Shawaryn Carries The Torch For Terps

GREENVILLE, N.C.—Mike Shawaryn can re-write Maryland’s record book every time he takes the mound. Sometimes he’s done it every inning.

The junior righthander only needed until midway through his sophomore year to set the program’s all-time wins record—he’s sitting at 25 now—and he set its single-season strikeouts record in 2015 with 138, during a season in which he went 13-2, 1.71. Beyond the numbers, his most lasting contributions might be the credibility he’s helped bring to a program that’s historically been a non-factor in baseball.

“He’s really helped us to build what we hope is getting to be something special,” Maryland head coach John Szefc said. “Having a guy at the front of your rotation like that, it stabilizes a lot of things . . . and I think he kind of gives our program an identity, nationally. You’re talking about a guy that pitched for Team USA and has won games in NCAA regional play, has pitched in super regional play. People identify us with him, and vice versa.”

Szefc came to Maryland after the 2012 season, with Shawaryn coming in a year later as part of his first full recruiting class. The Terrapins had only been to regionals three times ever before their arrival, and now they’re a program that’s been to back-to-back super regionals.

“Just coming in for my freshman year and people’s outside expectations—(doing well in) the ACC tournament was great,” Shawaryn said. “Now, super regional or Omaha, that’s what we’re expecting each year. And to see that, it’s cool to be a part of and to build that and see how it’s changed yearly. For me, it’s really special to see that.”

Shawaryn took a rare loss on Opening Day against Alabama, allowing two runs in five innings, before bouncing back with eight shutout innings against Rhode Island on Feb. 26. To that point, he’d allowed three runs or less in 15 consecutive starts dating back to last year. All of that fed into Shawaryn’s highly anticipated start on Friday in which he faced fellow preseason All-American Nick Senzel and hot hitting Tennessee. The game, played at East Carolina as part of the Keith LeClair Classic, attracted a sizeable scouting audience, with Shawaryn and Senzel both potential first-rounders.

Shawaryn came out attacking in a perfect top of the first inning, punctuated by a three-pitch strikeout of Senzel. But then he had to sit through an extended bottom of the first in which Maryland’s offense sent nine men to the plate. While the offensive support was sorely needed—the Terps scored just two runs combined in Shawaryn’s first two starts—the long break was less than ideal on a tough day to pitch, with temperatures hovering in the low 40s and a windchill factor in the 30s.

“I thought he came out really good,” Maryland pitching coach Jimmy Belanger said. “His first inning was pretty electric. I don’t know if it had to with the weather. His first inning was really good and then he sat for about 40 minutes in that (bottom of the) first inning. And then he went back out and looked like it took him a while to get loose. In innings three and four, he was much better. Then we scored another big inning and then he went back out after sitting for 45 minutes and it looked like he just couldn’t get it going again.”

Three pitches, seeya later. Shawaryn wins round one against Senzel. #mlbdraft pic.twitter.com/v09X1RqWXE

— Jim Shonerd (@jimshonerdBA) March 4, 2016

Shawaryn’s usual low 90s velocity simply wasn’t there, nor was his command. He sat 88-91 mph in the first and even dipped into the mid 80s by the time he was pulled in the fifth, when Senzel hit a double off the left field wall. His day came to an end having allowed six runs (five earned) in 4 1/3 innings. To Shawaryn though, the weather was no excuse, and both Szefc and Belanger noted a game last year in which he beat Michigan with temperatures in the 20s. The good news on Friday was Maryland’s bats came alive in a back-and-forth 10-9 win.

“Wasn’t my best stuff,” Shawaryn admitted afterward. “I thought I did an alright job competing, but obviously the offense picked me up today. You’re going to have those days, and luckily for me, the offense picked me up.”

So while Shawaryn wasn’t able to put his best foot forward for the scouts in Greenville, there will be better days. Much as it was his slider that took a big leap from his freshman year to his sophomore year—hence the gaudy strikeout numbers—his changeup has been a point of emphasis as a junior, with Shawaryn and Belanger working on it throughout the fall, toying with grips in bullpens or even when just playing catch.

“We’ve messed around with the grip, and it’s just about throwing it a lot, really,” Belanger said of Shawaryn’s changeup. “That’s the way it gets better. It’s a pitch of feel. It just takes time. I don’t think it’s a pitch where a certain grip does it. I think it’s just something that, over time, you develop feel for it. Once you have feel for it, you have more confidence in it and you can execute it in the game.”

Shawaryn had been doing a better job of commanding the ball inside, which he did early on Friday before his command withered. His slider also remains deadly, a pitch he can throw to either side of the plate or use to expand the zone. He had just four strikeouts against the Vols, but he nonetheless has 17 in as many innings on the year, upping his career total to 227, which puts him fifth on the school’s all-time strikeout list.

The next name he’ll pass on that list happens to be Eric Milton at 236, the former Twins lefthander and Maryland’s most notable baseball alum of the draft era. But while Milton never got to pitch in an NCAA tournament game, Shawaryn aims to lead the Terps back to the postseason for the third straight year, something the program’s never done. Fair or not, he’ll bear much of the burden as easily the most prominent holdover from Maryland’s two super regional teams—the Terps had a program-record eight players drafted in 2015.

This figures to be Shawaryn’s final season in College Park, as he could be the Terps’ first first-round pick since 2002. Difficult as it might be for the Terps to think about a rotation without him, Szefc and company have pulled in back-to-back Top 25 recruiting classes—young players Shawaryn wants to see sustain the program’s momentum.

“Last year we lost a lot of upperclassmen,” Shawaryn said. “This year, with a lot of younger guys, I’m just trying to impart what I’ve learned in the two years and try and make them a little bit better if I can. That’s the only way it’s going to help the program build and continue the success down the road.”