Tommy Szczepanski goes from Little League hero to Michigan baseball commit

Tommy Szczepanski

Tommy Szczepanski of the Essexville Garber baseball team.Lee Thompson | MLive.com

ESSEXVILLE, MI -- Things are happening fast for Tommy Szczepanski.

As fast as a 90 mph fastball.

So when University of Michigan baseball coach Erik Bakich told him to wait -- if only for a couple hours -- for the offer of a lifetime, it was tough for the Essexville Garber sophomore to slow things down.

"When we connected on FaceTime, I was actually at football practice," Szczepanski said. "Coach Bakich said 'Call me later, go finish practicing with your team.' I really respected that. It shows that he's all about team.

"It was kind of hard (thinking about football), knowing I had a FaceTime with Coach Bakich later. But I had to focus. I was there to give it my all for my team."

After football practice, Szczepanski reconnected with Bakich and accepted his offer to join the Wolverines baseball family for the 2023 season. The offer came early, the commitment came quickly and the process moved rapidly for the fast-rising baseball star.

Just three years removed from leading Essexville-Hampton to the doorstep of the Little League World Series, Szczepanski is a Division I college baseball commit.

Standing 6-foot-3, 190 pounds and featuring a fastball that is closing in on 90 mph, Szczepanski is a hot commodity on the ball diamond. In his first varsity appearance as a freshman, he shut down the No. 2-ranked team in the state with a two-hit, eight-strikeout performance in a 2-1 win over Bay City Western.

He finished the season 7-5 with two saves, a 1.75 ERA and 80 strikeouts in 56.0 innings of work.

He spent the summer playing high-level travel ball with the New Jersey-based Tri-State Arsenal, competing in tournaments across the country. Elite college programs from the SEC, ACC and Big Ten had him on their radar after he pitched two strong innings in the Futures Game in Atlanta.

Tommy Szczepanski

Essexville Garber's Tommy Szczepanski poses outside the baseball stadium at the University of Michigan.Courtesy Tom Szczepanski

But Szczepanski really only had one school on his wish list. He said Wolverines pitching coach Chris Fetter was among the messages waiting for him after the outing.

Three weeks later, Szczepanski was a Big Ten baseball commit -- before the first day of class for his sophomore year of high school.

"I'm sure they see a lot of growth potential in him," Garber coach Jon Jeczmionka said.

"He just got his driver's license, for goodness sake. But look at his height and his shoe size. With the numbers he's putting up now -- and he's still getting taller and stronger -- those 87, 88, 89s are going to turn into 90s pretty soon."

Szczepanski said he's been a Michigan fan since his early years. Like Maize and Blue fans throughout the nation, he reveled in the program's thrilling run to the College World Series final in June.

"That's my dream school," he said. "It's hard to beat a school that is No. 2 for baseball and No. 1 for academics.

"I used to have a room full of Michigan things, just thinking about going to school there. To know that I am going to be a student-athlete there blows my mind."

Szczepanski is currently preparing for the upcoming Garber football season, where he is battling for starting roles at quarterback on offense and cornerback on defense. When Bakich’s call came in during practice, they had to put the conversation on hold.

But Szczepanski later joined his other team -- parents Tom and Missy and brother Tanner -- in a huddle around the phone to chat with the Michigan skipper.

"We talked about the Michigan culture and about the team," Szczepanski said. "He ended up offering and I took it.

"Like Coach Bakich said, 'It's all about those eight letters across your chest -- MICHIGAN -- and those letters probably mean a lot more to me than somebody coming from out of state. I'll have the opportunity represent the state and the university."

Although he still has three high school baseball seasons in front of him, Szczepanski is on target to become Garber's first Division I baseball player since Randon Henika closed out his career at Central Michigan in 2013.

He follows in the footsteps of 2018 Garber graduate Ben VanSumeren, who became the school's first contribution to the University of Michigan football team.

“It’s amazing to have two kids now from little ol’ Essexville committing there,” said Jeczmionka. “It’s something we’re all proud of, the entire community.”

Szczepanski first splashed onto the local baseball scene in 2016 when he was the ace of the Essexville-Hampton Little League team that won the state championship and reached the Great Lakes Regional title game.

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