Jeremiah Kerns said he feels no pressure as the ace of the Tartan Pride.
Kerns, a six-foot-one, 175-pound right-hander, was the 2010 Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) Pitcher of the Year as a freshman.
As a freshman, Kerns went 5-1, threw 38 innings, allowed 24 hits and 16 walks while striking out 41, with a 1.86 ERA, en route to winning his award.
Kerns’ 2011 season hasn’t been as good—by his own admission.
“I haven’t done as well,” Kerns said. He attributed this to the OCCAC being better in 2011. He mentioned specifically the improvement of Cuyahoga Community College.
“Cuyahoga and Owens [Community College] both hit me pretty good,” Kerns said.
Despite his claim, Kerns is 3-1 with a 3.31 ERA and leads the Tartan Pride in innings and is second in strikeouts.
Going into the 2011 season, coach Steve Dintaman said the foundation and strength of his club was his starting pitching, led by Kerns, Austin Pressly and Christian McElroy. Dintaman has said before that focus can be an issue for players, but that Kerns doesn’t have those problems.
“Jeremiah is one of the few players who doesn’t need much of a mental game,” Dintaman said. “His mind is clear and he just attacks hitters.”
Dintaman also said that being the OCCAC Pitcher of the Year adds something to him.
“I think he has more of a presence then last year,” Dintaman said. “Being the conference pitcher of the year and feeding off last year.”
How he’s grown since last year
Kerns said he throws a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, a curveball, a slider and a changeup. He said his four-seam fastball velocity last year was “85-87 MPH” and he now sits at “88-90 MPH.” That added strength has also helped his slider.
Kerns said the slider is his best pitch and he can throw it any count and get swings-and-misses.
“Since last year it has more break and more velocity,” Kerns said.
Kerns said that pitching coach Rick Castle recently helped him develop a two-seam fastball, which he uses to get groundball outs. Generally, a four-seam fastball is harder but straighter; a two-seamer will be slightly slower but with more break.
“I use it to go for groundballs and to jam power hitters,” Kerns said.
What he expects out of himself and the team
The stated goal for the Tartan Pride by Dintaman was to get to the World Series in Oklahoma. Kerns said he feels the team can “get over the hump” and do that.
“I feel good about the staff,” Kerns said. “We have a lot of depth, we are dedicated. Everyone pushes everyone.”
Kerns said he knows the coaches might go with the hot hand when it comes to picking a starter for the postseason, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to start.
“I expect it,” Kerns said. “I demand that out of myself.”