CALEDONIA — If you’re a baseball fan, you might have heard of the “Cardiac Kids” or the “Whiz Kids.”
The 1950 Philadelphia Phillies earned those nicknames thanks in part to their youth. The average age of a player on that roster was just over 26, but it didn’t prevent the Phillies from winning the National League pennant.
Tyler Aldridge and his Delta State University baseball team helped create another nickname: the “Elimination Kids.”
In May and June, the former Caledonia High School and East Mississippi Community College standout played an integral part in Delta State’s heart-pumping push to the NCAA Division II national title. Coming off the program’s 12th Gulf South Conference championship, DSU rallied out of the losers’ bracket to win four games in a row, including back-to-back victories against Stillman to win the NCAA South Regional in Tampa, Fla., and advance to the College World Series in Cary, N.C.
DSU won its first two games at the World Series before losing to Minnesota State-Mankato 1-0. DSU won the rematch 6-5 on June 1, rallying from a 5-0 deficit in the elimination game to help solidify the nickname. Aldridge played a big part in the comeback with two RBIs that helped Delta State tie the game.
DSU lost to West Chester 9-0 the next day in the title game, but the improbable 12-game run in 17 days in the NCAA tournament capped a 49-15 season and left Aldridge and his teammates wanting more. Aldridge went 8-for-17 with four RBIs at the World Series and joined teammates Jordan Chovanec and Michael Vinson on the all-tournament team.
“It was very special because growing up you always see yourself playing in a World Series, whether it is college or (in the majors),” Aldridge said. “The fans were so supportive. They drew and flew to see us play. Getting to that national championship was a miracle because of what we accomplished and what we went through.”
Aldridge, a 5-foot-10, 184-pounder, has been preparing for his senior season at Caledonia High, where he has been working out with the Confederates before he has to return to DSU later this month. He has traveled a long road filled with injuries and plenty of highs and lows in football, soccer, and baseball at Caledonia High. He built on his prep success at EMCC, where he played two seasons and led the Lions with a .338 batting average as a sophomore. He also paced the squad with 51 hits, 13 doubles, 28 runs, and tied for the team lead with two triples and 23 RBIs.
Aldridge said he always had wanted to attend Delta State and was eager to get a chance to play for a program with such tradition. Like many players, he liked the idea of playing at a Division I school, but he has enjoyed his time at DSU and feels the team has a great chance to make another run at a national championship next year.
This past season, Aldridge was sixth on the team with a .321 batting average. In 62 games (55 starts), he scored 33 runs and had 67 hits, 12 doubles, 23 RBIs, and nine stolen bases. Aldridge capped the “best experience” he has had in baseball by hitting .347 (17-for-47) in the final 12 games this season. That showing helped erase a slow start when Aldridge said he “couldn’t find his swing.” But he went back to fundamentals and worked to keep his front side closed.
He said repetition helped him work through bad habits and re-discover his swing and his productivity.
“I was slumping, but my coaches worked with me and, all of a sudden, I started seeing the ball better and hitting it,” Aldridge said. “Playoffs come and everybody has that extra gear. We started coming together more as a team and spraying hits. When you start getting hits, they are contagious.”
Aldridge praised the leadership of the seniors for helping set the tone. As he prepares for his final college season, he hopes the extra work he is doing in the summer puts him in position to build off the end to the 2012 season. His goal is to stay focused and to remember the importance of using the entire field and taking what the pitcher gives him when he gets back in the batter’s box. Those concepts are just two things that race through his mind when he is at bat, but he feels his experience this season has helped him know how to work through his weaknesses.
With a solid group of returning players set for the Aug. 19 report date, DSU will have a Green and White World Series and one or two games against Mississippi Valley State University in the fall season. Those games will help DSU fine tune its performance so it can make another run at World Series glory.
By then, DSU might have found another name that suits the 2013 squad.
“When I signed with Delta State, I knew I would be pushed to the limit and we would have a lot of success,” Aldridge said. “When I was at East Mississippi, we were on the path to getting the program right, but I have always had in my heart that I wanted to be in a program with a lot of tradition. I have said it a lot of times, but just going into the locker room on my visit and looking at the pictures in the locker room and the Hall of Famers and the MLB draft picks. It is overwhelming because they take a lot of pride in the players that go through there. … It is amazing how you can go to a Division II and feel that strong about that program.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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