Unsettling. Imposing. Dominating.
Luther Hackman Sr. has played all of those roles from 60 feet, 6 inches away and 10 1/2 inches above home plate.
At 6-foot-4, 195 pounds, Hackman”s 90-plus mph fastball and 12-to-6 curveball as a member of the Columbus High School baseball team made it difficult for opponents to get comfortable in the batter”s box.
As Hackman matured, he honed his gifts and parlayed his skills into a career in the Major Leagues with the Colorado Rockies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres. He also played professional baseball in Taiwan and in the Mexican League.
These days, though, Hackman is playing a different role from a shorter distance and a lower elevation. Instead of starring as a reliever, Hackman is helping stoke the dreams of the next generation of Major League Baseball players.
“It is very exciting to be out here helping these kids,” Hackman said. “I enjoy coming out. I used to do it during the season, but I enjoy being out here with my son. This is my first year. I am going to try to enjoy it.”
Hackman”s son, Luther Jr., is one of 16 on the 7-year-old Columbus Americans Dizzy Dean All-Star team. That coach-pitch squad will play Grenada Rec at 4:30 p.m. today in its first game at the state tournament in Louisville.
Hackman Sr. likely will be on the mound today as his team”s pitcher. Don”t look for him to tug his cap down low or to glare in at hitters like he might have done as a professional. Hackman”s job will be to locate his pitches so the Columbus Americans can work their magic at the plate.
If everything goes according to plan, many of those players will have plenty of fond memories.
“One day the kids will be able to say, ”I have hit off a professional pitcher,” ” Columbus Americans manager Henry Dismuke Jr. said. “He is able to put the ball in places. He used to try to strikes kids out, but now he is placing ball so hit they can hit the ball really hard.”
Hackman said many of the players didn”t know he pitched in the Major Leagues until he showed them his baseball cards. The Colorado Rockies used the 154th pick in the sixth round to select Hackman in the 1994 Major League Baseball draft. Hackman made his MLB debut Sept. 1, 1999, with the Rockies, and appeared in five games that season, finishing with 1-2 with a 10.69 ERA. He spent the next three seasons in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, and had his best season in 2002, when he appeared in 43 games and went 5-4 with a 4.11 ERA in 81 innings.
In 2003, Hackman went 2-2 with a 5.17 ERA in 76 2/3 innings for the San Diego Padres.
Hackman went international following that season, playing for the Samsung Lions in 2005 before he was suspended for 50 games in late 2007 for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance and violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment program.
Hackman played for the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions in the Chinese Professional League in Taiwan in 2008. He became a free agent and joined the Olmecas de Tabasco of the Mexican League beginning in 2009 through June 10, 2009, before re-joining the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions on June 16, 2009. He later was named the MVP of the 2009 Taiwan Series.
An injury to the labrum in his right shoulder in 2010 season forced him to have surgery. He said he is on the way back to 100 percent, and at 36 he feels he has plenty left to give to a MLB team or another professional team overseas.
Hackman was a standout football, basketball, and baseball player at Columbus High. He attracted attention from MLB scouts with a fastball that eclipsed the 90 mph mark. As a senior, he went 7-3 with a 1.68 ERA. He struck out 96 in 50 innings and led the Falcons to their first trip to the state playoffs.
Former Columbus High coach Tommy Upton said Hackman was a power pitcher who could dominate a game. He said Hackman blossomed as a junior and as a senior and worked extremely hard to transform himself into a pitcher.
“He always was a big, strong kid, but he concentrated more on baseball those last two years, and that really made a difference in his ability,” Upton said.
Hackman said his goal as a coach is to offer the Columbus Americans the same kind of instruction coaches like Upton gave him. He doesn”t remember what it was like to play baseball as a 7-year-old, but he said it is key to have a positive attitude and to offer constant reinforcement to young players.
“I just tell them to go out and have fun and talk to your teammates,” Hackman said. “I tell them it is a serious game and you have to come out here and work hard, but you have to make it a fun game. If you go out and work hard and practice hard, everything will take care of itself.”
Hackman plans to use the rest of the year to continue his recovery from shoulder surgery. He intends to start to throw again at the end of the year and to build his strength and conditioning back so he can earn a chance to keep playing the game he loves.
“I still feel young,” Hackman said. “Before I hurt my shoulder I was still throwing 94 or 95. I overworked when I first came back from rehab and I just wanted to take a rest. Hopefully I can be good this year coming up.”
In the meantime, Hackman will work on his control pitching to a much smaller strike zone. His hits allowed and ERA might skyrocket, but he doesn”t mind because if they do that means he is doing things right and making the game fun for All-Stars with Major League dreams.
“It kind of keeps baseball in my heart and makes me want to go back and play,” Hackman said. “I like being here with these kids, but I hope I can get back healthy and play about two more years and come back and help my son and all of the other guys out and make it a fun game for them.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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