HARRISBURG, S.D. (KELO) — The Harrisburg baseball team fell to Mitchell in this year’s state qualifying contest. Despite that loss, senior standout, Tyman Long, found a way to improve on an impressive junior season, by batting higher than .400 with eight homeruns in his senior season.
“Just do damage! Put the bat on the ball and just let my swing work,” Tyman Long said.
The offseason has seen Harrisburg senior, Tyman Long in the cage, improving his swing.
“Just focusing on that swing and making sure that I barrel as many pitches as I can,” Long said. “That was a big part of it, just being able to put myself in a position where I can barrel most pitches and ever since then, I’ve been making more contact and hitting balls harder.”
That hard work paid off as Long batted .409 this season with 38 hits, 36 runs batted in and a state high eight homeruns.
“Last year my average wasn’t too great, but this year I just wanted to be more consistent and get on base more to just help my team,” Long said. “I feel like just being able to put the ball in play most of the time, will help me get on base.”
“Being able to hit off-speed and being able to adjust to velocity changes, because I think that’s the biggest struggle really for high schoolers in the state of South Dakota,” Abrahamson said. “You see guys that are throwing 84-86 and then you see guys that are throwing 74-76 as well in the same game, in back-to-back at bats. So being able to adjust is a big skill.”
Long brings plenty of talent to the field, but it’s what he does off the field that may have the most impact.
“You guys obviously see what’s on the field and see a lot of talent, but with that talent, comes a lot of energy in the dugout,” Harrisburg coach Mark Abrahamson said. “He’s a guy that is always keeping it light and keeping it simple. I think that really helps guys to calm down and to really gather as a team.”
Tyman has become a student of the game both at the plate and behind the dish as a catcher.
“I think that’s what has allowed him to become the talent that he is too. He’s dedicated to the process and he understands everything to calling pitches, to handling pitching staffs, to being ready to expect what he’s going to get in the box hitting wise,” Abrahamson said.
Long will play for the College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas this fall.