Photo by: Josh Liddick
Summer League Spotlight: Rother rakes in Alaskan Baseball League
6/28/2021 9:37:00 AM | Baseball
By Josh Liddick, Lehigh Sports Communications
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There's no question rising senior Casey Rother is a star, evident by the season he had with Lehigh baseball in 2021. Whether he was playing first base or was out in left field, Rother raked from the plate and earned Patriot League Player of the Year honors for his successful season.
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This summer, Rother has taken his talents to a brand-new location as he has had quite the time playing for the Matsu Miners of the Alaskan Baseball League.
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Over the last three summers, Rother has become the well-versed traveler in terms of summer baseball leagues among his Mountain Hawk teammates, staying close to home in the Blue Mountain League in 2019, followed by the Texas Collegiate League in 2020 and now in Alaska. Rother isn't the only notable Lehigh ballplayer playing for Matsu this summer as fellow rising senior Gerard Sweeney is also a key member of the team as well.
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"It was after our freshman summer into our sophomore year, [head coach] Leary has connections out here and was able to get us both spots on the team," said Rother. "And now it was after junior year that I got here because of COVID. It was delayed a little bit, but it has been great and I'm glad it was able to happen.
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"I don't know how I would be able to do this without [Gerard], really," Rother said. "It's super fun that we were able to travel to Alaska together, go out on a plane and do literally every single thing together. It's so awesome doing things like this with someone you know from home, someone that's a good friend."
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After slashing .329/.420/.503 in 39 games where he hit six home runs with 32 RBIs in his junior campaign, Rother has continued his torrid pace by dominating the ABL with a team-best .358 average (19-for-53), a slashline of .358/.433/.566 and 10 runs scored, eight doubles and homer and four RBIs with six walks. He's struck out just five times in 53 at-bats through the team's first 16 games of the summer schedule. His batting average and hit totals are both good enough for second of all qualified ABL hitters.
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"I've just been trying to be consistent wherever I go, so it's the same ball being thrown off of the same bat and I just have to swing and hit it," said Rother. "But I try to keep it as simple as possible. It's a hard thing to do but having a good, simple, calm mindset and being an athlete at the plate is probably the main thing."
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His freshman year, Rother played a mix between catcher and designated hitter, but his sophomore season, he also spent time on the mound in certain situations. In 2021, Rother played first base and left field, but this summer, he has had the opportunity to try his hand at playing right field and third base.
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"I'm trying to be that athlete wherever I go on the field too. Playing right field is a lot of fun, I'm really comfortable there," Rother said. "And of course, I am happy wherever the team needs me to go, so third base has been fun as well."
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Rother led a Mountain Hawks offense back to the Patriot League Championship Series for the first time since 2015, but fell just short of clinching a league title and NCAA Regional berth. He hopes some of the things he learned from the end of last season and this summer will translate into how Lehigh will perform for 2022.
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"After the way that last game ended, I learned that it was very difficult to get to that position and we did everything 110 percent so next year needs to be 120 percent," said Rother. "We'll need to work extra hard and as seniors we need to lead the team in every aspect. It just comes down to hard work every single day starting in the fall. We understand we have the talent to get back there, but our work ethic needs to be on point as well."
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Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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There's no question rising senior Casey Rother is a star, evident by the season he had with Lehigh baseball in 2021. Whether he was playing first base or was out in left field, Rother raked from the plate and earned Patriot League Player of the Year honors for his successful season.
Â
This summer, Rother has taken his talents to a brand-new location as he has had quite the time playing for the Matsu Miners of the Alaskan Baseball League.
Â
Over the last three summers, Rother has become the well-versed traveler in terms of summer baseball leagues among his Mountain Hawk teammates, staying close to home in the Blue Mountain League in 2019, followed by the Texas Collegiate League in 2020 and now in Alaska. Rother isn't the only notable Lehigh ballplayer playing for Matsu this summer as fellow rising senior Gerard Sweeney is also a key member of the team as well.
Â
"It was after our freshman summer into our sophomore year, [head coach] Leary has connections out here and was able to get us both spots on the team," said Rother. "And now it was after junior year that I got here because of COVID. It was delayed a little bit, but it has been great and I'm glad it was able to happen.
Â
"I don't know how I would be able to do this without [Gerard], really," Rother said. "It's super fun that we were able to travel to Alaska together, go out on a plane and do literally every single thing together. It's so awesome doing things like this with someone you know from home, someone that's a good friend."
Â
After slashing .329/.420/.503 in 39 games where he hit six home runs with 32 RBIs in his junior campaign, Rother has continued his torrid pace by dominating the ABL with a team-best .358 average (19-for-53), a slashline of .358/.433/.566 and 10 runs scored, eight doubles and homer and four RBIs with six walks. He's struck out just five times in 53 at-bats through the team's first 16 games of the summer schedule. His batting average and hit totals are both good enough for second of all qualified ABL hitters.
Â
"I've just been trying to be consistent wherever I go, so it's the same ball being thrown off of the same bat and I just have to swing and hit it," said Rother. "But I try to keep it as simple as possible. It's a hard thing to do but having a good, simple, calm mindset and being an athlete at the plate is probably the main thing."
Â
His freshman year, Rother played a mix between catcher and designated hitter, but his sophomore season, he also spent time on the mound in certain situations. In 2021, Rother played first base and left field, but this summer, he has had the opportunity to try his hand at playing right field and third base.
Â
"I'm trying to be that athlete wherever I go on the field too. Playing right field is a lot of fun, I'm really comfortable there," Rother said. "And of course, I am happy wherever the team needs me to go, so third base has been fun as well."
Â
Rother led a Mountain Hawks offense back to the Patriot League Championship Series for the first time since 2015, but fell just short of clinching a league title and NCAA Regional berth. He hopes some of the things he learned from the end of last season and this summer will translate into how Lehigh will perform for 2022.
Â
"After the way that last game ended, I learned that it was very difficult to get to that position and we did everything 110 percent so next year needs to be 120 percent," said Rother. "We'll need to work extra hard and as seniors we need to lead the team in every aspect. It just comes down to hard work every single day starting in the fall. We understand we have the talent to get back there, but our work ethic needs to be on point as well."
Â
Like Lehigh Baseball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
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