By Matt Weiner (@mattweiner20) – Baseball Beat Reporter // Photo Via Kavin Minstry
When Sacramento State head coach Reggie Christiansen cut freshman Hunter Dorraugh in 2021, he meant well. ‘In 20 years you’ll look back on this and thank me,’ Christiansen told Dorraugh, well-aware his message could be interpreted as insincere.
Two years later, Dorraugh’s still baffled and angered, but knows deep down it was the “best thing” Christiansen did for him.
Because of it, Dorraugh was supplied with endless motivation and the knowledge that his playing career could be over at any moment. It’s become a driving force behind his storied career at San Jose State University and led him to finding ride-or-die coaches in SJSU’s Brad Sanfilippo and Thomas Walker. “I will always cherish every moment I get with them,” Dorraugh said.
And Walker’s connection with Healdsburg Prune Packers head coach Joey Gomes, allowed Dorraugh to spend this summer uncorking baseballs all over Sonoma, Calif.’s Wine Country.
The Exit Meeting
Following the 2021 season, Christiansen cut Dorraugh – who was on scholarship – because he felt he’d always be behind Martin Vincelli-Simard as the team’s designated hitter and first baseman.
“If I would have kept him around, and he would have not become an everyday guy, am I really doing what’s right for his career?’” Christiansen asked rhetorically.
“Was he caught off guard? For sure,” Christiansen said. “He was probably disappointed, upset, didn’t like me. I can live with that, knowing that we did what was best.”
Where Dorraugh feels most “disrespected” is how he got cut without any forewarning. The news fell on him like an anvil out of the sky.
There was no preceding rivalry. The two never clashed. By all accounts, in Dorraugh’s two years at Sacramento State, he was respectful, dogged, a sound student and well-liked among teammates and assistant coaches.
For his part, Christiansen had no animosity toward Dorraugh, but the final outcome remained unchanged: Dorraugh was out, his name left wandering amongst thousands of others in the transfer portal.
And now, Dorraugh was off to Dodge City, Ks. to play summer ball for the Dodge City A’s.
Straight out of Dodge
Dorraugh didn’t field any interest the first few weeks after entering the transfer portal. While he hit .289 with a .389 on-base percentage over 60 at-bats, his stats in 2021 came in low-pressure moments.
Dorraugh’s ticket back to Division I eventually came around. Courtesy of a familiar name, but through an unexpected way.
Unbeknown to Dorraugh, Fred Jones, a former football coach at Vacaville high school roomed with SJSU head coach Brad Sanfilippo’s dad in college. Jones passed his name along and Sanfilippo and Walker thought Dorraugh could bolster SJSU’s woeful starting lineup.
So Walker flew out to Dodge City to watch Dorraugh play. While munching on Mexican food, the two discussed Dorraugh playing at SJSU.
A few weeks later, he committed to SJSU and “the rest is history,” Dorraugh said.
Since getting ‘straight out of Dodge’ he’s become the No. 2 all-time home run leader (25) at SJSU. With possibly two years of eligibility left, he’ll become one of the greatest power threats the school’s ever seen.
Dorraugh’s become an everyday starter for SJSU and a founding father of the team’s unheralded turnaround. His 15 home runs in 2022 – tying the school’s single-season record – helped SJSU reach the 2022 Mountain West Championship.
And a year later, Dorraugh slugged a home run in SJSU’s 2023 Mountain West Championship. He made the Mountain West Championship All-Tournament Team after hitting .455 with a team-leading three home runs. His contributions propelled SJSU to its first NCAA Regionals in two decades.
Dorraugh’s success from 2023 carried over to the summer. He’s currently hitting .444 with with a 1.091 OPS for the Healdsburg Prune Packers and was recently named a California Collegiate League North Player of the Week.
This same time two summers ago, Dorraugh was processing and grappling with being cut. The uncertainty of not receiving another opportunity loomed large. Walker solved that and continued showing his loyalty and belief. He put Dorraugh on Prune Packers head coach Joey Gomes’s radar which helped secure him a roster spot this year.
“I truly think he’s tough enough where he can probably be in a bad situation … and nobody would know,” Gomes said.
‘Twenty Years From Now’
Christiansen praised Dorraugh for what he’s accomplished but doesn’t “regret” cutting him. He’s well-aware outsiders might scoff or question his decision.
“Is it easy for people to say I missed on him? No, I didn’t miss on him. We knew he was going to be a good player,” said Christiansen. “I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve made the mistake in the past of keeping guys around because they’re good kids … at the end of their career, I look up and I feel like man, ‘What if we were to let that guy go?’”
Over the past two years, SJSU has played Sacramento State multiple times and there have been no contentious interactions. Christiansen still holds Dorraugh in high regard. Dorraugh, of course, feels differently.
“I will forever be grateful for the opportunities he gave me,” said Dorraugh, “but the only thing I’m dedicating anything to him in my career is the motivation factor.”
And what a career it’s been since that fateful exit meeting in 2021.
So yes, Christiansen was right — ‘In 20 years you’ll look back on this and thank me’ — but in just a tenth of the time.