Dustin Wilson, a 2014 Rochester High School graduate, winds up to deliver for Tacoma Community College during NWAC baseball action. Wilson has signed a letter of intent to pitch for Eastern Illinois University in the 2017 season.
In this multi-exposure image in camera, Rochester's Dustin Wilson delivers a pitch to a Naches Valley batter during a State 1A Baseball Playoff semifinal game at Yakima County Stadium on Friday evening. Wells was safe on the play.
Rochester's Dustin Wilson delivers a pitch to an Elma batter during the first inning of District IV 1A Baseball Tournament semifinal game on Tuesday in Rochester.
After two years on the mound at Tacoma Community College, Dustin Wilson will continue his baseball career, signing with NCAA Division I Eastern Illinois University.
Wilson played his high school ball at Rochester for coach Jerry Striegel, and was named The Chronicle’s All-Area Baseball MVP in 2014.
Striegel was a big influence on Wilson from the moment he started his baseball career as a freshman in Rochester.
“I always look at him for influence and I always go back to him and think about things he said,” Wilson said. “Our motto from senior year was ‘every pitch.’ Every pitch, you’re dialed in and I stuck with that. I made sure to have it on my hat every time I pitched, and right before I’d go out, I’d always look at it and remember every pitch, work hard and give it your all, so that was a big one. Strigel put the mindset into me that working hard will get you where you need to go, I really stuck with that.”
Wilson had the dream of playing Division I baseball ever since his high school days, and he carried that mentality with him until he finally reached his goal.
“For me, D-I was my mindset on day one when I walked into high school,” Wilson said. “I realized throughout the process that you can’t just get there right away, you’ve got to work harder. So for me, coming from a small school, I wasn’t really noticed, so Day 1 at Tacoma, I’m going to work hard, compete and try and get to that D-I level. It’s always been there but I was taking building steps towards it.”
Once he got to Tacoma, head coach Ryan Mummert and his staff helped develop Wilson’s skills as a pitcher.
“We changed my delivery a lot, I used to be a slow tempo guy, but they really picked it up,” Wilson said. “I went to a more faster pace, that seemed to help me a lot. That helped me get my body more in sync and have more command over all my pitches.”
Wilson had a solid freshman season, appearing in 14 games and pitching 34 innings. He recorded 23 strikeouts and had a 2.64 ERA.
Tacoma made it to the NWAC Championships that year as a No. 3 seed. Tacoma won its first two games before losing a close contest to eventual champion Lower Columbia, followed by another close loss to Mt. Hood to end Tacoma’s season.
Last season, Wilson pitched in 11 games, starting nine games on the bump. He pitched 59 innings last season, recording 46 strikeouts with a 4.27 ERA.
Tacoma finished second in the West Division, but fell short in making it to the NWAC Championships this time.
“It was a big letdown. We felt we were a really strong team this year and to not make it was devastating, especially when we knew we had the talent to make it all the way and compete for a championship,” Wilson said. “We were devastated when we ended up losing out in super regionals, but we understood at the end of the year, it was an accomplishment to get to where we were at that point, not even making the tournament.”
Coming up short of the NWAC championships was a tough pill to swallow, especially for those sophomores who didn’t make it to the tournament with their last chance.
“College is a lot different than high school, especially for us at junior colleges, we’re hungry to get to the next level,” Wilson said. “At the end of the year, when the final out was made, a lot of us broke down. We were upset, because some of us knew we might not play anymore, some of us don’t know where we’re going. We’re always in our heads, trying to push ourselves to get there to that next level and get to that level we want to be at.”
Luckily for Wilson, his playing days will continue after signing to play with EIU. Wilson said he chose EIU because he wants to help change the program, along with the solid coaching staff and university’s small-town feel.
“From where I came from at Rochester to Tacoma, it’s changed a lot. I learned a lot more about the whole pitching process at TCC, and now that I’m going off to Illinois, hoping to learn more,” Wilson said. “The head coach there, coach (Jason) Anderson, he used to play professional baseball. I feel like he is going to be a guy that helps me progress as a player. I learned a lot more commanding, I just couldn’t blow by guys anymore. I learned more about using outside corner of the plate, and using the offspeed more effectively.”
Eastern Illinois, located in Charleston, plays in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Panthers finished 15-39 in 2016, which was second to last in the conference.
Playing in the West Division was no easy task for pitchers, as it was one of the more talented divisions in the NWAC. Wilson hopes the quality hitting he faced at Tacoma prepared him to help the Panthers right away.
“Out of all the divisions in the NWAC, the West is one of the stronger ones,” Wilson said. “All the teams had some pretty good bats in the lineup, guys always found a way to get on for every team ... You had to battle for getting outs so I would say the West was a pretty good league to play in.”
Wilson said his main goal in his first year at EIU is to help the team win.
“Last year, they had a rough season, lost a lot of close games, where pitching just kind of let them down,” Wilson said. “For me, I’m looking to come in and be a weekend guy for them who throws a strong, solid seven innings, and then gives it over to the bullpen if they need to. My whole approach throughout college is to go out and compete for the team, I don’t really have a self-centered goal. It’s more about the team and helping them win.”
Wilson said his best pitching performance at Tacoma came this season against Centralia on sophomore night. He came in and threw seven innings in relief, allowing just two hits en route to the win.
“I was lights out, had good control over everything, it was a great outing for me, I was throwing well,” Wilson said.
During his time at Tacoma, Wilson bounced around between starting and relieving. He started 13 of the 25 games he played in at Tacoma, and hopes he will have a starting role at EIU.
“Freshman year, I was mainly a reliever guy, and this year I was asked to be a starter just because we had injuries and everything else,” Wilson said. “I love starting, it was what I did in high school, but coaches seem to think I’m a good reliever. … Starting is something I’m leaning towards, that’s what I’m doing this summer and it’s been working pretty well for me, so I’m leaning towards starting is going to be my main one.”
Wilson still comes back to Rochester to help out at his alma mater, participating in Rochester’s winter baseball clinic and passing on his baseball knowledge to the up and coming Warriors.
Going into his time at EIU, he knows getting a degree will be important, but he hopes to achieve his childhood aspirations of becoming an MLB pitcher.
“What kid hasn’t dreamed of playing professional baseball?” Wilson said. “For me, that’s my big thing is I want to work hard and try and get that chance and at the same time, education is another one. With the head coach at EIU playing professional baseball when he was younger, I feel like he might be able to help me build and understand the process of being a major leaguer and lean me towards maybe getting drafted.”
