In this episode, freshmen pitcher Gavin Przybyla is in studio to talk about his journey from youth sports to college athletics. Gavin delves into the challenges and triumphs faced during his high school career, notably overcoming injuries, and adapting to being a full-time pitcher in the competitive landscape of college baseball.

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Hello, friends, and welcome to Coach Cut's Corner. Streaming bright from Michigan's Capital City, this podcast is dedicated to helping you better understand the who, the what and the why of mental performance, personal growth and Lansing Stars baseball. Coach Cut’s Corner, brought to you by “eyewash” in collaboration with Lansing Community College. And now, here's your host, Steven Cutter.

Welcome back to the show. Got an exciting episode today. We have a 6, 6 left handed pitcher from Novi, Gavin Prisbilla in the studios this morning. Welcome, welcome.

Great to be here.

Absolutely. How's your morning been?

Pretty solid. Started the morning off with morning lifts and kind of just was the standard that Monday we didn't have a great day but you know.

Okay, let's, let's. Before we get into you a whole lot, you say you started the morning off with lifts. What time do you lift?

7Am we have two groups and I'm, I'm the 7am Group. So we have a 7 and 8.

And then you go Monday, Wednesday, Friday. In season? Yep. Is it tough getting up and being at lifts by 7am it was for.

Sure tough the first, first couple weeks I'd say or first couple days. But I've kind of gotten used to it now.

Like in the fall season.

Yeah, fall I had 8am lift which is a little bit better. I got a little easier sleeping like an later but stadium. I just kind of, kind of get used to it.

You know once I get used to waking up at a certain time, I kind of get in that flow.

Well, welcome to the studios. Excited to share your story with our listeners. You have had a lot of success and a lot of learning moments in our fall and spring season.

So we'll definitely get into those. But before we get there let's run it back a little bit. How active were you in youth sports?

Yeah, started from as probably early as you can go. I, I was really active in baseball for sure and then it was always basketball and soccer. There was probably soccer until.

Were you a goalie?

I was defense or goalie. I never wanted to be like. I, I actually Quit. I didn't like the running very much, so I just, like, stayed in defense and goalie.

You're a quitter.

Yeah, it just wasn't for me. I, I, I forgot when I resigned from the sport, but I think it was probably like, maybe fourth grade or something like that.

And I've always wanted to play football. I got to play that my last two years of high school.

Okay.

I did, like, flag football here and there, but it was always baseball, basketball for sure.

Okay, and what positions did you play in basketball?

Center. Okay, so nothing else?

You're, you're what, six? Six?

Yeah.

And were you tall when you were little as well?

Yeah, I was always the tallest. It was always like, in every sport. Be like basketball, center, like, like soccer,.

Like, goalie, like, probably played some first base too.

Oh, yeah, first base. DH Actually some third who.

Really?

Yeah. Yeah.

That's interesting. Love that. Where'd the height come from?

It's a question that me and my family always ask each other because we kind of wonder where it's from. My dad's like 6 foot. My mom's 5, 7, 5, 8. So taller for. Taller for, for a woman.

But I think me and my mom kind of decided maybe might be from her uncles. Like, we have a lot of tall uncle. Her uncles are tall. My grandpa's a taller guy. So from there.

But there's really, like, my, my dad's side of the family. Like, they're just kind of normal height. Like, one of my other uncles is above 6 foot, but just like, kind of like a blessing, you know.

Did you have a lot of success in youth sports?

I'd say here and there with being tall. I also had a lot of, like, I'd be tall, but I'd be a little bit chubbier. I'd be tall and skinnier.

So it kind of depended on how, you know, I had ups and downs for sure. I never really made like, like the best travel team or anything by that, by far.

I mean, I, I don't think I made like, our novice youth team until maybe like 11 you or okay, 12 u and that. I mean, I know I tried it, like, probably four or five times before I made it. And it was like, just a thing.

I had grown to my body and like, kind of get into high school, like after my sophomore year probably, you know, kind of figured everything out and, you know, just discovered how to, like, play with, you know, my size and everything, how to actually use it.

Who helped you in those youth years in the formative?

Yeah, I definitely say My parents as well as, like, like, friends and just other family. I had some pretty solid coaches, but I feel like my dad and my mom were always just supportive of that.

Still are, obviously, but I didn't really have, like, a, like, solid coaches until I was older. I feel like younger.

Younger sports, I feel, is kind of like parents and stuff like that, which obviously can be great coaches, but it's not like they don't have a lot of experience with it. Obviously, like, experience matters. So I'd say growing up also just having experience, like, with different sports, I think that helped a lot.

Like, especially soccer and basketball. It just all ties in.

And then you mentioned you played football your last couple years in high school. What was that like?

Yeah, it was. It was really fun. Like, for. For a minute. I know my junior year, I actually, like, I was like, this could be sweet to play in college.

And then I realized, like, as an old lineman, which that's what I was in football, is like, you got to put on a lot of weight. And as my. As my size, I'd probably get up, put on, like, £50. It's just not something I wanted to do.

And I realized that, like, high school football is just different than college. Like, school, like, for your hometown. And it was fun, though, is. It was something I would never regret doing again. That's why mom let me play.

She's like, I didn't want to regret, you know, me not letting you play. Same with my dad. So it was really fun. Learned a lot of things, Learned a lot of lessons, and was able to become a captain, too.

And that's how I got some experience in leadership, too.

Okay, what was high school baseball like?

It was. It was really fun. My freshman year, I was. I was injured. I had knee surgery in my freshman year for basketball.

There was a play where I was reaching for a pass, and I kind of just got. Ran into a little bit of a freak accident, dislocated my knee and had to get surgery. But my freshman year, I wasn't able to play.

Sophomore year, I came back with lacking experience, obviously. And I mean, my parents and family might say different. I don't think I did very well. Didn't play on my standard. I still hit. I still obviously pitched.

And then my junior year, I kind of stepped in a role where we had one of my teammates go down with Tommy John. He was committed to Clemson, and I had to kind of fill a role, and I became a pretty solid conference starter.

Then after that season, I kind of realized, you know, what? I Can do. And you know, what's, what's my standard, which was a conference starter and I kind of was ready for that next season in senior year.

And then I got elbow tightened at us. My, my junior summer hitting the football season. I played through football, having it because I didn't really feel anymore.

So that's pretty cool. When did you realize that you wanted to be a college baseball player or that you could be a college baseball player?

Yeah, I think I realized I could in that, you know, junior, junior year and that summer too I had. I switched travel teams to an organization called the Michigan Bulls. And I realized that like that's when recruiting started happening.

Like I had some coaches come to my games or I also reached out to coaches and coaches reaching out to me and I realized that this could be a possibility and just what I wanted to do. I love baseball.

So when did you zero in on lcc?

So like I said before, I was hurt. So I really didn't know what I was going to do because I really wasn't getting myself out there because I couldn't throw.

And at a point I really didn't know, like I didn't know what I was going to do. I had a, maybe a couple. I think I had two offers from NAI school and a D3 school.

And I think I knew at some point I forgot what it was, but I think I knew that. I think Juco was around for me because just seeing online and like seeing people's stories from Juco. And I had a friend that also went.

Juco, he went to, he was at Macomb at the time and he, he said, you know, it's, it's a special thing. Like talk about Juco grind. But seriously, like it's, it's a lot of.

It's a lot of hard work, but it's also like time to test yourself to see like what you do in your off time to make you better. And I feel like lcc. I think Coach Mo texted me. I didn't really know much about lcc.

I knew Kaden best goes going here because I played him in high school quite a bit and I knew he was an absolute stud.

So big game, basketball.

Yeah, big game, best go. So I know he was going to lcc but I didn't really know a lot about it.

So coach Amo had texted me and I got on a call with him and obviously came on a visit here.

Just saw the campus and I really liked it and I knew that the players kind of players you guys put out and you guys history obviously when I looked into it. So I don't think there was another better option for me. I think OCC is the place to be and wouldn't regret a thing.

I remember you coming to one of our games last year. I believe it was at the pal.

Oh yeah. Great stadium.

Yeah. What was your impressions of that team?

Well, I. I went with my buddy from high school and I think every single time a new guy came up we're like holy crap, these guys are huge. And you guys did a huge team last year, especially Kyron and Paul and everyone.

It was kind of like eye opening for me and it was pretty cool to see though they really haven't really seen a college baseball game before that. Okay. High level kind of game like obviously mlb but like college. Like that was pretty cool experience.

But yeah, it was one of the games that you guys are playing near me and decided to come and it was a pretty cool experience.

So you get the commitment out of the way, you graduate, you get through the summer, you show up here in August, August 12th, first practice.

Yep.

What was it like?

It was probably the worst week like ever. It was like I. Even in football I never really conditioned like that. We didn't really condition much. Even in basketball.

Basketball is probably the most condition and it tested me a lot. But I also feel like doing that stuff makes you closer as a team. Like I remember the, the first day in leadership I was like, there's so many guys.

Like I'm so overwhelmed. And then once you get doing that, like we were all going through a hardship, like just being with each other, it helps a lot.

Like I met so many new friends from that and like teammates like got closer with them and it was really eye opening though I didn't especially just being a pitcher, like just focusing on that every day.

It was definitely a switch from high school because in high school I still hit a little bit, but just becoming, you know, pitcher only and working on everything every single day and it was really eye opening but it was really cool. I just remember running and stuff was like, well, this is why I'm here, like, to get better and, like, basically. Yeah.

So we're in the. Our season at this point, but before we get to some of that conversation, I want to go back to the fall.

Yeah.

And beyond the mtnc, beyond the meeting a lot of new people and developing friendships. What was your fall season like?

I'd say it was pretty solid. It was definitely, definitely cool to compete at a new level.

I know our first two games were against travel teams, and then we started to, you know, kick up the competition, especially when we went down to Indiana for the Puma Classic, which is really pretty cool. I think I pitched pretty well. A lot of learning experience. Like, I think in the Puma, I think it came back. The first thing you're like, relax.

Like, just relax. It's. I definitely had a different energy going to that game. It just felt different.

It's kind of like the more higher energy game that I've been a part of in college, like, the first kind of higher energy experience. But I think I did pretty solid. I always set, like, a high standard for myself, and I think I performed pretty well.

There's definitely some ups and downs with just getting ready between every start, like, staying motivated and just staying hungry.

But did you have some low points in the fall?

I'd say a lot of the low points were getting used to the stress of my body. I'd say getting used to, like, recovery, recovering more.

High school, I would do, you know, arm care, but I've started to do more of, like, recovery work. My body, like, getting more routine with stretching and more routine with, you know, massage, you know, different recovery things.

Like mobility.

Yeah, mobility. It's just like. It's a different level.

You got to take your body really serious because, you know, make sure your body's 100%, because, I mean, any day you can, you know, you know, test it too hard and make it happen.

Yeah, there's just a lot of stress on your body when you're competing at the college level. There's a lot of expectations on your body, and you got to take care of it for it to be able to show up for you. And.

And so you do well through our fall season. Yeah, I saw you have, just, as you said, like, ups and downs. You had a lot of positive things happen.

There was different points where you were kind of questioning your own stuff and, you know, that kind of stuff, but you did well. We go into our spring season, and that started on January 12th. And away we go. And we're pretty intentional with our practices.

We're pretty detailed out and we're building towards a spring season of games that you had no idea what it was going to look like. Were you pretty excited when, when we got back?

No, I was pumped. The whole separation season, I was like, just can't wait. Like, as much as it's cool to be a family, I just, I can't wait to be back. I know.

Like, I was really excited to start playing some games with the team, but yeah, I was really excited.

Then we get to games and we, we start traveling and we go to Virginia. And I have to think about it a little bit. Virginia, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida and then Ohio.

Yep.

And we played 25 games in 24 days. Something like that. Some insane amount of travel over over 6,000 miles.

A lot of traveling.

What was that like?

It was definitely different.

I remember on the way to Virginia, I remember we stopped one of the stops, and it was actually one of the stops me and my mom always used to go to when we drive to Maryland, where my great grandma lives. Okay. It was on the way and it just kind of brought me back. I was like, wow, it's pretty cool. But I got used to the bus rides.

Like, especially when we went to East Central, it was like three hour drive.

Like, you kind of got used to those three hours and once you get into longer trips, you kind of like, for me, I kind of broke it down like, okay, three hours stop. Three hours stop. But it's definitely, definitely hard at some points, especially as a bigger guy.

Like, did you get your own seat.

On the bus on the way to Virginia? I did. I'm pretty sure on the way back I did it. And then besides that, I didn't. So I did not. I did. I did one way, but I did not.

What was playing all those games consecutively, How. How challenging was that? I mean, you're a pitcher, so it's not like you're pitching every day. You're typically every fourth or fifth day.

Yeah.

But, you know, what was that like again?

It was definitely eye opening, even like, like you said as a pitcher. I know even talking to the position guys, like, it was definitely hard for them too, obviously, because they're playing a lot of games.

But it's just something that, you know, we had to go. We had to go through and we did go through to, you know, see some experience as a younger team, as a pitcher.

I know my first signing, I think was an inning. And then we. Next to my pitch Was Mississippi Gulf Coast, I believe, which, you know, was.

It was a cool experience, but just getting used to, like, that many games. I mean, days is kind of get, you know, you gotta get used to when you're pitching, when you need to get your throwing in, get your mobility in.

Um, it's definitely, Definitely was an experience, but it was really cool.

What'd you think of Mississippi? Mississippi baseball?

Yeah, it's. It's crazy. It's like, you know, like the number one thing down there. It's. It's really cool how serious they take it. And the.

The level of, you know, intent in their program and just the. The amount of time they put into it is pretty cool. The level of talent is pretty cool as well. I think against Gulf coast was a pretty cool game.

I think we competed pretty well, just, you know, didn't get it done. But I think it was cool to see that, you know, level of talent and obviously will help us.

Yeah, we got to play the number one team in the country with East Central, too.

They were great.

Mississippi is known for athletics, baseball. It's been one of the hot states for a while for, for college baseball. They have really sweet stadiums.

Yeah. Very nice facilities.

Some of their stadiums are nicer. Their baseball stadiums are nicer than their football fields.

Yeah, I think we were talking about that once where it's like, yeah, the baseball seems sweet, and then the football stadium looks like a, you know, like one of the middle school stadiums in my high school. It's like, it's crazy. It's really cool, though.

Looking back now, middle of our season, or almost the middle of our season, what would you tell yourself if you could talk to yourself when you came in in August?

It's a great question. I'd say, just know what you can do when you're at your best.

And know that when you work hard and you put your mind to something and you do something every day to, like, be better, it'll really get you to where you want. And I feel like for me, I'm always gonna set a high standard for myself. Even in high school, like playing at a bigger Division 1 school.

We played some pretty excellent, you know, talent at D1 level, like some private schools, and they're just next level private schools and played some. Some pretty solid public schools. And I think, like, I've always set a high standard for myself. Like, like, what's the next challenge?

You know, But I feel like if I had to say something would be that, you know, like, set the standard high and just if you want to achieve something, you can just gotta put your mind to it, you know.

What would you say to recruit that's coming into our program? What should they know about us?

I'd say be ready to work, like, in a great way. Like, we set incredibly high standards and as we should.

You know, I feel like a recruit should know that you take everything right and like, live to our standards. You become a better person, a better man, and a better, like, baseball player at the end of the day.

And it's a great place to be, and you're surrounded around people that win and want to win and that want to get better. So I'd say, yeah, come to lcc.

Pretty solid stuff.

Yeah.

What was. You know, we have things like leadership and things like that. What do you get out of leadership class?

I get a lot. I'd say I've gotten more out of it, like, recently because I. I became more comfortable and been able to, you know, talk out more with my teammates.

I'm not saying I didn't get a lot from it earlier. Cause I did. It's a great thing, but it's a lot of learning for me.

And like we say experience matters and it's just learning different ways to be a leader, different ways to, like, carry yourself. But it's.

It's really cool to have just like, just a class where every week, or we try to do every week where we can come in and learn about, you know, the team we are or the team we want to be, just sit down or even talk about stuff we're struggling at. It's pretty cool.

Yeah. Well, I appreciate you coming on the show.

Yeah.

You've done a really great job this year. You're one of our starting weekend pitchers. I look forward to continuing to watch you grow and develop.

You've come a long way since August and, you know, undoubtedly you have a long way still to go. Oh, yeah. You're. You're the type of person that knows the difference of what you need to do and what you shouldn't be doing.

And you're continuing to figure that out and staying hungry with. Trying to become not only a better baseball player, but also a better person.

And a lot of that shows to the people that raised you, you know, your parents and those coaches and all that. Because that's a piece of the iceberg that we don't get to see until we get you into our environment.

And then we can kind of see, you know, how you were raised and. And how well you react to coaching and how well you react to hard moments and stuff like that. You've.

You've done a really nice job with that, and I'm super excited to watch the rest of the season and watch you keep stacking bricks. So thanks for coming in the studio. Stan.

Thank you for having me. Appreciate it.

That's a wrap on our show, Go all in and Go Stars.

Coach Cut's Corner is recorded live in the WLNZ Studios. Engineering and production assistance are provided by Daedalian Lowry. Thanks for listening and if you enjoyed today's podcast, please share it and follow us on all the platforms of social media. You can find more about our programs at LCCStars.com and donations to our baseball program can be made at the same site. See you next time.