For JMU's Herbek, a learning process

Playing in the Cape Cod League last summer toyed with David Herbek's confidence as a baseball player.

On one level, Herbek dispelled any preconceived notions he had about his ability to hold his own with teammates who hailed from more high-profile college leagues like the ACC and the SEC. Whether it was just taking batting practice or fielding ground balls during a drill, Herbek realized he was not out of place competing in the nation's premier college baseball summer league.

And yet, as the season wore on and he went from being a temporary fill-in to earning a full-time spot on Harwich's team, it became clear to Herbek that his game, especially from a hitting standpoint, still had room for improvement.

The switch from using aluminum bats in college to wood bats at the Cape revealed there were holes in his swing. And so a player used to collecting a steady supply of hits faced the challenge of dealing with being in an unaccustomed slump that left him frustrated at times.

"I felt like I was hitting solidly, but the ball was going straight to people," said Herbek, a career .346 hitter in two seasons at James Madison who only hit .141 in 26 games for Harwich. "I'd never been through a stretch like that. The numbers were embarrassing, but I had to learn it wasn't about the numbers or the number of hits. It was about getting good swings."

With a better understanding of where his game needed work, Herbek has spent countless hours during the offseason to shorten his swing as he looks to help James Madison live up to its preseason ranking as the Colonial Athletic Association's No. 1 team. The Dukes open up Feb. 19 against Marist.

Considered the Dukes' best hitter and most clutch performer, Herbek has the makeup to develop into an even more consistent hitter by his ability to hit for power and average.

Herbek's biggest asset, though, is his defense, in particular his arm strength.

"It's hard to find guys playing defense in college like that because of the arm," JMU coach Spanky McFarland said. "He can throw from the hole on the run. That's something we noticed with him out of high school."

Herbek's play has attracted the attention of major league teams. An estimated 25 scouts were on hand last October for JMU's fall workout day to watch, among others, junior pitchers Kevin Munson and Turner Phelps and Herbek, all of whom are considered the Dukes' best professional prospects this season.

But for Herbek, he's concentrating first on his team and learning from his experience at the Cape. It was an experience that almost didn't happen until a few days before the season began when Herbek was offered a three-week contract by Harwich to fill out a roster spot until players from college teams still playing arrived.

Herbek performed well enough that he stuck, which said something about his abilities. It also left him without any regrets and reminded him that the best thing out of all of this was that he got the chance to face top caliber pitching throughout the summer and test his game.

"I couldn't ask for anything better," Herbek said. "It was an opportunity that came up and I took it."

Sports editor David Fawcett can be reached at 703-878-8052 or at dfawcett@insidenova.com.