By Matt Weiner (@mattweiner20) – Baseball Beat Reporter // Photo Via SJSU Athletics
The cigar smoke vapors waltzing around Excite Ballpark’s infield could only mean one thing:
San Jose State baseball won a share of the league championship. The first time in program history.
“It’s hard to put into words,” said SJSU’s sixth-year head coach Brad Sanfilippo, following Saturday’s sweep-clinching 6-1 victory over Nevada on senior day.
Some moments don’t need to be described. They just need to be experienced. This was one of them.
“There’s nothing like it,” Sanflippo added, minutes removed from a Gatorade bath.
Despite the bone-chilling effects of the bath, Sanfilippo doesn’t want it to be his last one. Same goes for the opportunity to proudly hoist a trophy over his head.
The Spartans are still dead set on avenging last year’s loss in the Mountain West title game to Air Force. They’re the No. 1 seed in next week’s 2023 Mountain West Tournament down in Fresno. If all works out, the Spartans will be heading to their first NCAA Regional since 2002.
“Enjoy the rest of the day and then get back to this tomorrow,” said SJSU outfielder Robert Hamchuk, who led the game off with a no-doubt home run to left field.
It was smooth sailing after that.
The Spartans tacked on five more runs in the third and senior Aaron Eden registered five innings of one-run ball. “As soon as that ball left, I knew all these guys in the dugout were going to have this game,” said Hamchuk.
Just two years ago, SJSU finished the season 6-31. The teams third-consecutive sub .500 season under with Sanfilippo at the helm.
“If you had told me two years ago that this would happen I would’ve probably laughed a little bit,” said Jonathan Clark, one of 15 seniors honored on senior day.
Concerns grew if Sanfilippo could figure it out. COVID-19 caused some of the troubles, but this is a results business. Don’t like it? Don’t get in it.
However, within two years, SJSU went from getting dog walked to dog piling at the pitchers mound.
“You know it’s coming. You can prepare for it all you want, but the moment you’re there with your boys getting pummeled it’s one of the best moments,” said SJSU senior reliever Darren Jansen, who closed out the win. “We love each other to death and we’re all one big happy family.”
Few things can turn strangers with a common interest into lifelong friends like outlasting brutal times.
“We’ve all been through so much together,” Clark said.
Clark alongside sixth-year senior outfielder Jack Colette, sixth-year senior Nik Trapani, fifth-year outfielder and pitcher James Shimashita, senior third baseman Dalton Bowling, Hamchuk and Jansen each could’ve said ‘smell ya later’ to the program when it was in disarray.
And yet, no one entered.
“Through that time you’re like, ‘Believe in what we’re doing. It’s not like you’re pleading with them to believe, but they did,'” said Sanfilippo.
“Nobody left, everybody stayed and the fact that they stayed and they got to experience this after going through that like they can’t take that away from us.”
When Sanfilippo looked out at Excite Ballpark he saw it blanketed with players alongside their friends and family.
Achieving success was at the forefront of Sanfilippo’s vision. But it couldn’t be done without a family-rich atmosphere.
“I just wanted to bring all the families down here because they should be down. Our families are unbelievable. Our guys are family,” Sanfilippo said.
Before doing his post game interview, Sanfilippo celebrated with Colette’s grandfather. In his best Italian, Sanfilippo said to him, “Grazie! Grazie! Grazie!”
Colette’s grandfather, who’s from Sicily found a connection with Sanfilippo, who’s family is also from Sicily.
Following last Friday night’s win, Sanfilippo said, “If I start talking about Jack Colette I probably wouldn’t be able to get through it.”
If Saturday proved one thing, it’s that bad times come with an expiration date.
Unfortunately, the good times do, too.
But, while inhaling the scenes of the the cigar-scented infield as players posed with the trophy, Saturday seemed like a day that would never end.
Nor would anyone want it to.