Eric Hutting crouched behind the plate late in a game against Loyola Marymount. He gave junior closer Jon Maciel a sign for the pitch: a fastball on the inner part of the plate.
Maciel worked through his windup, drew his arm back and slung the ball toward Hutting’s mitt. It got there, but it didn’t cross the inner part of the plate — it missed by a couple feet, finishing outside for a ball.
“[Hutting] came out [to the mound] and got on me a little bit,” Maciel said. “He was like, ‘Come on, let’s go and be aggressive,’ whereas in the fall or earlier he wouldn’t have come out and said anything to me. Maybe he was a little intimidated or something, I don’t know.”
As a freshman playing his first season of college baseball, it makes sense that Hutting would be intimidated at the start. However, if he was intimidated, it didn’t affect his ability to perform, as he was the opening day starter at catcher for the Dirtbags. He got a hit in his first at-bat, a single through the left side of the infield against Vanderbilt pitcher Kyle Ziomek, who now ranks seventh in the country in hits allowed per nine innings.
Hutting had early success with the bat this season, but anybody at Long Beach State will say that he’s come a long way this year in terms of being a leader and becoming more vocal. The person behind Hutting’s growth is another catcher, senior Zach Miller.
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Miller was introduced to baseball very early. He has three older brothers, all of whom played baseball.
“I’m the only one who stuck with it, though,” Miller said. “They all went and played golf instead.”
Like his brothers, Miller played more than just baseball. He said he plays golf for fun on occasion, but it was his time playing football in high school that shaped him into the team leader he has become.
“I think that had a lot to do with it,” he said. “When you’re out playing football, that whistle will blow, and someone will smack you upside the helmet when you mess up.”
Miller played quarterback for Elk Grove High School’s football team for three years, starting his junior and senior seasons. He also starred on the baseball team, leading the Thundering Herd to two section championships and setting the school record for doubles, according to his LBSU profile.
After graduating from high school, Miller attended Sacramento City College, where he was used mostly as a pitcher. It wasn’t long, however, before he moved back to his position of choice: catcher.
Miller didn’t have the same success as a hitter at Sac City as he did in high school, but that didn’t keep LBSU head coach Troy Buckley from taking notice.
“[Assistant coach Jesse Zepeda] and I saw him briefly for one day,” Buckley said. “We saw him take infield, outfield and catch a little bit. I think at the time we were just looking for some depth in the position … [then-head coach of Sac City Andy McKay] just said, ‘Hey, he’s not hitting, but man he brings so many other things to the table,’ and Andy [McKay] was right.”
Since coming to The Beach, Miller has been what Buckley called “a really good presence behind the plate.” Miller saw only five at-bats in 2012, but in 2013 he has been a reliable backup to Hutting and a consistent starter on Saturdays.
“If you need a guy that is going to know the signs, if you need a guy that is going to handle the ball, if you need a guy that understands systems, Zach [Miller] is that guy,” Buckley said. “Tough, mentally strong, maybe not the best tools around but still is going to be there every single day for you.”
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On a typical day at Blair Field, Miller will be seen next to Hutting, offering instruction, joking around or maybe doing a bit of light hazing.
“I get hazed a little bit by him, every day I mean,” Hutting said. “It’s all in good fun, and I know he has the best intentions, and he just tries to get me better every day.”
Hutting said one of the jokes he endures involves a slight hitch in his defensive technique.
“When we’re doing our drills,” he said, “they kind of have a thing where I’m a boxer because sometimes I don’t get under pitches, so it’s like I’m boxing at the ball.”
The Dirtbags may not make freshmen dress up in drag or wear costumes on road trips like MLB veterans make rookies do, but the team atmosphere is similar. If anybody knows what it’s like to be around baseball players, it’s Hutting.
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Hutting has been around baseball his entire life. His family tree is loaded with baseball talent, and his parents didn’t waste much time putting a bat in his hands.
“I started playing when I was four years old, just playing tee-ball,” Hutting said.
However, whether he knew it or not, baseball had been a part of Hutting’s life since he was born. His cousin Tim Hutting played for the Dirtbags in the early 2000s, and his cousins Aaron Rowand and James Shields have been all-stars at the major league level.
Eric Hutting said that he has looked up to and learned a lot from his talented relatives.
“I idolize every single one of those guys,” he said. He also said that his favorite team used to be the Los Angeles Dodgers but that he recently switched allegiances to the Kansas City Royals because Shields was traded there over the winter.
Eric Hutting said he still talks to Shields somewhat regularly but that his main source of guidance has come from his older brother, Anthony Hutting, who is an outfielder for Cal State Fullerton. Eric Hutting said he tries to “emulate everything [his brother] does” and that playing against him last week was “a dream come true.”
However, the Hutting brothers almost ended up on the same team. Eric Hutting was originally committed to play for the Titans, but complications due to a coaching change at Fullerton forced him to look elsewhere.
“When [CSUF head coach] Rick Vanderhook took over … they had too many recruits, so they cut some guys loose,” Buckley said.
Eric Hutting was one of the guys left to find a new school, and Buckley was right there to offer a scholarship.
“We went out and evaluated Eric [Huting] and knew that he came from a really good baseball family,” Buckley said. Buckley also said that the previous connection with Tim Hutting and good reviews from a scout for the Oakland Athletics made it an easy decision to bring him to The Beach.
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Miller has plenty of brothers, and Eric Hutting has had plenty of mentors. However, that hasn’t kept the Dirtbags’ top two catchers from becoming as close as siblings.
“Me and him are a lot alike,” Miller said “I treat him like a little brother.”
Eric Hutting expressed a similar sentiment, saying that Miller is a “really good older guy” who is “awesome to have around.”
“He’s one of the funniest guys on the team,” Eric Hutting said. “He’s a guy that I look up to every day. He comes out to the field every day with a good attitude. He’s always got energy, and he’s one of my role models on this team.”
Eric Hutting, Miller, Maciel and Buckley have all said that over the course of the season, the senior catcher’s influence on the freshman has become more and more apparent.
“[Eric] Hutting, he’s grown, he come a long way with Miller,” Maciel said. “He’s getting better at being vocal, I think he’s learning from Miller. He’s getting better at receiving the ball. He’s turning into an all-around better catcher, and I think as he continues to grow, he’s going to be the real deal.”
Even though Miller is a senior, there’s a chance he could be a part of the Dirtbags’ dugout for a couple more years. Buckley said he is going to try to bring Miller back as an undergraduate assistant while he finishes his degree. He said Miller could be a great addition to the staff in the future.
“He kind of epitomizes what a Dirtbag is,” Buckley said. “He doesn’t come from a lot, and he’s had to earn everything he’s gotten.”
The hope around Blair Field is that Eric Hutting will develop into a similar character, a clubhouse leader as well as an on-field producer. With him taking a more full-time job at the catching position next year, it’s certainly possible, especially if Miller is still around to light the way.