Cowley third baseman Garrett Benge takes NJCAA by storm

It’s easy to get caught up with how good Cowley College freshman third baseman Garrett Benge could be one day.

What shouldn’t get lost in that is how good he is right now.

“Everything he’s done, all the work he’s put into getting to this point is a testament to him,” Cowley coach Dave Burroughs said. “He took himself and he made himself into what he is right now.”

What Benge is right now is the most dominant hitter in the nation for No. 4 Cowley (30-1, 19-1 Jayhawk East) after finishing his senior year at Yukon (Okla.) High with one Division I offer from Arkansas-Little Rock and a handful of opportunities to be a walk-on at bigger schools.

Benge leads the nation in batting average (.545), on-base percentage (.638), slugging percentage (1.636), hits (61), runs (56), doubles (19) and total bases (116).

He’s second in the Jayhawk Conference with 47 RBIs and 10 home runs.

“I think my parents and I just thought (Cowley) was the right fit, the right opportunity,” Benge said. “The success (Burroughs) has had there really speaks for itself.”

Benge fulfilled a longtime dream when he committed to Oklahoma State earlier this week, although it’s not certain he’ll actually end up in Stillwater.

“I’ve wanted to be a Cowboy for awhile now,” Benge said. “That actually takes a big burden off of me (with recruiting), which is a good thing.”

“He’s going to get drafted, just how high we don’t know,” said Burroughs, who has led the Tigers to 15 Jayhawk East titles and two national championships. “The Big 12, the SEC, the Big Ten all were after him. And he’s earned that type of attention.”

In the Tigers’ last outing, a 13-8 win at Jayhawk West leader Butler on Tuesday, he went 1 for 3 with one home run, three RBIs and two runs.

Benge, 19, has already qualified academically, so he can play for Oklahoma State next season if he wants, or he can go pro. If he does go play for Oklahoma State, however, he will have to be there for at least two seasons per major-league rules and wouldn’t be eligible to be drafted again until 2017.

“I’ve noticed a little more talk from my family and my friends this year,” Benge said about his breakout year. “But I basically try to block all that stuff out, keep my head down and stick with the same routine day-in and day-out.”

Benge’s routine started when he was 6 and he started taking batting practice at Oklahoma City University under the tutelage of longtime OCU hitting coach Keith Lytle, the father of Benge’s best friend, Joe Lytle.

“I was really blessed growing up that my best friend’s father was a hitting coach,” Benge said. “Ever since we started playing baseball, we were there, hitting with college kids. All the way up until I left for college.”

The biggest knock on Benge coming out of high school was his size — “Most schools said I just wasn’t big enough yet, told me I needed to gain some weight” — and he took that as a challenge, putting on 20 pounds of muscle since he finished high school last spring.

“How would I describe his dedication to training?” Burroughs said. “Dogged, almost obsessive. He’s either in the weight room or the (batting) cage.”

Now, at 6-foot and 205 pounds, he’s the prototype.

“That’s a ballplayer right there,” Burroughs said. “He puts the bat in the zone at the right time and you look at (where he hits the ball) and he’s left-handed, but he’s putting it all over the field. He can hit it dead away, he can turn on it ... he’ ssmart enough that he gets up there and he knows exactly what he’s looking to do and what he isn’t.”

Benge has also become a team leader. The Tigers are on an eight-game winning streak after dropping their only game to Johnson County on March 20, and have their sights set on a Jayhawk East title. Cowley returns to action with a doubleheader at Coffeyville on Thursday.

“(Benge) worked his butt off to get where he’s at,” said Cowley sophomore catcher Chad Reibenspies, a Clearwater product. “He’s a great team player, he’s helping everybody else out as a freshman, which is usually what the sophomores do. It’s been fun to watch him develop and succeed ... this season has been one of the best times I’ve had, in my life, playing baseball. It’s fun showing up to the ballpark and knowing we’re all on the same page, all ready to go kick someone’s butt.”

“It’s been a great season so far, it’s been great to get a chance to pick (Burroughs) brain and learn from him,” Benge said. “The success I’ve had, personally, was a little surprising at first, but I’m proud of it. All that hard work I put in during the offseason, all of the time I’ve put into the game my entire life is starting to pay off. Now the goal is to maintain that level and build on it, even.”

This story was originally published April 1, 2015 at 9:52 AM with the headline "Cowley third baseman Garrett Benge takes NJCAA by storm."