Rounding the Bases with Drew Stahl

HIT & RUN

Major: considering Business & Marketing Education
Favorite class at the U: Learning In and Through the Arts
Favorite athlete: Derek Jeter
Favorite actor: Leonardo DiCaprio
Favorite hobby: longboarding
Favorite musical artist: Iration
Favorite TV show: Seinfeld
Favorite movie: Shawshank Redemption
Favorite pro team: L.A. Dodgers
Favorite meal: sushi
Favorite Gopher sporting event: hockey
Biggest fear: spiders
Biggest pet peeve: mismatched socks
Strange talent: ear wiggling
Person you'd most like to meet: Derek Jeter
Something you never leave home without: phone
Dream vacation spot: Fiji

TEAM SUPERLATIVES

Best personality in the dugout: Patrick Fredrickson
Hardest-working: Chase Stanke
Most competitive:Zack Raabe
Most studious: Jack Liffrig
Biggest prankster: Jack Wassel
Best nickname: Tree (Trent Schoeberl)
Build the ultimate five-tool player: Max Meyer (arm), Jack Wassel (glove), Easton Bertrand (power), Drew Hmielewski (speed), Zack Raabe (contact)

GopherSports met with Minnesota's 12 newcomers to discuss their life before the U and gather the inside scoop as they navigate through their first year as a Gopher student-athlete. Continuing this week, Drew Stahl comes to the Maroon & Gold after a successful career at Mountain Vista High School, where not one, but two other current Gophers previously played as well: first baseman/right-handed pitcher Sam Ireland and left-handed pitcher Jack Liffrig.

Prior to Minnesota, Stahl was a three-year starter at shortstop for the Golden Eagles, where he owned a .383/.484/.691 career slash line with 14 home runs, five triples, 18 doubles, 86 runs, 85 RBI and 35 stolen bases. Perhaps respected most by his peers for his glove, Stahl committed just eight errors during his four years at Mountain Vista.

Although the career highlight-to-date for Stahl is winning the 2018 Colorado 5A State Championship alongside Ireland and Liffrig, the freshman middle infielder made a favorable impression in the abbreviated 2020 campaign. Appearing in nine games and making five starts, Stahl batted .250 while collecting the first six hits of his collegiate career, driving in four runs and scoring another three. Stahl also played errorless defense while splitting time at shortstop and second base.

Having finally gotten a taste of collegiate action, get to know Stahl in the form of his own words as we round the bases with the young middle infielder.

GopherSports: Why did you choose to attend the University of Minnesota?
Stahl: "The coaching staff here is second-to-none. That might sound a little cliche, but it's true. I visited other places, met other coaches, had experiences with other places and nothing is like this place. They really care about you, not only as a baseball player but as a person, too."

GS: When did you first start playing baseball and when did you know you wanted to play in college?
DS: "I've been playing since I was probably four years old with tee ball. It's been a long road. I knew probably from the time I was nine or 10-years-old that I wanted to keep playing for as long as I possibly could... I still love it, it's still awesome and it's always been there. It was my first true love."

GS: What would you say is your biggest strength and what is one thing you'd like to improve on in the next year?
DS: "I think my biggest strength right now is probably being okay with failing. Coming in first semester, you obviously want to play well but it's not always going to go your way. That's hard to sort through and you're not always going to be good at it, but I think right now I'm at a place where failing is okay and it's not a bad thing. It's just data to improve on. For next year, I want to be a little quicker, a little faster."

GS: Being a middle infielder, what level of pride do you take in your glovework?
DS: "That's always been my thing. Growing up, I wasn't the biggest, wasn't the strongest, but I always took pride in my defense. Playing in the middle infield, playing shortstop, second base, you have a chip on your shoulder. You're the guy. You handle sixty percent of the ground balls and you have to want the ball hit to you. I think that's something I've always wanted and I've always enjoyed."

GS: Talk about your work ethic and why it is apparent to your teammates so early on in your career.
DS: "It's a real honor to see that when it comes up. It means a lot to me and I think there's a lot in life that you can't control, but you can control your attitude and how hard you work. I try to just put my head down and get to it every day. Every day isn't going to be perfect, but as long as you're out there working hard, that's what's important. I've been competitive my whole life. I hate losing more than I love winning."

GS: What was your first Division I performance training experience like?
DS: "It was tough, but rewarding for sure. I loved the daily grind of it. It was awesome being in there with the other 33 guys, which helps a lot having them backing you up. It's certainly tough. It's every day. You have to find one thing a day that you're going to get better at and make sure you focus on that so you don't get lost."

GS: What is your favorite part of being a Gopher?
DS: "My favorite part of being here has got to be the relationships I've made with people on campus, coaches and players. You have your high school best friends and that's one thing, but you see your college best friends every day. You feel like you've known these guys for 10 or 15 years already and you've only been here for a semester or two. And 'Minnesota nice' is real. A lot of the guys are from around here and it's just been a really good place to go to school."

GS: What impact has the coaching staff had on you in year one?
DS: "Coming from a different place, it's really interesting to see how the relationships here work. When you come on your visit, [head coach John Anderson] says to you, 'We're here to prepare you for the next 50 years of your life' and you're all ears listening. And then you get here and you really see that. We had a personal finance meeting the other day with one of the past players and that was really beneficial. I think this is the one coaching staff in the country that actually believed in me as a person and as a player. If things are going rough or if things are going well we can just talk about life. It's not always just about baseball. Being able to have that relationship in a place for me that's about 1,000 miles away from home."

GS: Do you have any game day rituals or superstitions?
DS: "The right shoe is always tied tighter than the left. One of my buddies growing up did it in hockey and I tried it one day, had a good game and kind of just stuck with it. I always wear a batting glove under my fielding glove. I picked that up from my older brother and watching Derek Jeter growing up that was one of the things he did. It's different; not a lot of people do it anymore."

GS: What is your most memorable moment of playing baseball?
DS: "Winning the state championship my junior year was something I'll never forget. That was an amazing experience and I could talk to you about the game almost pitch-by-pitch now and having some of the guys here that did that with me is super cool. When you do something like that, no one can take it away from you."

GS: What has it been like having two former teammates (Ireland and Liffrig) represent the Maroon & Gold with you?
DS: "It's a really cool experience. You think about how you spent your weekends as a kid and for us we were always together at baseball fields and we had games. You're on that journey, too, but being able to see people achieve what they want to achieve is a really cool feeling, not just because you're doing it, but having your friends and teammates do it is really cool. Being able to see the joy that they get from going out there."

GS: Who has been the biggest influence on your athletic career?
DS: "I need to say two. I'd say my dad for sure because through high school he was super supportive. After I got into high school, I was never told to not dream big and I think that allowed me to be able to do the things that I wanted to do and try and fail and be okay and still have that dream. I'd also say my older brother. He played at West Alabama and he put in countless hours with me – ground balls, things like that. Just having him there as a role model and someone to look up to. Any time I asked him to do something, he never questioned it and he was always there in a heartbeat."

GS: Do you have any advice for aspiring young athletes?
DS: "Chase your dreams and dream big. People are going to tell you 'no,' people are going to tell you that you can't do something. Don't let that stop you. That's a battle that every athlete goes through. It's tough. You don't like hearing it, but you have to get through it because you know deep down what you can really do. And have fun. If you lose the 'fun' aspect of the game then it feels like a job and you don't want to be there every day, but if you're having a good time and having fun, then you'll be able to make things go how you want them to go. We're the masters of our own fate."

GS: What are your aspirations for after college ball?
DS: "After college, I would love to play professional baseball. That's always been a dream of mine. It's been something that I've wanted to do since I was a little kid. That's my main goal. I see the University of Minnesota as a stepping stone to get there and I think the coaching staff here is a group that could help me get there. That's why I picked here. I think it'll give me the best shot to be able to do that and I'm thankful that I'm here every day."

GS: What has your experience of being a Division I student-athlete been like thus far?
DS: "It's been busy. Fun, exciting. Sometimes you have a long day and you don't get back home until 8:00, 8:30 p.m. and then you have to do your homework, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It's really enjoyable to spend so much time with the guys here and then being able to get an education at a school like this is a great opportunity and something I am very fortunate for. Being a DI student-athlete comes with a lot of hard work, but it's very, very rewarding."

Follow Minnesota Baseball

Don't miss any of the action from the field. Stay connected to Gopher Baseball!

Baseball Tickets

Experience the excitement and tradition connecting generations of Gopher fans! Create memories for a lifetime with your friends and family while you root for your Golden Gophers. Get Tickets

Support Minnesota Baseball

Support the University of Minnesota Baseball program. Your support helps our student-athletes succeed athletically, academically, and socially. It takes just seconds to make a monthly or one-time donation. Thank you for your support! Give Now

Upcoming Events

Players Mentioned

Easton Bertrand

Patrick Fredrickson

Drew Hmielewski

Sam Ireland

Jack Liffrig

Max Meyer

Zack Raabe

Trent Schoeberl

Drew Stahl

Chase Stanke

Jack Wassel