GREENFIELD — Adam Hutchison remembers his first real baseball bruise. It stung. No question. But, it also sunk in deep.
Nearly 10 years ago, the now Greenfield-Central senior was pitching to his father, Michael Hutchison, when the elder laced a comeback line drive straight towards the mound.
“I was pitching to him without a screen, and he hit a rocket at me,” Hutchison recalled. “It hit me straight in the shin. I fell down. He told me to get up and quit crying. There’s no crying in baseball, so I got up and kept throwing. That’s baseball.”
Once a former youth soccer and basketball player, Hutchison saw no equal when it pertained to baseball. It led him to the Greenfield Youth Baseball Association at the age of 7, then the Indiana Bandits Baseball Club for three years followed by the Indiana Mustangs.
Nothing compared to Cougars baseball, however.
Once Hutchison suited up for his high school, there was more at stake then catching the eyes of recruiters and scouts. His priority began and ended with the name on the front of his jersey, and those who wore it before him.
“Ever since I came in as a freshman, I knew I had to prove myself because Drey (Jameson) and Tyler Farrell were both seniors on the team, and if I didn’t prove myself, then there was no chance of me playing with those great guys ever again,” Hutchison said.
Always elevating his own expectations, Hutchison not only cracked the varsity lineup as a freshman, the first baseman immediately contributed with 11 RBI, nine runs scored, five doubles and three home runs in 86 at-bats.
On the mound, the 6-foot-5, quiet giant, struck out 33 batters in 28.0 innings pitched and finished 2-3 with a 4.25 ERA.
Yet, with success came setbacks, most notably in the regional semifinal his freshman year. Entering the scoreless 0-0 game against Cathedral in the eighth inning, Hutchison gave up the first run of the game, which the Cougars eventually lost.
For some players, the loss would have derailed their confidence moving forward. Instead, Hutchison used the disappointment as motivation.
He spent the days, weeks and months that ensued to become the next Drey Jameson, who was selected in the first round of the MLB Draft last year. He wanted to be in the same conversation as Kyle Gibson, who has pitched seven seasons at the MLB level.
Hutchison worked with local baseball instructor and Chicago White Sox scout, Mike Shirley on his hitting and pitching, a routine he stuck to around twice a week.
“The experiences really helped him grow to the point where his junior year he had a lot of confidence and really wanted to go out and compete,” Greenfield-Central baseball coach Mark Vail said. “I think his junior year, he really came into his own physically as well. Just watching him move, he was really athletic and he really got a lot stronger.”
His numbers swung upward his sophomore year with a .409 batting average, 16 RBI, nine doubles and three home runs. He only stuck out eight times in 76 plate appearances. His pitching resulted in a 2-3 record with 56 strikeouts and six walks issued in 38.0 innings. His ERA dropped to 1.66.
“When Drey left (for Ball State in 2017), he was our No. 1 pitcher, so I felt I had to pick it up more my sophomore year and try to get Greenfield another sectional,” Hutchison said. “Everyone looks up to you when you’re the ace, and you know everyone needs you to perform on Friday nights and in sectional. It’s a big role, and I loved to be in that role.”
The numbers echoed his leadership. With a 1.12 ERA, Hutchison used a plethora of four-seam fastballs, curveballs and circle change-ups to strikeout 86 batters in 62.1 innings pitched. He didn’t surrender a single home run and had eight wins in 13 appearances.
His prowess for pressure moments meant he pitched the first game during Friday night Hoosier Heritage Conference doubleheaders, which helped the Cougars secure the league title by season’s end.
He opened last year’s sectional with a win over rival Mt. Vernon, 5-1, and nailed down the sectional title game against Richmond, 5-3, before he had a chance to avenge the past against Cathedral at regional.
In the regional semifinals, Hutchison threw a complete game with 11 strikeouts en route to a 4-1 victory and led the Cougars to the regional championship game against Avon before they lost 9-2 this past June.
“He was really good all year last year. He took us through the conference season, he and Bradley McDowell. They were both really strong all the way through the conference,” Vail said. “Adam was really proud of taking the ball on Friday night and in the state tournament and doing a really great job for his team. He really loved to compete in that environment.”
With two Class 4A sectional titles in three years, Hutchison was determined to add a potential third as a senior until the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic ended the 2020 season before it even began.
Hutchison will continue his career at Lincoln Trail College, a junior college in Illinois, but the lost opportunity of this spring wasn’t easy to absorb.
“Our seniors, Adam, Brady Mundell, Jacob Hauser, Thomas Fralich, Peyton Tompkins and Seth Kirkpatrick, all these guys they raised the bar last year. And, I think they wanted to raise it further this year,” Vail said. “They felt like that we could take another step, so they were disappointed they couldn’t do that. They’ve been realistic about it, but it had to be disheartening. It was for me, but more so because of them.”
It was especially difficult for Hutchison, the hitter, who admittedly struggle with a .256 batting average despite leading Hancock County with 25 RBI and an HHC-best four home runs.
“I was really disappointed in myself last year because all that work that everyone does to get ready for the season and then you put up numbers like that for hitting, you just can’t be too happy with yourself,” Hutchison said.
At the next level, he intends to continue to pick himself up with an ingrained short memory and a focused determination to be possibly becoming the next Cougars’ legend like Gibson or Jameson.
“Kyle Gibson, he’s in the pros right now. Drey is in the pros. It’s a big deal for me because building up from freshman year, watching Drey pitch, it was inspiring,” Hutchison said. “Being a part of that tradition is a big deal for me.”
