Rounding the Bases with Bennett Theisen

HIT & RUN

Major: Marketing
Favorite actor or actress: Tom Hanks
Favorite athlete: Michael Phelps
Favorite author: Tony Dungy
Favorite class you're taking at the U of M: Management
Favorite hobby (outside of sports): fishing
Favorite musical artist: NBA YoungBoy and Drake
Favorite TV show: Breaking Bad
Favorite movie: Silence of the Lambs
Favorite professional team: Minnesota Vikings
Favorite restaurant: The Nook in St. Paul
Favorite Gopher sporting event: football
Biggest fear: drowning
Biggest pet peeve: anything styrofoam
Person you'd most like to meet:
Something you never leave home without: headphones
Dream vacation spot: Bora Bora
Sport you'd like to try but never have: water polo

TEAM SUPERLATIVES

Best personality in the dugout: Ryan Duffy
Best nickname: "Pork Chop" (Kyle Bork)
Hardest-working teammate: Drake Davis or J.P. Massey
Most competitive teammate: Drew Stahl
Most studious teammate: Bubba Horton or Chase Stanke
Biggest prankster: Drake Davis
Build the ultimate five-tool player with your teammates: Jordan Kozicky (contact), Ronald Sweeny (power), Jack Wassel (glove), Trent Schoeberl (speed), J.P. Massey (arm)

In advance of the 2020 season, GopherSports.com met with each of Minnesota's 12 newcomers to discuss their life before the U and gather the inside scoop. As a longtime resident of St. Paul, Minn., right-handed pitcher Bennett Theisen grew up entrenched in the world of Minnesota Athletics.

Before Theisen was even born, his mother attended the U and was a member of the Minnesota dance line. Throughout his childhood, the righty dreamed about playing baseball for the Gophers one day and continuing the family legacy.

While at Minnehaha Academy, Theisen was a three-sport standout in football, basketball and baseball. The Redhawks won two state baseball championships during his high school career, with Theisen playing a vital role in each title run. As a senior, Theisen pitched 30 2/3 innings for the Redhawks without allowing a single earned run en route to a 5-0 record with 41 strikeouts.

With Minnesota's fall season officially in the books, Theisen is looking ahead to an exciting and action-packed rookie campaign in which he can not only learn from an accomplished pitching staff, but contribute on the mound as well.

GopherSports.com: Why did you choose to attend the University of Minnesota?
Theisen: "The reason I came here is because of the combination of the metropolitan area, academics and great athletics. I've been a Gopher fan my whole life, because I grew up five minutes away from here. The combination of all the resources I have here, not only athletically, but also academically, that stood out to me over any other college that I looked at."

GS: When did you first start playing baseball and when did playing collegiately enter your mind?
Theisen: "I started playing when I was around three or four and to me, playing at the next level didn't become a reality until I was at the end of my sophomore year. At that point, I was actually really into football and had thought that football could be something I could play in college. I started actually lifting weights and getting better at the game of baseball, and [head coach John Anderson] started to talk to me. That's when I realized that college baseball could be a reality for me."

GS: After two state titles in high school, how can you bring your winning ways with you to the U?
Theisen: "The number one goal here, over any individual stat, is I want to win a championship. I want to win a Big Ten Championship. I want to win an NCAA Championship. I just want to bring positivity and be a good teammate to help motivate this team to get to where we need to be to win a championship. I can absolutely see myself bringing the type of energy we need and positivity and hard work to get to our team goals, versus just focusing on what I need to do to get myself better."

GS: What would you say is your biggest strength and what is an area of improvement for yourself?
Theisen: "My biggest strength on the mound is controlling myself. I don't really lose my cool. In the game of baseball, you're going to have ups and downs, but I think I do a good job of staying level headed and looking to get the next out. Something I need to work on is controlling my fastball. Everybody in Division I baseball can hit a fastball, but the way you're effective with it is where you locate it. For me, that's specifically focusing on inside fastballs."

GS: Do you have any game day rituals or superstitions?
Theisen: "In high school, I used to have rituals that I don't do anymore. One thing that has stayed constant for me is before every game, I watch a video of Fortnite. It calms me down and lets me think of something else, instead of being all riled up. That's going to drain my energy, so I like distracting myself with watching a Fortnite video because it makes me relaxed."

GS: What is your most memorable moment playing baseball?
Theisen: "My second state championship from my sophomore year – closing the game to win the State Championship. I threw the final three innings. Closing that game, throwing that final strike, jumping up with my catcher and having a dogpile on top of me was probably my favorite moment ever. If I watch the video that my dad took of me on that final pitch, I still get chills. That moment just meant so much because we had come from a lot that season."

GS: Who has been the biggest influence on your athletic career?
Theisen: "I would for sure say my dad. This summer, we were playing catch at the same spot we played catch when I was five years old. He would come out with me all the time to hit and to throw. He would always be willing to drive me places to help me get better. If it wasn't for my dad and his motivation to get me where I am, I wouldn't be in the position I am right now."

GS: What are your goals for this upcoming 2020 season?
Theisen: "As a freshman coming into the pitching staff that we have this year, I would say that I want to grow and learn from the older guys. Not only do most of them have an opportunity to play at the next level, but they also have been through the experience of college baseball and also won a Big Ten Championship. I want to learn how to compose myself and learn how to play for a Division I baseball program."

GS: What would you say to anyone considering Minnesota as their next destination?
Theisen: "To come play here, there's no place better than the 'U.' My dream school has been the 'U' my entire life, because my mom also went here and was on the dance line here. If you have the opportunity to play for the Gophers, don't pass it up."

GS: Did mom pass along that footwork on to you?
Theisen: "No. She is one-of-a-kind. I cannot dance at all. I have heavy feet. My mom had very light feet, so no help there."

GS: Do you have any advice for aspiring young athletes?
Theisen: "For those wanting to play at the next level, get better at the times where there's nobody else around. Don't get better just when you have your coaches and teammates around. Make sure you spend time getting better on your own, whether that's in the weight room, in the batting cages, or throwing. Get better on your own time and not on other people's time."

GS: What are your aspirations for after college ball?
Theisen: "As I said before, academics is one of the biggest reasons why I came here. Getting a degree from the Carlson School of Management, which my mom also graduated from, is something that I aspire to do and something I hope carries me far into either the marketing field or sales field. Obviously, professional baseball is something everybody wants to do. In reality, if it doesn't turn out, I want to be in marketing or sales somewhere here in the Twin Cities. There's no better place."

GS: Who are you looking forward to playing against the most?
Theisen: "I think the whole series against the ACC at U.S. Bank Stadium is going to be unreal. I had an opportunity to play at U.S. Bank one time in high school and it was unreal. I love that stadium and us playing North Caroline, Duke and North Caroline State – all are going to be super fun games. It'll be great baseball."

GS: What has it been like being a Division I student-athlete thus far?
Theisen: "The workload was tough in the beginning. In the beginning, I underestimated how much work I had, not only in school but also with baseball. Then I started to manage my time much better. I started setting aside time and putting away electronics in order to complete stuff. It's more than the average high school student goes through."

GS: What is an under-the-radar prediction for the 2020 season?
Theisen: "I would actually give two answers to that, one of them being the freshmen stepping up. I think we have a bunch of qualified freshmen that will be able to contribute right away, whether that's starting, or coming in to have an at bat or to throw an inning or two. The second one is more of an individual one. I think that [J.P. Massey] is going to be on a lot of people's radars after this year. If he wasn't already, he's going to be one of the most dominant pitchers in college baseball not only this year, but also next year. I see that guy's work ethic and I know that he's going to be throwing harder, better stuff."

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Players Mentioned

Kyle Bork

Drake Davis

Ryan Duffy

Bubba Horton

Jordan Kozicky

J.P. Massey

Trent Schoeberl

Drew Stahl

Chase Stanke

Ronald Sweeny

Bennett Theisen

Jack Wassel