In February, third baseman Roy Larson was practicing with the St. Thomas baseball team. Since then Larson has taken the field with some Minnesota Twins like Jim Thome, Kevin Slowey, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Delmon Young and Joe Mauer.

Larson and pitcher Matt Schuld were vital to the Tommies national championship run in 2009, and now they are representing St. Thomas in the Twins’ minor league system.

“It is a lot of fun playing with guys who I have been rooting for over the years,” Larson said. “What I will remember most is hitting a triple to score my favorite player, Delmon Young.”

Schuld, who is in his second season in the minor leagues, has helped Larson with his adjustment to professional baseball. The two were roommates during spring training.
“It was fun being able to go through spring training with him,” Schuld said. “It’s good to see that he is doing well now and getting his chance.”

“That was very helpful for me because [Schuld] had been down in Fort Myers last year and was able to help me get to know some of the people down there,” Larson said. “He also let me know what to expect and how to prepare myself for the season to come.”

From the MIAC to the minors

Larson is batting .286 and has five RBIs through ten games for the Elizabethton Twins in the rookie league. Schuld is 4-1 with a 3.99 ERA for the Fort Myers Miracle, the Twins class A affiliate.

“There is a reason they’re both there,” St. Thomas coach Chris Olean said. “Roy is just a freak athlete. He’ll do stuff that makes you shake your head. Matt just has the ability to compete and to battle and get outs.”

Schuld and Larson have had to adjust to the change in competition from the MIAC to the minor leagues.

“I still feel like if I make my pitch I can get guys out,” Schuld said. “But if you make a mistake, more hitters in the lineup will hurt you. A pitch they might foul off in college goes to the gap here.”

Olean played minor league baseball for two years, and he and Schuld still talk “probably once a week.”

“He’s been a great resource for me,” Schuld said. “When I’ve had a couple bad outings or something I’ll give him a call. He’s seen me throw so many times that he can usually have a pretty good idea what’s going on.”

St. Thomas connections

In addition to Larson and Olean, Schuld has another Tommie to confide in; his manager Jake Mauer.

“It’s cool to just have another Tommie around,” Schuld said. “Like when the MIAC playoffs were going it was fun to follow along with another Tommie.”

Olean and Mauer were teammates at St. Thomas, and Olean has a picture of Mauer hanging in his office. Schuld said their coaching styles are similar.

“Overall, they are both laid back guys, and they want you to have fun out there,” Schuld said. “Olean did a great job preparing us to play the game, and I think that Jake does the same here, just in a different setting.”

Olean never got past class A, but he said Schuld “could get [to the major leagues].”

“Matt is in the right system,” Olean said. “If you pitch for the Twins you don’t need to be a 95 [mils per hour] guy to make it to the big leagues. You can advance in the Twins system by getting outs.”

Alex Keil can be reached at amkeil@stthomas.edu.