An arm injury kept Providence’s Drew Zemaitis sidelined for most of last season. When he returned, he dealt with some adversity, struggling in a playoff loss to Lincoln-Way West.
Now, the senior pitcher is healthy and ready to prove himself in his final run with the Celtics.
“I’m excited,” Zemaitis said. “It gives me motivation to get out here and show my stuff because I haven’t really had a chance to do it in a while.”
Zemaitis, a Xavier recruit, showed plenty of the good stuff Wednesday.
He allowed just one run over five innings, striking out eight to lead the Celtics to a 5-2 win over Hinsdale Central in a Do It Stevie’s Way Tournament first-round game at Duly Health and Care Field in Joliet.
Mitch Voltz had the big offensive blow for Providence (8-1) with a three-run inside-the-park homer in the fifth inning. Gavin Gomez went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI, while Saint Louis recruit AJ Vinci was 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Gavin Vande Lune went 2-for-3 with an RBI single for Hinsdale Central (3-2), which could not get much going against Zemaitis.
“He didn’t have the greatest outing last time out, but he came back (Wednesday) and was really the pitcher that we believe he can be,” Providence coach Mark Smith said of Zemaitis. “Him and (pitcher Ryan Hussey) were out most of last season and that really hurt us.
“Now Drew’s fully healthy and he’s ready to go. The team is a lot more confident when a guy like that is on the mound.”
Zemaitis suffered a strained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow in the preseason last spring. He came back late in the regular season and made a few appearances.
“The biggest challenge was just rehabbing so I could get back and help the team,” he said. “There was a lot of therapy and just taking time off helped me get back in my zone and get back in the game.
“I think I was pretty good at starting early and just getting a good routine going this year. I’m just following my routine and staying strong through it.”
Zemaitis, who made his third start of the spring Wednesday and improved to 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA, has been committed to Xavier since the summer following his sophomore season.
“Sophomore year, I started talking to some coaches from big schools and I was like, ‘Oh man, I’ve got to do this. This is what I want to do,’” Zemaitis said. “I put my head down and just worked to try to get there. I’m really excited about it.”
Voltz provided Zemaitis with some big run support when he came up with two runners on and two outs in the fifth inning and ripped a line-drive toward the right-center gap.
The ball alluded a diving outfielder and rolled toward the fence in center, allowing Voltz to race all the way around the bases for the inside-the-park home run.
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“It felt great off the bat,” Voltz said. “I just started to run and have fun all the way around the bases. I’ve hit a couple home runs before, but I’ve never had an inside-the-park one.
“Having the guys there to celebrate with me and support me was a great feeling.”
Voltz and Vinci came through as the Nos. 8 and 9 hitters, respectively, in the Celtics’ order.
Of course, it helps when your pitcher is dealing like Zemaitis was.
“It’s always good when our pitcher’s going good because our team morale goes up,” Vinci said. “Drew’s got good movement on all his off-speed pitches and he’s throwing hard in the high 80s or low 90s (mph).
“That’s tough to hit at any level.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
