The Ohio State Baseball team celebrates the senior athletes before the Ohio State-Northwestern game on May 30. Ohio State lost 2-8. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
Even though he hadn’t made an appearance through the first 41 games of the season, Jake Vance had a feeling he would take the mound in the finale.
The redshirt senior from Canton, Ohio, said he thought about Senior Day for a while before the first pitch was thrown to begin Sunday’s ballgame against Northwestern. Come the ninth inning, where the Buckeyes were behind 7-2, they needed a stop and head coach Greg Beals turned the ball over to an arm who took the mound for the final time in his career.
“It was awesome,” Vance said. “I was just staying ready all game, ready to seize the moment. It was nice to be able to celebrate it with a great group of guys. We got our brothers here and everyone’s pulling for each other. I’m just happy to be part of this group.”
Ohio State then-sophomore right handed pitcher Jake Vance (3) throws a pitch in the third inning of the game against Ohio University in April 10. Ohio State won 4-0. Credit: Jack Westerheide | Lantern File Photo
Vance worked two-thirds innings and surrendered a run across two hits and a walk, but bridged the way to true freshman right-hander Trent Jones, who recorded the final out of the frame in three pitches.
It served as a changing of the guard of sorts, as Ohio State will see at least five seniors depart the program and could lose more to the MLB draft in July for those seeking professional opportunities. But Vance sees a bright future ahead for Buckeyes baseball.
“There’s a lot of good arms here. We might lose a couple guys this year to the draft and a couple seniors,” Vance said. “But you’ve seen [Isaiah] Coupet get some really nice innings as a freshman. He’s a really good pitcher. Nate Haberthier got the start, another freshman. So you’re seeing a couple younger arms get in the mix a little bit, so it’s exciting to see a couple of those younger guys start filling it up.”
Beals said he was proud of Vance for highlighting the pipeline of talent coming down the pike for Ohio State in the near-term, and that the right-hander’s words exemplified leadership and the culture within the program.
Those traits were on display before Sunday’s game even began. Beals and the entire Buckeyes roster went onto the concourse at Bill Davis Stadium to put the names of the seniors onto the new “lettermen wall.” The wall holds 906 names of former student-athletes who saw their careers finish in an Ohio State uniform.
“It’s always special and it’s always different. Each guy is different,” Beals said. “You’ve been with them for four or five years, you love them. We become a part of who each other is just because of the connection and the relationship that you develop, the trust that you develop in each other because you go to work together. Those things are not buzz words for us; developing relationships and developing trust is the fabric of what we believe here.”
In addition to Vance, redshirt senior first baseman Conner Pohl went 1-for-3 with a walk and RBI single during his final game as a Buckeye, and graduate Scottie Seymour tied a season-high three putouts while playing left field Sunday. Redshirt senior right-hander Joe Gahm recorded a pair of strikeouts when he came on in relief in the middle of the sixth inning against the Wildcats.
Vance said he’ll soon begin working as a recruiter for TEKsystems, an information technology and talent services provider, in Columbus. The move will be a change for the Buckeye who spent the last five seasons contributing to Ohio State’s pitching staff as both a starter and reliever.
“About to start that journey here pretty soon,” Vance said. “I’ll be hanging up the cleats for good. It was a bittersweet moment being able to come in and throw that last inning, get a couple outs. It is what it is, it’s a lot of emotions, you know?”
