Update from Head Baseball Coach Scott Heather -- September 2023
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Greetings Bison Alumni, Friends, and Family,
Well, I’m not sure about you, but the summer flew by for me. It’s hard to believe we are back in session. It was great to kick off the return of the school with our annual Gene Depew Memorial Golf tournament. A big thank you to everyone who was able to participate and contribute to the event which was our biggest yet in terms of both sponsors and participants. We had a great turnout with alumni and it was special to have Gene’s daughter Erin Threet ’06 and son Will Depew ’11 participate, as well as his brothers Terry ’73 and Alvin ’81. It makes for a great day reconnecting and a nice way to start the new season. Put it on your calendar for next year, August 23, and start putting your foursomes together.
We are a week into school now and have started small group workouts. The energy is high already and you can see the excitement from both returners and newcomers. Healthy competition has been a theme we push in the fall as we start to form what the new team will be made of. We certainly lost many contributors on the mound and in the field, but are excited to bring in a talented set of newcomers. We feel this group will be competitive early in their careers, especially on the mound, which is always important.
We are excited to announce two fall competitions that will take place at Depew Field. Penn State and IUP will be coming to Lewisburg to play on consecutive weekends in the fall. Penn State is doing some construction on its field this fall so it was looking for a road opponent who we will play on Oct. 15. It will be great to be tested in the fall with that type of competition. We have beaten them twice in a row, so I’m sure they will have something to prove coming to Lewisburg. As I have mentioned before, Steve Kline, former big leaguer and Lewisburg native, is the head coach at IUP, and it will be a nice homecoming for him. He has done a tremendous job there and got them back in the PSAC playoffs last year. Playing on consecutive weekends will give us a chance to look at a good amount of our roster.
We look to be deep offensively. We have a nice set of returning players that gives us a good start to having a productive lineup. I think we will have a very competitive fall within the roster with newcomers and returning players vying for open spots. I talk very often about how “every day matters” in that evaluation which should keep energy high throughout the fall. We like our options to fill spots and feel we should be able to put together a lineup that will keep us in every game.
I wanted to say a special congratulations to Anthony Sherwin, who was offered and signed a professional contract with the Houston Astros after his junior year. His professional career is off to a great start hitting .391 in his first nine games as a professional, with of course nine walks so far. As a program, we are excited for Anthony to get noticed, which bodes well for the future as well. We feel there are several prospects behind him who are soon to be next to get that opportunity. While it’s tough to lose such a good player, I think it’s important that we can show that we are developing prospects as we compete in recruiting for top talent.
I look forward to the journey with this group of players and families. We have been close the last two years, but we know we need to leave no stone unturned in order to take that next step. While it’s nice to sustain some competitiveness towards the top of the league, I can tell the feeling is a little different walking into this year within the team. I am hoping we can channel that drive on a daily basis to continue to improve this fall as we build this team. The fall is where teams start to develop their identity and I hope we keep that chip on our shoulder with something to prove.
Thanks as always for the support, and I hope to see you soon at Depew Field!
Go Bison!
Scott Heather
Head Baseball Coach
sheather@bucknell.edu
Past Newsletters:
Bison Club support is the driving force behind Bucknell Athletics. Your donations directly impact the holistic development of student-athletes from 27 Division I varsity programs who are building a foundation at Bucknell to become leaders and difference-makers around the globe. Make your gift online, or call 570-577-1771 to support your favorite Bison team today.
Well, I’m not sure about you, but the summer flew by for me. It’s hard to believe we are back in session. It was great to kick off the return of the school with our annual Gene Depew Memorial Golf tournament. A big thank you to everyone who was able to participate and contribute to the event which was our biggest yet in terms of both sponsors and participants. We had a great turnout with alumni and it was special to have Gene’s daughter Erin Threet ’06 and son Will Depew ’11 participate, as well as his brothers Terry ’73 and Alvin ’81. It makes for a great day reconnecting and a nice way to start the new season. Put it on your calendar for next year, August 23, and start putting your foursomes together.
We are a week into school now and have started small group workouts. The energy is high already and you can see the excitement from both returners and newcomers. Healthy competition has been a theme we push in the fall as we start to form what the new team will be made of. We certainly lost many contributors on the mound and in the field, but are excited to bring in a talented set of newcomers. We feel this group will be competitive early in their careers, especially on the mound, which is always important.
We are excited to announce two fall competitions that will take place at Depew Field. Penn State and IUP will be coming to Lewisburg to play on consecutive weekends in the fall. Penn State is doing some construction on its field this fall so it was looking for a road opponent who we will play on Oct. 15. It will be great to be tested in the fall with that type of competition. We have beaten them twice in a row, so I’m sure they will have something to prove coming to Lewisburg. As I have mentioned before, Steve Kline, former big leaguer and Lewisburg native, is the head coach at IUP, and it will be a nice homecoming for him. He has done a tremendous job there and got them back in the PSAC playoffs last year. Playing on consecutive weekends will give us a chance to look at a good amount of our roster.
We look to be deep offensively. We have a nice set of returning players that gives us a good start to having a productive lineup. I think we will have a very competitive fall within the roster with newcomers and returning players vying for open spots. I talk very often about how “every day matters” in that evaluation which should keep energy high throughout the fall. We like our options to fill spots and feel we should be able to put together a lineup that will keep us in every game.
I wanted to say a special congratulations to Anthony Sherwin, who was offered and signed a professional contract with the Houston Astros after his junior year. His professional career is off to a great start hitting .391 in his first nine games as a professional, with of course nine walks so far. As a program, we are excited for Anthony to get noticed, which bodes well for the future as well. We feel there are several prospects behind him who are soon to be next to get that opportunity. While it’s tough to lose such a good player, I think it’s important that we can show that we are developing prospects as we compete in recruiting for top talent.
I look forward to the journey with this group of players and families. We have been close the last two years, but we know we need to leave no stone unturned in order to take that next step. While it’s nice to sustain some competitiveness towards the top of the league, I can tell the feeling is a little different walking into this year within the team. I am hoping we can channel that drive on a daily basis to continue to improve this fall as we build this team. The fall is where teams start to develop their identity and I hope we keep that chip on our shoulder with something to prove.
Thanks as always for the support, and I hope to see you soon at Depew Field!
Go Bison!
Scott Heather
Head Baseball Coach
sheather@bucknell.edu
Past Newsletters:
Bison Club support is the driving force behind Bucknell Athletics. Your donations directly impact the holistic development of student-athletes from 27 Division I varsity programs who are building a foundation at Bucknell to become leaders and difference-makers around the globe. Make your gift online, or call 570-577-1771 to support your favorite Bison team today.