CALEDONIA — Baseball has always been more than a sport to Peyton McCollum.
It’s been a way for the Caledonia High School senior to elude the pressure of schoolwork and a means for him to break the routine of an “average student” — going straight home to work on homework or taking on a part-time job after school.
“Baseball has just always been the way for me to cope with everything I’ve ever dealt with,” McCollum said. “Baseball’s kind of the escape I get to do throughout the day. It’s a sport, but it’s more like a fun lifestyle that I get to live.”
Late Thursday morning in Caledonia, McCollum took a step toward continuing that lifestyle, signing his national letter of intent to continue his baseball career at Itawamba Community College in Fulton.
The Indians noticed McCollum’s hitting skill and standout defensive range at a showcase in 2019 and “jumped on him,” Caledonia coach Travis Garner said.
“Itawamba is the defending state champion of Mississippi,” Garner said. “It is considered one of the best junior-college programs in the state. … As soon as ICC offered, that’s where he wanted to go.”
McCollum, who started every game at second base last season for the Confederates, will try out a new position once he gets to Fulton. Taking note of McCollum’s range, ICC will install the left-handed batter and right-handed thrower in the outfield.
“I’ve always been able to track balls down and get to them,” McCollum said. “Just being able to know where I’m going with the ball and being able to be smart with what I’m doing.”
Over the summer, McCollum started practicing in the outfield, where Garner will play him occasionally in 2020.
“It’s a weird transition, because I’ve always played infield my whole life,” McCollum said. “Definitely this summer and throughout this year, I’ve been taking a lot of reps in the outfield, getting some work in. It’s working out pretty well.”
The senior will hit in the middle of the order for the Confederates this season — he batted second last year but will see time in the No. 3 and No. 4 spots in 2020.
“He’ll be our best hitter,” Garner said. “He’ll be our impact hitter. The people that hit in front of and behind him will reap the benefits of it. He’s that type of hitter to where the other team’s gonna have to know he’s coming up every time.”
Garner said things “really clicked” for McCollum about halfway through his junior season, when he and a lot of his teammates started to figure it out. But when Garner first took over the team in the summer of 2018, McCollum was far from the hitter he has become.
“He’s a really, really good kid,” Garner said. “He’s a hard worker. He’s somebody that you can show younger kids, ‘Look how hard he’s working. Look how far he’s come.’ … He’s worked hard. He’s put in the extra time. He’s worked hard in the weight room. He’s gotten bigger. He’s gotten stronger. All of it’s paid off.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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