The right fielder steps into the batter’s box for his at-bat in the bottom of the fifth inning. He digs his feet into the dirt, kicking up a cloud of dust. He taps his bat against both sides of the plate, fixes his helmet and swings his bat into the ready position.
He stares out at the mound letting the pitcher know he is ready to fight. He doesn’t blink which gives a sense of confidence and determination as his team cheers him on.
It seems that he and the pitcher are battling to see who will waver first. The batter does not. He swings and hits a double to deep center. He glances at the pitcher as he dusts himself off at
second base.
T. J. Roemmich balances team and family life while playing outfield and pitcher for the Creighton Bluejays’ baseball team.
Last season as a sophomore he made the Dean’s List, won the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar Athlete Honorable mention and had a career-high in home runs with three. He also was the only player on the team to start a game on the mound and in the field.
He has been influenced by many people in his life, but his grandma stood out to him the most giving him the courage and determination he has developed as a student-athlete.
“My grandma battled through cancer a couple of times in her life,” Roemmich said. “Just to see how much she wanted to fight through it so she could watch her grandchildren grow up was inspiring.
“Even when it got to the point when she had no shot, she kept coming to our basketball games. She died during basketball season and even the week before she died she was at our game.”
The determination and heart Roemmich learned from his grandmother’s battle with cancer helped him to excel in athletics the rest of his high school career.
“He was quiet by nature and was a fierce competitor,” his high school coach Tim O’Neil said. “We were in a legion game and T.J. was playing center field. He took a home run away over the fence and then threw the ball to first to double off the runner there.”
Roemmich and his brother Ben challenged each other to strive to be better than the other as they competed in basketball and baseball together in high school.
His brother plays Division III baseball at a school in Iowa.
“My brother was better than me my whole life in basketball, and I couldn’t let him beat me in baseball,” Roemmich said.
Roemmich is batting .383 this season with five home runs and 18 runs batted in.
He was the first baseball player of the 2009 season to be named State Farm MVC Player of the Week. He earned the honor after hitting 9-20 March 2-8.