Andrean senior pitcher Matt Habas has his routine down to a science.
Hop over the foul line off his right foot. Scoop the ball up with his glove and flip it into his left hand. Throw two fastballs, two change-ups and two curveballs. Then the South Suburban commit is ready to start the inning.
Unless, of course, a game’s events call for something different.
“I have the same routine whenever I pitch,” he said. “But if I’m doing bad, then I’ll switch it up.”
That hasn’t happened much this season, however. One of the top pitchers in Andrean’s rotation again, the 6-foot Habas has a 1.33 ERA with 27 strikeouts and just nine walks in 21 innings.
He had a 2.40 ERA, 48 strikeouts and 22 walks in 37 innings last season, when the 59ers were the Class 3A state runners-up.
Andrean coach Dave Pishkur said Habas’ success boils down to three things.
“He’s a lefty, he throws strikes and he can change speeds,” Pishkur said. “Those are all the ingredients that he needs to help him win.”
Habas will try to help the 59ers (20-3, 9-1), ranked No. 1 in the most recent coaches poll, win the Northwest Crossroads Conference title in the next few days. Andrean will play No. 3 Hanover Central (18-2, 10-0), the conference leader, on Monday and Tuesday to wrap up the regular season.
Pishkur said Habas will start one of those two games.
“I don’t think any moment is too big for him,” Pishkur said. “If things aren’t going his way, you won’t see his shoulders droop, and if he strikes out the side, he won’t come back with a huge smile on his face. He stays even keeled.”
Andrean junior catcher Blake Kouder sees much the same thing from Habas.
“He’s a pretty laid-back guy,” Kouder said. “When things get heated, he just stays calm, keeps his composure and does his job. Whenever he’s out there, we can expect him to throw strikes and just get through the game.”
Habas said his calm demeanor goes back to his routine at the beginning of each inning. He noted he also puts on his right shoe first before every game.
“I was always in my head, and then I’d start getting nervous on the mound,” he said. “But it’s all switched over my mindset to just not being afraid to fail. That really helped with my pitching part.”
Kouder said Habas is actually one of the “goofier” guys on the team when he’s not pitching. Habas said he has happily settled into the role of being a pitcher only instead of an everyday player.
“Being a PO, you only throw once a week,” he said. “So after that, all you can do is be the best teammate that you can be.”
The next time Habas throws will be the type of game he has been looking forward to playing since the offseason, when he increased the velocity on his fastball into the upper 80s to make it a stronger complement to his off-speed pitches.
“I was focused on throwing harder and getting myself ready to pitch in bigger games, making sure that I had that confidence, so I’d be ready for the postseason,” he said.
Dave Melton is a freelance reporter.
