In Remembrance - Western Oregon University

Athletics
For the love of the game
“I felt there
were more
regrets I might
have if I took
the contract;
and lots of
good things
for me if I
came back.”
Blake Keitzman
Every fall parents and alumni
will make their way back to this
beautiful campus and a sense of
nostalgia will set in. There will be the
recalling of classrooms, campus life
and friends – but even as each person’s
experience may differ, most remember
that college was the time of their life. It
might take some time to recognize what
one gives up as they leave their alma
mater, so when you hear of the story of
Blake Keitzman, who turned down a
Major League Baseball contract to return
to college, you’ll understand the depth of
feeling people share for Western.
His journey began in Roseburg,
where despite attending a school
recognized for its football prowess;
Keitzman found his niche in baseball.
And his connection with WOU began
there. His freshman year, he met Nick
Waechter, who would go on to pitch for
WOU, and was also coached by current
WOU leader Jeremiah Robbins.
Keitzman was offered and accepted
a scholarship
to OSU, which
was coming off
its first backto-back
College
World Series
Championships in
2006. He jumped
on the scene
quickly, pitching
as a true freshman
and even seeing
game action in
the 2007 College
World Series.
But during his
sophomore season
Keitzman began to
feel out of place at
OSU and made the
decision to leave
the team, even
reaching the point
of considering
giving up baseball altogether. He took
a job at a mill in Roseburg, but knew
that this work was not his future. He
22 WOU Magazine • FALL 2009
decided to turn to WOU to complete his
degree. “I knew Western was a quality
school,” Keitzman noted. “I planned on
just going to school, but when Coach
Robbins heard I was here we talked, and
things worked out for me to play ball.”
He received the opening-day start
against national-powerhouse (# 7
ranked Chico State) in his first game.
Keitzman would go on to be named
the GNAC Pitcher-of-the-Year after
posting a 9-0 record with a 2.08 earned
run average and 92 strikeouts in 86.1
innings.
When the Wolves won their ninth
consecutive conference baseball
championship to qualify for the NCAA
West Regional, he was handed the ball
against Sonoma State, the defending
Division II national champions. With all
eyes on him under the lights of Salem-
Keizer Stadium, Keitzman shined.
The junior pitcher earned Rawlings/
American Baseball Coaches Association
NCAA Division II First Team All-
American honors, another first for
WOU. He was also named a Daktronics
All-American (second team) and to
numerous all-region teams.
Keitzman’s hard work earned him the
recognition but he firmly believes that
choosing WOU was the right choice
for him to find success. “It’s much more
about baseball at Western…and I like
that.”
This June the Seattle Mariners
selected him in the 15th round,
meaning in less than a year he had gone
from working in a mill and considering
never playing again to becoming the
highest draft pick in WOU history. But
Keitzman had other plans.
“I felt there were more regrets I
might have if I took the contract; and
lots of good things for me if I came
back,” Keitzman noted. “Not only am I
closer to getting my degree but I have
a shot at helping the baseball program
accomplish something it has not done
in Division II, which is to go to a World
Series. That’s something you can’t get
back.”