One of the more heralded recruits to ever come through Mercer University Baseball under Craig Gibson, Derrick Workman is a sophomore coming off an impressive freshman campaign in which he was named to both the Atlantic Sun All-Freshman Team and the Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American Team. Gibson called it “the best freshman campaign I have ever seen.” Workman started all 59 games for the Bears in 2011, and he figures to be a major staple in the Bears’ lineup again in 2012.
Through March 10, Workman was hitting .426 on the year, keeping up with his stellar numbers from last year. When asked what Mercer Baseball means to him, Workman was very thoughtful. “It’s an extremely large part of my life. It dictates my schedule, my body, my eating and sleeping habits, and my day-to-day life. Playing for Mercer gives me the opportunity to compete against some of the nation’s best teams at the Division I level. It allows me to represent a great school and gives me an opportunity to work hard and better myself both on and off the field,” Workman said. He was obviously grateful and humble with his talents. However, in order to get to this point, there needs to be a daily schedule that he follows that gets him going. Hence, Workman walked through a Friday Gameday at home.
9:00 a.m.: Get up and spend some quiet time reading the Bible.
10:00 a.m.: Grab breakfast.
11:00 a.m.: Documentary Film class.
12:00 p.m.: Lunch. Pregame meal consists of pasta, rice, grilled chicken, fruit, lots of bread, some veggies, and finish it all off with some cookies from the cafeteria (Only time he gets to eat before the game).
1:00 p.m.: Geology class.
1:50 p.m.: Go to the locker room to change.
2:10 p.m.: Indoor cages.
3:00 p.m.: Stretch and throw.
3:30-4:30 p.m.: On-field batting practice (followed by opposition’s batting practice).
5:10 p.m.: Pregame infield/outfield.
5:30 p.m.: Hitters scouting reports (followed by stretching).
6:00 p.m.: First pitch.
The game finishes around 9:00 p.m., and head coach Craig Gibson addresses the team. Pitchers and hitters break off to separate groups to go over important parts of the game.
The players proceed to clean up the field until 9:30 p.m.
The team goes to the locker room, blasts some “crunk” music, and has some “great dance-offs”. Workman proceeded to say: “If it’s Friday night, we always play Friday by Rebecca Black to start the festivities, then basically anything from Swedish techno to gangster rap.”
There’s a lot of work that goes into a game day obviously, and this will come to fruition in the bigger games. When asked who he is looking forward to most, Workman said “I like playing against Georgia Tech the most because I have a few close friends I’ve known for a long time on their team. I am really looking forward to the Stetson series this year, for they are currently ranked number one in the nation’s mid-major poll and have been in the normal top 25 both this year and last year. They are a conference rival, so if we want a ring, then that’s who we need to beat.” Workman and company know what they have to do after a close series of games against Mississippi State recently. If Workman and company continue to follow their strenuous day-to-day operations, they could find success in the form of an Atlantic Sun title and a NCAA tournament berth.
A Day in the Life of: #11 Derrick Workman
