Eury a true double threat for Penn State baseball

By JOHN ENRIETTO Eagle Sports Editor

May 02, 2004 Last Updated: January 06, 2005 12:14 PM College

Clint Eury hopes to be playing baseball for a number of years yet.

The Butler graduate is playing a lot of baseball as a junior at Penn State University now. He is the Nittany Lions' starting first baseman and top relief pitcher.

In fact, he leads the team in RBI and saves.

"That's not a combination you see every day," said Penn State pitching coach Randy Ford.

Because he's playing first and pitching, however, Eury hasn't had time to devote full concentration to either position.

"Sometimes I wonder what I could do with my pitches if that's all I did," Eury admitted. "But I like playing the entire game, too."

At 6-feet-3, 220 pounds, Eury serves as Penn State's left-handed closer. He has a win and four saves in 10 appearances and averages a strikeout per inning.

As the starting first baseman, he's batting .299 with two homers and a team-leading 23 RBI. Penn State is 20-18 overall, 9-7 in Big Ten play.

"Clint is so valuable to us as a first baseman - particularly defensively - that we hate to take him out of there," Ford said. "But as a pitcher, he's so aggressive. He just goes after people. He's the ideal closer."

Major league scouts might feel the same way.

Eury was bypassed in baseball's amateur draft three years ago, despite hitting .541 his junior year and .415 as a senior at Butler.

Now he might be attracting interest as a pitcher.

"If it happens, it happens," Eury said. "But I'm not sitting on it too much. I want to continue playing baseball very badly.

'I haven't thought about it too much, but if I'm not drafted (in the next two years), I'd probably try to sign as a free agent somewhere. If it doesn't work out, I'm here to get my education anyway."

Eury is majoring in labor and industrial relations.

Ford doesn't believe Penn State's double-use of Eury will hinder his chances in professional baseball.

"His name is out there among the scouts," Ford said. "And the scouts are good at what they do. The tricky thing about their evaluations of Clint is they never know what day he's gonna pitch."

Because he's in the game as an every-day player, Eury rarely has the opportunity to warm up in a conventional way. If he's told he might make a mound appearance in a couple of innings, he'll run down to the bullpen and throw while his team is hitting if he's not scheduled to bat that inning.

Eury said there are times he'll warm up from first base.

"If I haven't had a chance to throw, somebody else will come out and throw grounders to the infielders while I pitch to somebody standing in foul territory," he said.

"It's different, but it gets me ready."

Eury throws a fastball, curve and changeup, and has started to work on a slider. He has been clocked at 91 mph, but typically throws in the high 80s.

"Clint's priority with us is as a position player," Ford said. "It's time-consuming, all the hitting and infield drills, but he does a great job managing his practice time and he throws a couple of days a week.

"I think he is a real pitching prospect. He's a strong left-hander with good control and not a lot of wear and tear on his arm. It'd be nice to see where his potential takes him as a pitcher," he added.

Eury's still a hitter for now. He believes Penn State can fare well in the Big 10 Tournament if he produces at the plate.

"My average was up to .320 at one point before it fell off a bit," Eury said. "You can always work on things at the plate and I know I can be a better hitter.

"Our league is jumbled up. Minnesota and Ohio State are always tough and we split four games at Minnesota, so I know we can play with anybody.

"I've really come to like pitching. But I like playing, too. If it helps the team that I do both, I'm all for it," Eury added.