Indiana baseball's Gorski learned about failure this summer

It’s hard to find a better all-around statistical season in college baseball than the one Indiana outfielder Matt Gorski had in 2018.

A first team All-Big Ten selection and an ABCA First Team All-Mideast Region as a sophomore, Gorski led the Hoosiers in batting average (.356), hits (79), total bases (123) and stolen bases (24).

The 6-foot-4 fleet-footed outfielder also flashed power at the plate finishing with eight home runs, 40 RBI, 14 doubles and three triples. Gorski is primed to have another breakout season as a junior, listed as the No. 32 collegiate MLB Draft Prospect by Perfect Game and earning Big Ten pre-season player of the year by D1 baseball.

“It’s motivation and I look at it,” Gorski said about the preseason honors. “But it’s not something you’re going to put in your trophy case at the end of the year, unless you win it at the end of the year.”

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Awards have come frequently in Gorski’s athletic career. He earned All-State as a high school senior and in his first year at IU he was named a freshman All-Big Ten selection and IU’s Rookie of the Year.

That athletic success led Gorski to play in the Cape Cod League this summer among the top collegiate baseball players in all of America. And he learned more than ever about the game of baseball.

“I learned a little bit about failure, cause I haven’t failed a ton in my baseball career and in life,” Gorski said. “So going there up against the best players in the country, you fail a lot more than you want to so I learned a little bit about that.”

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Gorski played in 23 games with the Harwich Mariners and hit .286 (20-for-70) with three doubles, six RBI, 11 runs scored, 12 walks, 29 strikeouts and one stolen base.

Those numbers don’t exactly pop out as someone who would be a top draft pick and potential Big Ten player of the year, but there’s no doubt his journey to the Cape helped his development.

“It was hard early on, you’re facing some of the best guys in the country in pitching and defense and hitters just everybody, the best in the country,” Gorski said. “So, to go in, I tried to get accustomed to playing there during the year and I played better at the end of the year.”

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Following his learning experience in Cape Cod, 2019 should be another standout year for Gorski. He is among the top three in the Big Ten in batting average, total bases and stolen bases for returning players.

The preseason honors are warranted, but even without them, everyone in the league knows what he’s capable of doing. Gorski just has to go out there and continue to perform, just like he’s done at every other level in his young athletic career.

“I guess (the awards) are cool to get, but it’s a chip on your shoulder because everyone is going to know that,” Gorski said. “Then you’re going in there and you gotta play like it and you gotta act like it.”