St. Joseph head baseball coach Jay Meath doesn’t normally pull freshman up to varsity.
In his 10 years at the Westchester school, Meath has only had three freshman on varsity from day one.
But last year he saw something special in Jake Hansen. Meath felt the shortstop was ready to play with the big boys and he didn’t disappoint.
Hansen had a solid first year as an everyday starter and is has not been affected by a sophomore slump this spring.
“He did a really nice job playing shortstop and pitching a little last year,” Meath said. “This year he’s starting to become a leader out there as a sophomore and that’s what we’re looking for. When you don’t have the upperclassmen to take control, sometimes the younger guys have to and that’s what he’s been doing.”
Playing varsity baseball as a freshman was just one thing that helped Hansen develop confidence. In the fall, the Westchester resident was a starting midfielder on the soccer team, which lost to St. Francis in the Class 2A state championship.
“I started every game and I’d consider myself one of the leaders on that team,” Hansen said. “We went undefeated until the last game, so we had a pretty good season and I think that will help in baseball.”
Hansen’s teammates have seen his leadership first-hand.
“He’s one of the hardest workers out here and he’s always pushing me to get better,” said freshman infielder Dakota Church. “We’re out here in the cages working after games and practices and he’s always pushing me to be the best I can be.”
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Through 15 games, Hansen was hitting .309 with five RBI and six stolen bases and that’s come during the hardest stretch of St. Joe’s schedule.
The Chargers wrapped up its six-game series against the six teams from the Catholic League Blue on Wednesday, April 22, with a 13-0 five-inning loss to St. Laurence. St. Joe’s (4-11, 1-6) went winless against Brother Rice, Providence, St. Rita, Loyola, Mount Carmel and St. Laurence — all much bigger schools. Meath called this portion of the Chargers’ schedule “the gauntlet.”
Hansen is taking the losses in stride and he said the Chargers never backed down against those top-notch teams.
“I love the challenge and I think my teammates are the same way,” said the left-hander, who batted 1-for-3 against St. Laurence. “Even if we don’t get the result we want, we always fight to the end. That’s the best part of our team.”
He is also looking for a challenge in one of his hobbies, fishing.
When Hansen is not on the diamond, he usually can be found on a boat or a pier. He tries to fish every weekend during the summer with his younger brother, Tank, and his father, Robert.
He said the biggest fish he’s caught was a bass in Michigan that weighed 51/2 pounds, but he’s set his sights on something bigger.
“I want to go tarpon fishing in Florida,” Hansen said. “They can get up to five feet long and it can take hours to get them in.”
Valentin is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.