While there were some pit stops along the way, Eric Turner found a baseball home in Kansas.
Turner, a 2018 Gilmer High graduate, attends Seward County Community College in Liberal, Kan. and pitches for the Saints.
Following his time at GHS, Turner briefly attended college in Tennessee for a semester before traveling abroad for five weeks to attract baseball suitors.
“I was playing in Puerto Rico after a buddy of mine got me on a (2019) summer league team down there,” Turner explained. “It was a league used pretty much so players don’t take a season off and get ready for the fall.
“I went down there just hoping to get into a school and hoping someone would see me. I met some people that needed players, and they said they were located in Kansas. We rode out there, the coach got a chance to look at me, and he liked me and that’s how I got on out there.”
Turner roamed the outfield during his time as a GHS Bobcat. He made less than a handful of pitching appearances, but he finds himself on the mound in the college ranks.
“It’s been different,” Turner said of the position change. “There’s a lot more to the game than I thought when you’re pitching. It’s important to get ahead in counts and to not just throw gas (fast) but to be able to locate and hit spots.
“It’s a lot different from playing outfield, that’s for sure.”
Turner’s pitching repertoire consists of a two-seam fastball, change-up and slider. He was clocked as fast as 89 miles per hour last fall.
He made four appearances in the Saints’ COVID-19 shortened season last spring. He started three games, pitched 13 1/3 innings, struck out 10, walked 12 and allowed 17 earned runs.
“College baseball has really been everything I’ve looked for it to be,” Turner said. “I’ve met people from all around the country, and it’s been really fun. You get out there and see you’re not the best and you need to compete every day with everyone on the team. It’s true competition.”
Seward is a two-year school and Turner still has four years of college playing eligibility.
“I’m going to try to go somewhere else after this year,” Turner said. “That’s what I’m looking forward to this upcoming season: getting some good stats and getting someone to look at me. I’ve had a couple offers so far from schools in Chicago and one from Indiana.”
Turner reported to campus Jan. 3 with practice set to begin next week. The Saints open their season Saturday, Feb. 6 at Navarro College.