Salisbury Baseball Standout Brian Ernst Eyes the Major Leagues

Salisbury, the modern name of Stonehenge, may someday be known as the birthplace, the rock bottom beginning, of the baseball career of. Ernst, a 2009 graduate, honed his talents here, and now the pitcher/first baseman standout at East Stroudsburg University is on the radar of Major League scouts.

The hope is this local athlete's formidable talents will get noticed by the Major Leagues during the draft the first week of June.

ESU baseball coach John Kochmansky thinks Ernst has a decent chance to make it.

"What is distinctive about Brian is how hard he works," Kochmansky said. "He not only works out everyday, he watches videos of himself pitching and analyzes ways to improve his motion."

Several teams have already been out to take a look at Ernst, he said.

Ernst’s statistics at Salisbury and at ESU impress. As a senior, this is the year that will say much about Ernst’s future baseball career. Ernst will play this summer with the Lehigh Valley Catz, a member of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League, often called the gateway to professional baseball. 

When he's not in school, the 21-year-old Ernst lives on E. Lexington Steet with his parents, Elizabeth and David Ernst. Embodying the American myth of baseball, Ernst credits his father for his love of the game. He began playing T-ball at 4—coached by his father and encouraged by an older brother, James. Ernst moved to Salisbury in ninth grade. He played under Coach Mike Pochron, where he was an impressive pitcher who could also play first or third base.

His strong arm made him a good third baseman but, since he loves to play in the field between pitching starts (he’s also an excellent hitter), Ernst chose to focus on first base to rest his arm.

Hard work is the guiding principle of Ernst’s life. He spends every day preparing for the next game and for the next step in his career—primarily by running and by lifting weights. Does he tend to a special diet? “No.” Does he snack on anything special during a game? “Hot dog and soda.” And what does he eat at home while watching the Phillies, or his own favorite team, the Arizona Diamondbacks? “Peanuts.”

Ernst works hard at his studies as well. He recalls the impact that Jennifer Piagesi, his English teacher at Salisbury, had on him—making both literature and writing interesting to him for the first time. At ESU his major is sports administration. He considers his academic studies to be as important as his pursuit of a major league uniform.

What he loves about the game is that it’s about the team, not about individual performance, that is, unless it helps the team.

“You can bunt for an out,” he said, “but if you advance the runner you feel successful.” Team chemistry is essential, he said.

He can throw a fastball over 90 mph. But a fastball is also the easiest to hit because its incoming speed will be matched by its response off the bat on a good swing. His “out” pitch is a change-up and he works to make his motion here look just like that of his fastball.

His own instincts seem to be pretty sound. Even when asked the Casey Stengel question: Your team is up in the bottom of the ninth inning. You’re a run behind. The bases are loaded and there are two outs. You are up with a 3-1 count. What do you do on the next pitch?

Most players would take a pitch, hoping for a walk.

Ernst answers as if Stengel were inside his head. “You only get one good pitch an at-bat. Swing and hope to hit it over the wall.”