Reese McCulley was a three time All-Conference starting pitcher at Linfield College. During that time, Linfield participated in two NCAA DIII College World Series. In 2010, Reese signed a contract and pitched in the San Francisco Giants organization. His story of ascension to the professional ranks was featured in Baseball America.
Reese now spends his time as a Pitching Coach and founder of Portland Pitching. Using proven techniques, Portland Pitching has established itself as the Willamette Valley’s leading resource for the development of pitchers. They continuously research the latest methods to maximize performance while teaching the mechanics that are the foundation of a healthy, powerful, and effective pitching motion. To learn more about what Reese is doing, visit www.PortlandPitching.com.
By Reese McCulley:
Without fail, every time baseball season comes around I can’t help but think about my days playing at Linfield College. Three years ago seems like yesterday and the valuable experiences I had were ones I will never forget. In four years at Linfield I was fortunate enough to play for two great head coaches (Scott Carnahan, now Pitching Coach, and Scott Brosius) and be a part of the program’s establishment as an annual national championship contender.
Some of my greatest life experiences are a result of the hard work that led to our appearances in regional tournaments and the DIII College World Series. It is not easy to burst on to the national stage and make a name for your program…a lot of programs never get to that level and it’s not for a lack of trying.
My sophomore year, in 2008, we got assigned to the Central regional instead of the West (despite winning our Conference)…although it wasn’t traditional to have to beat teams from another region to advance to the World Series, this was a chance for our team and program to prove that we could play with anyone in the nation. We experienced some bias when we were basically told we didn’t belong, which only helped fuel our fire on the path to eventually beating those teams in the Central and advancing for a chance to play against the best teams in DIII baseball at the World Series in Appleton, Wisconsin.
The year didn’t end how we wanted it, losing a heart breaker to Adrian College to get knocked out. You always recall the little things you could have done better than may have changed the outcome. After we lost, the goal for my class was to take that first trip to the World Series as a learning experience and remember how great it felt to get there and how much it hurt to lose. We focused all of our attention on improving and gearing up for another ride.
Junior year, 2009, was a disappointment. On one hand, we got the chance to host the regional tournament…on the other hand, we didn’t get to play in it. That frustration and feeling that we were the best team in McMinnville, but we were checking opposing fans’ tickets, really upset us. It created a team even more focused on a goal.
My senior year came around and we knew we were loaded. If everything came together like we worked for, there was no doubt in our minds we would win the Northwest Conference and make it back to Appleton. We also hoped to host the West regional again so that when our hard work paid off we could celebrate on our home turf.
Things went according to plan: we won the Conference championship and earned an automatic berth into the regional. Also, we won the bid to host the regional once again, this time as a team competing in the tournament.
Of course, nothing is easy and we faced a lot of good teams in the regional. We lost our second game, putting us on the brink of elimination and needing to win three straight to get another shot in the World Series. This is where we were at our best: backs against a wall, fighting for our baseball lives. We weren’t ready to go out and have our Linfield careers end. We dug down and handily beat three quality teams to get back to Appleton.
We didn’t win the World Series. Disappointment, sadness, frustration, and anger would probably all be great words to describe the emotions we felt after we got knocked out a second time in three years. One thing my class will always be grateful for is the foundation those before us created. We were proud to have continued to build on it for four years so that those after us could get a chance to experience Appleton. That experience wasn’t just great fun on the baseball field for us; it was the camaraderie, the Marathon Games, constructing the batting cage (which will forever have my blood soaked in the roof), the hours spent working on the new turf field, the Field House practices, and the sprints in the snow all coming together into one final moment together that we will remember forever.
There was so much excitement from Linfield baseball alumni when the 2013 team was playing in the World Series. We knew what they were feeling and what they had to do on the field to accomplish a goal that our program has had every year since I can remember: win a National Championship. I think the gutsy performances on the mound, the great at bats, and solid defense define what the Linfield program has been built on. Bro has taken the foundation built by those before him and continued the program on a path of excellence that came to a head when that final out was made and Linfield was finally “National Champions.”
I can’t wait to continue to see Linfield baseball get better and better. The best thing about what has been built is that it will last. The satisfaction and celebration of the 2013 championship is well-deserved and, I imagine, the greatest feeling in the world. But I know that as guys go off to play summer ball and come back next fall, one of their goals for next season will be selfish: let’s not let anyone else but us feel what it is like to win a National Championship.