Penn-Trafford grad Tyler Horvat working toward adding to his baseball success at W&J

Tyler Horvat is spending his summer in Charlottesville, Va., playing in a collegiate baseball league with the Charlottesville Tom Sox. The Penn-Trafford grad primarily is serving as a pitcher, but, he said, he will get to swing the bat once in awhile, too.

During his three seasons at Washington & Jefferson, he has proven he can do both quite well.

This past season, Horvat, a rising senior, led the Presidents’ Athletic Conference in batting average (.445) and on-base percentage (.494). The center fielder scored 38 runs and drove in 30 while hitting primarily from the leadoff spot. He also went 8-1 with a 2.13 ERA.

All that earned fifth-team All-American recognition from D3baseball.com. He also was named second team All-Region 7 as a utility player by D3baseball.com as well as the American Baseball Coaches Association.

But Horvat couldn’t shake off the thoughts of what he didn’t do.

“From a team perspective, obviously, not the way we wanted to finish,” he said referring to the Presidents (37-10, 25-2 PAC) being knocked out of the NCAA Division III regional. “Fell a little bit short there. … Next year, we need guys to come back hungry and ready to take that next step.”

Even as stellar as his individual numbers were, Horvat didn’t allow himself to be too proud.

“I was pretty happy with the way the year went. I think one area to improve upon next year is power numbers, some more extra-base hits. Especially as we’re losing one of our big guys, Peter Kalinski. Trying to replace a little bit of his production is going to be key for us next year.

“Obviously, I didn’t bat 1.000. I didn’t have a 0.00 ERA. We didn’t win a (D-III) World Series, so there’s always room to get better.”

That’s typical of Horvat’s approach. He said he plays with a perpetual chip on his shoulder, constantly striving to improve to show colleges that didn’t recruit him what they are missing.

And here’s what they missed: In three seasons at W&J, he is hitting .404 with 72 runs, 64 RBIs and only 36 strikeouts in 265 at-bats. On the mound, he is 18-1 — not a misprint — with 127 strikeouts and only 29 walks in 148²⁄₃ innings.

Horvat came to W&J with the guarantee he would pitch. Getting regular plate appearances wasn’t guaranteed, however. Horvat had to prove he could handle double duty.

“When I was going through the recruiting process, I was looking for an opportunity where I could be a two-way player,” he said. “Coach (Jeff) Mountain told me coming in … he was very blunt. He said if I was able to hit and stick with it, then I would have every opportunity to do so.”

He got a little help with his hitting from former summer league teammate Josh Spiegel, also a Penn-Trafford grad, who hit .300 with 10 homers and 43 RBIs for Penn State this past season. While playing for a team in Johnstown, the two talked hitting often, and Horvat found what worked for him.

Pitching has been less of a mystery. Horvat uses his four-pitch repertoire to aggressively attack the strike zone, and he said he isn’t afraid to throw any of them — two-seam fastball, four-seam fastball, changeup and curve — when he needs a strike.

Confidence in both areas has grown with his participation in summer leagues such as the one he is playing in now, and Horvat anticipates he will be even better when he goes back for his final year at W&J. He hopes it is a year that ends with a World Series title.

“It’s really beneficial to be able to come out and play some better competition,” he said. “Last summer, I was fortunate to play with some D-I guys. This summer, a large majority of the (Valley Baseball League) is D-I baseball players from big-time programs. You’re getting to see bigger, stronger, better players, and that really forces you to execute at a higher level.”