Caledonia baseball head coach Brad Hamilton joined the program five years ago during senior Zack Gorum’s eighth-grade year.
Hamilton was brought in to continue the sustained success of the Cavaliers, and instantly, he knew Gorum would be part of that.
“I knew that when he was in eighth grade,” Hamilton said. “It was evident then. He’s had the ability. It’s just always been things working out on their time.”
Gorum has since become a fixture in the varsity pitching rotation, one of the top starters for the Cavs this season.
His accolades and success have attracted the attention of a number of schools in the area, and on Sunday, he announced on Twitter his commitment to play at Mississippi Delta Community College.
“Everything was kind of unfolding and working out the way it should about midway through this season,” Gorum said. “I went on a visit there a couple of months ago, and I really liked it. I liked the coaching staff, I liked the facilities, so that’s what drew me to the campus.”
The Trojans are a program in need of an influx of young talent, struggling over the past few seasons in the junior college baseball scene.
MDCC currently has a 8-15-1 record this season and has yet to record a winning season since 2017.
“I know both coaches are young and they’re looking to build a program,” Hamilton said. “In my opinion, they got a great piece to that puzzle in Zack to start with.”
Much like what Hamilton saw out of him early on in his coaching career at Caledonia, Gorum held the same internal confidence about himself.
Working his way up to varsity and becoming a star for the Cavaliers, his goal morphed into playing at the next level. This season, including his offseason work, he’s made strides.
“I just had to make sure that my off-speed stuff was working,” Gorum said. “I’ve always been able to command the fastball, but my off-speed has struggled. I just had to make sure during the summer and winter that I threw some (bull)pens and got my curveball and slider where they needed to be.”
It took a few days after making his commitment official for everything to really settle in. Not only will he be playing at the next level, but he’ll be representing Caledonia in doing so.
His time there has done a lot toward molding him into the person and player he’s become for the Cavaliers.
“It means everything,” Gorum said. “This program has helped me grow a lot. I started off as a baby here and now I’m going off to play college ball and represent Caledonia. … I just have to keep working, keep grinding and become a better person as well.”
Being able to settle in on a school has not only been exciting, but a weight off his shoulders as Gorum’s focus for the rest of the year will be back to just baseball.
“I can have fun and I don’t have to worry about it anymore,” Gorum said. “I can just relax and play baseball.”
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