MSSU's Stevenson parlays monster spring into Northwoods League cameo

Jun. 25—Before his days of mashing baseballs at Division II Missouri Southern, Tommy Stevenson grew up over four hours from Joplin in suburban St. Louis.

At that time, Stevenson did not know of MSSU until he piqued the interest of assistant coach Nick Tuck at a summer ball tournament in Kansas City leading up to his senior year in 2018 at Kirkwood High School.

"I had a few good games," Stevenson recalled early Friday morning.

Later that day, Stevenson was sitting in his hotel room and his phone started to buzz. On the other end of the line was Tuck, who quizzed Stevenson about how well he knew Joplin.

"I only knew of Joplin because of the (2011) tornado that happened," Stevenson said. "We talked and kept in touch for a month or so. I went down there for a visit. They gave me an offer, and I was hooked. Southern was the right place for me. It's like one big family. They mean everything to me."

Stevenson became a Lion and has never looked back.

"We knew right away he could be a guy," MSSU head coach Bryce Darnell said. "Coach Tuck is an awesome talent evaluator. He's just tremendous at his job. Tommy is a big, strong player. He's always been strong, but he got baseball and weight room strong when he got here. The sky's the limit for Tommy. We know that. He's just an extremely gifted baseball player."

HIT THE GROUND RUNNING

Stevenson quickly acclimated to college baseball. As a true freshman during the COVID-19 season, he hit for both average (.333) and power (seven doubles and three home runs) all while maintaining a 13-11 strikeout to walk ratio in 20 games.

The catcher wreaked havoc on the MIAA in 2021. Still a freshman, Stevenson batted .326 with 19 doubles, 13 home runs, 51 RBI and posted a 1.060 OPS en route to earning league Freshman of the Year honors.

"From day one in his freshman year, we knew Tommy would be in the middle of our lineup and one of the most dangerous bats we've ever had," Darnell said.

The expectations were sky high for Stevenson entering into his sophomore season.

And he lived up and perhaps surpassed them despite a few curveballs thrown his way.

Stevenson missed time during the season with a hyperextended thumb and a leg injury that did some damage.

"In the last mid-week series against Rogers State, I went to catch a flyball and I slid into the wall and the head of a hose and I sliced open my leg right under my patella (in the knee)," Stevenson said. "I had to get 13 staples, four outside stitches and three inside stitches."

Even though he was limited to first base and DH duties, the stats he put up still looked like someone turned down the difficulty in MLB The Show. Stevenson batted .385 with 16 long balls and 42 RBI while upping his OPS to 1.285 in just 40 games played (39 starts).

Stevenson attributed the success to an aggressive approach and seeing the ball a lot better in his second full season. He was on pace to break the school's single-season home run record of 18 set by Jesse Rall in 2016.

Standing at 6-foot-4, Stevenson said his uptick in power (three more than last year in 19 fewer at-bats) stems from his work with MSSU strength and conditioning coach Brian Burton.

"He's (Burton) something else," Stevenson said. "He knows how to do his job. I came into college at like 190 pounds. Now I'm up to 225-230. I wasn't much of a power hitter in high school and then I came here and something changed. Props to him for helping me out."

Stevenson ranked eighth in the MIAA in homers. The seven ranked ahead had at least 10 or more games played than him this spring.

"At one point in time, I think he was hitting a home run every nine at-bats," Darnell said. "Just a very dangerous hitter. When he catches fire, the ball goes out in spurts, for sure."

RELISHING THE NORTHWOODS LEAGUE

Since the Lions' season ended back in May, Stevenson followed the trend of MSSU players getting time in the prestigious Northwoods League. He's currently playing for the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders this summer.

MSSU players Logan VanWey (2018-20) and Henry Kusiak (2021) are recent alumni of the league.

So far this summer, Stevenson is hitting .220 with one home run and 10 RBI in the Northwoods League — known as a pitcher's haven.

Stevenson has an OPS of .683. The league average is .713.

"It has been a grind, for sure," Stevenson said. "We play everyday, but when you love baseball, it's your dream. It's like a major-league experience. You got fans. All the places we go have good environments. The competition is just off the charts. You got guys that are really good, but you want that competition."

Stevenson, who's attracted professional scouts with his ability to hit, said right now he's working on getting the timing of his swing down.

One question pro scouts had during his college season was catching because of the leg injury, so strengthening up his lower half has been a point of emphasis.

"I've caught two games this summer," Stevenson said. "I've started five to seven innings. It has been tough because I haven't caught in three to four months. Just getting back into being able to receive, block and do throw downs with the simple mechanics, I'm almost to the point where I can catch all nine."

Stevenson's performances have impressed the Fond du Lac coaching staff.

"Tommy is definitely a pro in my eyes," Dock Spiders manager Zac Charbonneau said. "Night after night, he consistently puts together professional at-bats. He still has room to grow, which is what I think excites scouts. The power, hand speed, competitiveness and patience is there already.

"He is strong behind the dish and can stick back there for a bit in his career."

Stevenson said his contact with scouts has slowed down as the summer has gone on.

"There's a few teams that are still waiting for me to get behind the plate and see what I can do," he said. "They know what I can do at the plate."

For now, Stevenson can only think about what's guaranteed — his junior year at MSSU — where goals and aspirations are high.

"I want to be Player of the Year and get Darnell a conference championship and eventually a national championship as well," Stevenson said.

"A healthy Tommy Stevenson for 50 games, the stats could be really crazy," Darnell said.