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After a year and a half without sports, Nikolas Motruck and the rest of the guys have returned and they’re hungry for a championship
Last year’s university sports season getting cancelled due to COVID-19 was a tough blow for athletes around the world. Pro sports leagues temporarily shut down, most university sports operated in little or no capacity and athletes were suffering greatly.
McMaster University hasn’t seen its athletes compete since sports were cancelled in early 2020, and athletes feared they would not see competition in 2021 either, until the Ontario University Athletics officially announced that there would be a season this fall.
The McMaster Marauders baseball team has been especially eager to make their return to the field after a somewhat disappointing conclusion to last year’s season. With Most Valuable Player winner Nikolas Motruck and the Cy Young award, awarded to the league’s best pitcher, winner Julian Tymochko, the team managed to fight their way to the semifinals before losing to the Laurier Golden Hawks, who would end up finishing as league champions.
Despite falling short of their championship aspirations in 2019, the season had numerous high points for the team, with Motruck’s MVP award among them. Despite finishing the season with an incredible .581 batting average and a .930 slugging percentage, Motruck was caught off guard after learning he had won the league’s most prestigious individual award.
“I was kind of speechless, I wasn’t really expecting that,” said Motruck. “I had a long road to get there from first year, but we had put in a lot of work . . . I was really enjoying my time, and it was really just icing on the cake when they announced that I had won the MVP. It was something I had never thought was possible.”
Following such a strong season, Motruck was eager to return to play in 2020, but never got that chance. For 2021, he remained hopeful that there would be a season in his fifth and final year. He never stopped working to continue getting better. Knowing that there would be one final opportunity to get on the field before graduating was extremely meaningful.
“I was kind of up in the air about possibly having played my last season and not knowing it. That was tough news to take. . . Just being able to do it one more time before having to graduate is such a great feeling,” explained Motruck.
"I was kind of up in the air about possibly having played my last season and not knowing it. That was tough news to take. . . Just being able to do it one more time before having to graduate is such a great feeling."
Nikolas Motruck, 2019-2020 Baseball MVP award recipient
When asked about his goals going into his last season, Motruck made his aspirations very clear: winning. He stressed how much time and effort the team has put in to prepare for this season, and believes that this could be a very special year for McMaster baseball.
“We’ve all been working so hard for this since we’ve been here, so the goal is absolutely to win the championship. To say that I want to win [the title] is an understatement,” said Motruck.
"We've all been working so hard for this since we've been here, so the goal is absolutely to win the championship. To say that I want to win [the title] is an understatement."
Nikolas Motruck
After having finished the last year’s regular season with nine wins and three losses, the team has their sights set on bigger things this year. Should Motruck have a season anything like that which earned him the MVP award, the team should have an opportunity to do some real damage. For a team who came ever so close to the finals just prior to the pandemic, they will finally get their long-awaited opportunity for redemption.
By Jovan Popovic, Staff Writer
McMaster’s baseball team had an outstanding 2019 season. With a great regular season record of 12-6-0, the team entered the Ontario University Athletics tournament with the 10th seed, but ultimately lost in the semi-finals in a 10 to seven loss to the eventual tournament champions, the Wilfrid Laurier University Golden Hawks. Despite the loss, the team had many bright spots throughout the year, the most obvious being the much improved play of center fielder, Nik Motruk.
Motruk broke out this past school year, being a co-recipient of the OUA’s most valuable player award, and also being recognized as the OUA’s most valuable hitter. The fourth year mechanical engineering student led the team in his monstrous comeback year, hitting at a .581 average. Motruk, who had been a pitcher before an injury during the 2018-2019 school year, made the seamless transition to a full-time player this season, proving his value to the team no matter his position.
“Near the end of the 2018 campaign I suffered a shoulder injury which set me back, and I have not been able to pitch since,” said Motruk. “I played the field growing up and was a good hitter, but I knew that I really had to step up my game if I wanted to keep playing. I worked really hard on my swing to help take me to the next level, and it ultimately resulted in the season I had this year.”
Nikolas Motruk - Baseball
Nikolas Motruk (18)
Converting from the pitcher’s mound to the outfield could be one of the possible reasons for his breakout season. Realizing that you can’t play the position you’ve played your whole life can be really difficult, especially when the next closest alternative is so different. Motruk was able to convert this nervousness into energy and motivation, knowing he had to work harder and find new ways to succeed if he wanted to keep his important role on the team.
Having a pitcher’s mindset in the batter's box can actually be quite beneficial. One of the biggest aspects of hitting is knowing what to expect. When pitching at a competitive level, it’s helpful to be able to think like the guy you’re facing.
Knowing what is coming can be a huge benefit — just ask the 2017 world series champion Houston Astros.
Despite literally having an MVP season, Motruk isn’t satisfied yet and is hungry for more. The team’s success is the highest priority for him, and despite a great season, his sights are set on what the team can accomplish in the future.
“Baseball is a game of numbers and statistics,” said Motruk, “and I may have had a standout season this year, but at the end of the day the only stat that really matters is the W or L on the scorecard. Baseball is not an individual sport and it can't be won alone. I am really proud of everything that I accomplished this year but more importantly what we accomplished as a team and I look forward to seeing what is in store for McMaster Baseball moving forward.”
The biggest standout stat for the reigning co-MVP this season was his astronomically high batting average, sitting at .581. Contact hitting is integral to a strong hitter and is defined by a player who rarely strikes out. Naturally, contact hitting is.a huge and critical part of Motruk’s game, especially knowing that once you can pick up hits, everything else comes naturally over time.
“Contact hitting has always been the main focus,” said Motruk. “Hitting for power comes as you get bigger, stronger and start to face better pitching. Getting the ball in play and finding the holes will result in base hits, and sometimes they turn into extra base hits. This year I had 25 hits, 12 of which were for extra bases, but it all starts with putting the ball in play.”
In an age where contact hitting is becoming less and less appreciated, Motruk understands that it is critical for success. With good bat control and pitch timing, it gets easier and easier to find pockets of green in the outfield, which frequently turn into extra bases.
Being a mechanical engineering student who took a co-op year, Motruk still has two years of eligibility with the team despite being in fourth year. The upcoming seasons will undoubtedly be exciting ones for the team with such promising players in their prime upper years.
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