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Scout Day Spotlight: Lake Erie Warhawks

OBERLIN - The list of colleges that players from the Lake Erie Warhawks are currently at or will be attending is impressive.

Nebraska, South Carolina, Ohio State, Michigan State, Kent State, Furman, Toledo, Youngstown State, Seton Hall, Yale and Bowling Green … that is just a small sampling of the schools that Warhawks have committed to attending. And that is JUST the 2019 class of Warhawks.

“We put an emphasis on what is important, player development and creating opportunities for those interested in going to school,” explained Adrian Abrahamowicz, the Oberlin College head coach who is the operations director with the organization 

The idea began in the fall of 2012 with the Warhawks coming to fruition in 2013.

“We saw a lot of trophy hunting,” Abrahamowicz reflected about travel ball back then. “What we were going to do was bring in players that were, hopefully, going on to school.”

It began with a 15U team of talented players, including Xavier Moore - an Amherst graduate who is now in the Texas Rangers’ organization.

“We played against 17 and 18U teams, we never played 15U,” noted Abrahamowicz, whose son Andrew, who went on to play at Nebraska, was also part of that first team. “We had young guys playing older guys and it created an excitement with what we were doing. That was a big step for us, kind of a building year.

“Our 2017 class had four of the top eight to 10 pitchers in Ohio. That got things rolling for us.”

Now there are 10 high-school aged teams as well as 14 teams of younger-aged kids, the combined organization with teams ranging from 8U to 18U.

“We’ve definitely grown,” Abrahamowicz said. “I think we did a good job of doing things right and things have expanded since then.

“We’re not all fizzle and no steak,” Abrahamowicz added. “How you maximize is bringing in the right coaches, player development guys.”

That, combined with talented players, has helped make the Warhawks one of the premier organizations around.

“I coach and I’m the operations director,” Abrahamowicz explained. “I work hard with the player placement. I have a lot of contacts to get kids in front of people. I do a lot on the pitching end.”

A large group of others are key contributors.

“Todd Mezlak is a big baseball guy,” Abrahamowicz said of the former Akron standout who as a head coach went on to turn Triton College into a JUCO power. “He’s an outstanding hitting and infield coach. He does a great job of breaking things down for kids.”

In addition to Mezlak, who coaches the 17U team, Mike McClure is another important clog.

“He’s coached with the organization since it started,” Abrahamowicz said of the Elyria Catholic coach. “He’s the glue guy wearing a lot of hats.”

Phil Brua, the head coach at Hiram College, works with pitchers while Matt Wilson, who has been with Abrahamowicz at Oberlin, works with catchers.

“There are a ton of guys in the organization I could mention,” Abrahamowicz said. “We have 10 to 12 coaches with player development on weekends and 30 coaches over the summer.

“We put an emphasis on having the right guys to work with the kids,” Abrahamowicz added. “There is a lot of continuity, a lot of them have been with me since this started. Continuity is really important.”

Exposure is another valuable commodity, something the Warhawks gain with PBR, including the upcoming Scout Day slated for Feb. 3.

“We were one of the first to have a Scout Day,” Abrahamowicz noted. “Now it’s one of the biggest events. We had 110 kids last year. It’s a nice way for college coaches to track guys with all the stats and measurables. We’ve had a lot of guys come out of Scout Day and had offers.”

Preparing for the event is part of practice at this time of year.

“We try to create for the kids where they’re at today and where they need to get for Scout Day,” Abrahamowicz said. “This is something that’s gotten really big for us. The kids get some great feedback, it’s kind of our NFL Combine. There’s a carrot at the end leading to summer.”

The Midwest Prospects League and PBR summer events are part of what lies ahead for the Warhawks.

“A lot of your kids are going to be in-state kids so we try to play a lot of local things,” Abrahamowicz pointed out what takes place in the summer. “We put a lot of emphasis with playing in-state and bordering states.”

PBR events are also beneficial for the Warhawks.

“Big events like the Top Prospect Games and the Future Games and the Super 60, we’ve gotten a lot out of that,” Abrahamowicz said. “Scout Day gets things moving forward.”