Line Drive %
(06/29/21)
Fly Ball %
(06/29/21)
Ground Ball %
(06/29/21)
2021 The Miami Prospect Games (Invite Only)
Jun 29, 2021
Trackman - Hitting
Exit Velocity (max)
86.5
Exit Velocity (avg)
73.6
Distance (avg)
242
Distance (max)
308
Sweet Spot %
Line Drive %
Fly Ball %
Ground Ball %
![Blast](/images/stat_logos/blast.png)
Blast - Hitting
19.3
Hand Speed (max)
(06/29/21)
18.7
Hand Speed (avg)
(06/29/21)
62.3
Bat Speed (max)
(06/29/21)
58.3
Bat Speed (avg)
(06/29/21)
Rot. Acc (max)
(06/29/21)
Rot. Acc (avg)
(06/29/21)
On Plane Eff (avg)
(06/29/21)
MaxOnPlaneEfficiency
(06/29/21)
2021 The Miami Prospect Games (Invite Only)
Jun 29, 2021
Blast - Hitting
Hand Speed (max)
19.3
Hand Speed (avg)
18.7
Bat Speed (max)
62.3
Bat Speed (avg)
58.3
Rot. Acc (max)
Rot. Acc (avg)
On Plane Eff (avg)
MaxOnPlaneEfficiency
Videos
(6/29/21)
Player News
- 'Comfortability' With BG Was Right For McKenzie - Aug 21, 2022
- 2021 Ohio Unsigned Senior Showcase (Charity Event) - Quick Hits - Dec 14, 2021
- Results From 2021 Ohio Unsigned Senior Showcase (Charity Event) - Dec 13, 2021
- 2021 Ohio State Games - Quick Hits - Oct 13, 2021
- Results From 2021 Ohio State Games - Oct 12, 2021
- Results From 2021 Ohio Fall Prospect Games - Oct 4, 2021
- 2021 Ohio State Games - Preview - Oct 4, 2021
- 2021 Ohio Fall Prospect Games - Quick Hits - Oct 4, 2021
- Results From 2021 Southern Ohio Unsigned Senior Games - Aug 9, 2021
- 2021 Southern Ohio Unsigned Senior Games - Quick Hits - Aug 9, 2021
- Results From 2021 The Miami Prospect Games - Jun 30, 2021
- 2021 The Miami Prospect Games - Quick Hits - Jun 30, 2021
- Results From 2021 Southern Ohio Prospect Games - Jun 24, 2021
- 2021 Southern Ohio Prospect Games - Quick Hits - Jun 24, 2021
- 2018 Prospect Games at Miami: Complete Evaluations - Aug 14, 2018
- 2018 Prospect Games at Miami - Top Performers - Jul 19, 2018
- 2018 Prospect Games at Miami - Sneak Peek - Jul 19, 2018
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‘Comfortability’ With BG Was Right For McKenzie
“I talked to the coach and said we really like you, but we’re going to look at the transfer portal,” reflected McKenzie, who had just graduated from Wheelersburg at the time. “A week later he called and offered. I took a day to think it over but BG was where I wanted to be. I love the campus and where the baseball program is headed with the guys going there.”
One of those “guys” helped McKenzie get noticed by Bowling Green.
“They were looking at DJ Newman and he was pitching and I was catching,” McKenzie said about a game in Cincinnati while both were playing for Ohio Elite. “After the game the coach texted and said we really like you and said he wanted to continue to talk. We were off and on for six or seven months, one day it looked like an offer and the next it didn’t.”
But in the end it finally materialized for the 31st-ranked 2022 catcher in Ohio.
“They love the way I catch and the way I receive the ball,” the 6-4 215-pounder said of BG. “They think my body can play at the next level. They like my bat and said that power will come.”
Marshall along with JUCO schools and D-II colleges such as Lake Erie were being considered by McKenzie before Bowling Green made an offer.
“I have a good relationship with the coach,” McKenzie said about what made BG his top choice. “He kept me posted on what was going on. I trusted him as a person before a coach.
“Number one for me was the comfortability,” McKenzie added. “I knew it was a place I really wanted to be.”
But the commitment did not come without some anxious moments being uncommitted at the time of graduation.
“The whole recruiting process was tough for me,” McKenzie admitted. “Every day I was wanting a coach to call, I just trusted God to put me in the right place at the right time and thankfully He did.
“It was nerve-racking every day hoping someone would text me, but a lot of good came out of it. It was cool to see different coaches and people reaching out.”
The idea of playing at the next level started a half dozen years ago, according to McKenzie.
“Since I was 10 or 11 all I’ve wanted to do was play high school ball, then college ball and after that, if I’m lucky enough, to keep on playing,” McKenzie said. “I had a good year of high school ball as a freshman and also travel ball that summer and that’s when I felt I was good enough to do it.”
Getting recognized was not the easiest thing to do, however.
“I went to a few PBRs but I’m not a big showcase guy,” McKenzie pointed out. “I was smaller then and my velo wasn’t too great. My tools really didn’t play. But now that I’ve hit the weight room things have picked up.
“My hitting has come a long way. I’ve really grown the last few months and I’m getting my body moving in the right way and figuring out who I am as a hitter. My throwing has also improved. My pop time is better and I’ve gotten faster.”
One aspect of McKenzie has not changed.
“I have a winning attitude,” McKenzie said. “I’m a winning person on and off the field. I’m a person that succeeds at anything he tries to do, putting all my effort into it.”
Business is the planned major for McKenzie, a 3.4 student who is grateful to know what his future holds.
“It’s relieving,” the 18-year-old said of making a college commitment. “The whole spring baseball season I worried about where I would go after high school. It was the same playing summer ball before I committed. But once I committed the pressure was off my back and I felt like I could finally play.”
Wearing the brown-and-orange at Bowling Green is now just around the corner.
“I’m looking forward to meeting and bonding with my teammates on and off the field,” McKenzie concluded. “I’m really looking forward to this.”