Eastern’s baseball bats have pinged a bit less this season, hitting .264 as a team opposed to last year’s .362.

For the Panthers to win more games, head coach Jim Schmitz said they will need to rely on the sizzlin’ bat of senior first baseman Alex Gee.

Gee, a Springfield native, tore apart rival Austin Peay’s pitching last weekend, going 7-for-11 with 4 RBIs. He also had an RBI

against Illinois College Tuesday.

Schmitz said he was impressed with Gee’s weekend performance as he has been a bright spot on a struggling 7-20 team.

“It’s very simple but it’s hard to do; you’ve got to drive the ball the other way,” Schmitz said. “As a hitting coach, my biggest disappointment has been the team has not done that on a consistent basis. Alex’s first at bat (against Austin Peay), boom, double to right-center.”

When Gee is hot, Schmitz said he can be imposing to opposing pitchers with is 6’3″, 220 lb frame.

“It scares people to come in with him being so big and strong,” Schmitz said. “He got some fisted hits and made them wonder how to get him out.”

The weekend is not the only thing going for Gee, as the Sacred Heart-Griffin product is on a career-high nine-game hitting streak.

To be on a long hitting streak, Gee said he does not think about

the pressure to hit, saying the key is getting good pitches to hit.

“You just go to the plate and you just try to take your bat and take the best swing when you are up there,” Gee said. “When you are hitting like I am, it’s pretty easy to be confident and I’m getting easy pitches to hit.”

A senior, Gee said he and fellow seniors, right fielder Curt Restko and designated hitter Richie Derbak, have to be good examples at the plate for their teammates.

“Being a senior, I’ve learned a lot about hitting and the only two things you need to hit at this level is confidence and being comfortable in the box,” Gee said. “Everybody at this level has the ability to hit, but this game is so mental, if your mind isn’t

right, you won’t hit.”

No. 35 has worked hard being patient at the plate, gaining 16 walks and striking out only 11 times. In the past two seasons, he has 52 whiffs to 25 walks.

“It hasn’t always been that way,” Gee said of his plate discipline. “I’ve struggled. I’ve struck out more than walked, but you get to the point you’ve seen certain pitches so many times you get disciplined at the plate and realize what pitches will do out of the pitcher’s hands.”

The walks to strikeouts ratio was one reason Schmitz stuck with Gee in the lineup, even when he was hitting sub .200, with Gee walking a team-leading seven times. The coach said this shows Gee understands the strike zone and swings at good pitches.

“The key thing was he stuck with us,” Schmitz said. “When he was batting under .200 awhile back, all you can say is keep going. We tried doing some motivation with Gee a few weeks ago. We’re not going to win this thing (OVC Championship) without Alex Gee.”

For the hot-hitting Gee, he said his goal for this season is to hit over .300 for the first time in his career. Right now, Gee is hitting .309 with two home runs and 11 RBIs.

Bob Bajek can be reached at 581-7944 or rtbajek@eiu.edu