Q&A With Steven Brooks
12/10/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Dec. 10, 2010
This article was originally published in the Nov. 20 edition of Kickoff, the official gameday publication of Wake Forest football.
Q: A major renovation was done to Wake Forest Baseball Park over the summer, including the installation of a new AstroTurf playing surface. What has it been like playing on that and what are the differences as compared to a natural grass playing surface?
A: The new turf is an incredible surface. One of the things that is different with the new turf is true hops. You're not going to get an awkward bounce or an unexpected bounce with the turf because it's all level. At the same time, everything moves a little faster. You don't have the high grass slowing everything down. The pace of the game is a little quicker and at the same time, the hops are more true.
Q: Fall practice recently wrapped up for the team. Give your impressions on how you thought it went.
A: I think there has been a little more sense of urgency in regards to getting yourself better, which helps the team. There's been a lot more intensity, a lot more competition among the players than there has been in the past and that's only good for the team and making players better. I think the pitching has significantly improved and something like that can really take us far in terms of the college season.
Q: What individual goals have you set for yourself in your senior season?
A: I want to be Player of the Year in the ACC. I think with how I did last year and the improvements I made, individually at least, I think that there's nobody better right now in the conference. I'm going to continue to work hard and do everything I can to be ACC Player of the Year this year.
Q: This year's roster has a significant number of newcomers. Talk about your role as a senior in helping them get acclimated to Wake Forest and college baseball?
A: The first semester of college is such a different thing than living at home and going to high school. Now you're on your own and it's a little different, especially at Wake Forest, where the academics come into play a lot more than they do at other high-level baseball programs. One of the things I like to do is talk to all the younger guys about how their classes are going, how their tutors are going and what classes they are going to take so I can help them on how to balance both baseball and academics.
Q: What do you think will be the strengths of the team this season?
A: I think one of the strengths this year will be our pitching. I think our pitching has really improved. A majority of our pitchers have really improved a lot and are showing a lot of promise. They're getting a lot of confidence from the position players behind them and that's almost half the battle. When the pitcher has confidence in the position players behind them, they know they can throw strikes and the pace of the game will be what they want. I think Pat Blair has made huge strides at shortstop and at the plate. There have been a lot of newcomers that have shown promise too. I think we'll be an all-around team this year.
Q: What are some of your career goals and aspirations once you graduate from Wake Forest?
A: Last summer, I was fortunate to get drafted by the Chicago Cubs. The situation didn't pan out the way my family and I wanted it to. I was able to explore a great option to come back for my senior season at Wake Forest, get my degree and hopefully be in a better position come June this year. I'm going to play professional baseball. I'm going to play as long as I can and hopefully play in the major leagues. The day I'm done playing baseball, I'm going to start trading stocks.
Q: Who is your favorite athlete to watch in another sport?
A: I'm a huge New York Jets fan, but my favorite player to watch in another sport would have to be Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. He's a 6-3 running back that is faster than anyone else, and that's true athletic ability there.
Q: What's been your favorite class at Wake Forest?
A: My favorite class would be Political Communication with Allan Louden. I don't really know that much about politics, so it was a fun class to take in my senior year with a good professor and kind of transition me into the real world. It's been a fun class and he's been very helpful.
