The career of junior pitcher Sullivan Stadler has not gone the way he had planned when he graduated from Glenbrook South in Glenview, Illinois.
After progressing slowly through the ranks of IU baseball pitching — one appearance in 2013 and just six starts in 2014 — Stadler suffered a shoulder surgery that required surgery.
He missed the entire 2015 season.
Now, after undergoing rehabilitation, the junior pitcher is working his way back into the conversation when it comes to the starting rotation. But the lefty remains unchosen after IU Coach Chris Lemonis announced the three-man rotation at Media Day on Monday.
Senior Kyle Hart. Junior Evan Bell. Junior Caleb Barager.
“Sully’s actually had quite a good spring training,” Lemonis said. “He’s thrown in three scrimmages at this point, so he’s healthy and ready to go.”
When the pitcher committed to the Hoosiers in 2012, he was said to be a solid addition to the team with a future in the starting rotation. He pitched a fastball in the high-80s and a curveball close to 70 miles per hour.
After one appearance in his freshman year, former IU Coach Tracy Smith gave Stadler the nod six times, which the then-sophomore used to his advantage. He posted a 2.70 ERA and earned his first win in his first career start against Kentucky.
Now he hasn’t thrown a pitch in a live game for more than a year, before Lemonis came to Bloomington.
But senior pitcher Kyle Hart has been there for the junior, as Hart also sat out a year in 2014 to undergo Tommy John surgery.
“I’ve been an outlet for Sully for sure,” Hart said. “It’s a different surgery, but a lot of Tommy John rehab is shoulder rehab. There’s not a lot of special elbow exercises you do, so we were doing a lot of the same program.”
The year before Hart suffered his injury was similar to the year before Stadler suffered his, except Hart had more of an established role within the rotation, making 15 starts for all 15 of his appearances.
Hart posted a 3.01 ERA with an 8-2 record in 83.2 innings pitched. The Hoosiers competed all the way until the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, that season as well.
Hart returned to his old ways in 2015 after rehabilitation, recording a 1.21 ERA in eight starts without losing a game.
The results are what drew Stadler to Hart when the junior needed to undergo surgery, Hart said.
“I think he kind of latched onto me,” Hart said. “I think he’s past the rehab point, I do. I think it’s kind of getting out of his head and just getting some more game action is going to be important for him too.”
For now, though, Stadler and the training staff are trying to get his pitch counts up to build durability, Lemonis said, but the junior is in the mix for a possible third spot in the rotation.
And Hart is going to be in his corner if and when he does.
“I think it’s been great for us to just always have someone in a similar situation, regardless if that’s injury or just personal stuff, just to have an outlet and have somebody to talk to has been great for both of us,” Hart said. “Sully knows that he can come to me for anything.”
