Killer Ps: Peters, Prokarym Help Position Bees on Top of NJCAA DIII World
By Jim McCurdy
MESQUITE, Texas – Pick your poison: Marcus Peters and Jacob Prokarym offer opposing hitters little antidotes for relief.
Dallas College Eastfield's one-two pitching powers are two of the best in the country, and everyone tuned in knows it.
"We're real fortunate to have both of those guys," Harvester Bees longtime head baseball coach Michael Martin said. "They've really grown here, and gotten better. Both kids anchor our staff, and they're a big reason why we are where we're at right now."
Where the Harvester Bees are is a perch every opponent in the Dallas Athletic Conference longs to be: No. 1 in the national poll, atop the league standings, the first team in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III ranks to win 30 games this season, fresh off back-to-back national championship game appearances.
"We're going to go as those two guys go for us," Martin said. "Pitching is just the biggest part of this game, and, especially at our level, to get guys at that kind of caliber is really tough to do because teams are always trying to find arms. It's very seldom that two guys like that get looked over or whatever the case may be at some of these scholarship schools."
Prokarym initially committed to Oklahoma State out of Plano High School, but an injury derailed that plan, eventually opening the door to Eastfield. Then-Bees assistant coach Lance Fairchild signed him through some teammate contacts.
"We got really lucky," said Fairchild, who took over as Dallas College North Lake's head coach last summer. "He's a 6-6 lefty, he throws really hard, and he commands four pitches. He's really talented."
The first time Fairchild saw Peters play, he was catching in a summer ball game in Melissa, Texas.
"You look at the kid, and see him throw to second base, and you look at that frame … he's a 6-5 kid, really broad shoulders, just really that frame you'd like to find in all your pitchers," Fairchild said. "The main thing that really stood out was his work ethic. Me and Coach Martin kind of knew that if he just really focused on pitching, he had a chance to really take off on the mound. And he did. He did really fast."
Prokarym will get his crack at the Big 12 next year. He is headed to Texas Tech as a junior. Peters, a product of Richardson, Texas, signed with Oklahoma Baptist University. Together, they form the most formidable pitching punch in the DAC, if not the country.
"It's awesome," Prokarym said. "He can come out and shut 'em down, and then once they're down, I can come in and close it out, and then we've got (Tyler) Do, obviously, on Saturday. He's a really good freshman. It's a relief."
Except that when they're on, there's not much need for relief. Both have tossed one complete game this season. Prokarym has pitched seven innings in two of his last three starts – two of which he earned the win. He went five innings in two games earlier in the season. Peters has logged six innings in three starts – all his victories. He's coming off a five-inning, three-hit, one-run, five-strikeout win over North Lake Wednesday.
"Peters is a pretty level-headed kid," Martin said. "He just goes about his business. Now with Prokarym, we kind of have to go with the flow with him. We've got to try to keep him even-keeled a little bit. There's times we've got to try to rein him in because he's a little amped up, a little excited, a little boisterous out there. Those are things we're working on, trying to guide him, especially going on to the next level."
Taking the Ball to the Bump
Peters was anointed Eastfield's series-opening starter. In games he's taken the mound first in a series, where the decision went to him, the Harvester Bees are 7-1 in his 11 starts. He didn't allow a run in his first four starts of the season, which included wins over NJCAA Division I Howard College, NJCAA Division II Arkansas State University – Three Rivers and NJCAA Division III No. 13 North Arkansas College.
"There's obviously a lot of pressure being the first guy," Peters said. "But it's fun to come out and be the guy, and see what the hitters do, and be able to talk to my staff and say, 'This guy's missing this pitch,' or, 'Hit this location.'"
In Wednesday's series-opening 5-1 win over North Lake, Peters threw over to first base eight times after Blazers leadoff hitter Lincoln Skinner reached base safely.
"Usually on running teams, we like to pick over a little more than usual," Peters explained. "We like to get the runners a little tired, get them worked out a little bit. Then when they try and steal, it gives my catcher an opportunity to throw him out. They're just a little out of breath from doing a few up-downs."
It worked – against the second-leading base stealer in NJCAA Division III, albeit. To be fair, Skinner did steal his 27th base of the season in that game.
That play-catch-with-the-first-baseman monotony is enough to drive a hitter anxiously awaiting an offering batty. No pun intended.
"I feel it is a little mental," Peters said, knowing his pickoff attempts can throw a hitter's timing off. "They get a little angry, they get a little antsy, and then when I give them even a decent pitch to hit, they're a little out in front or they're a little behind."
Peters has been named DAC Pitcher of the Week twice this year, Prokarym once. The week Prokarym was chosen for the league's weekly award, he was also named the NJCAA Division III Pitcher of the Week – an honor he also received once a year ago.
"We compete with each other, whether we say it or not," Peters confessed. "We obviously want to be better than one another. We'll be talking a little bit, be like, 'Hey, I'm going to try and get it this week,' or 'He's going to try and get it this week,' and we try and pitch our best to compete and make it work out for the team."
Friendly competition or not, Peters and Prokarym are bonded as Bees. Last year, Prokarym visited Peters at his apartment on a cold day. As it was, the two decided it would be a great idea to go swimming in the 42-degree weather.
"I think I missed practice the next day," Prokarym admitted.
One thing is for certain, on the bump, these two haven't missed a beat often. Peters leads the nation in wins (7) and strikeouts (75). Entering Friday's game at North Lake – one Prokarym is scheduled to take the mound – his pitching partner is second in strikeouts (54), while boasting a 4-0 record. That explains why four-year schools were so anxious to sign them both so quickly. Prokarym committed to Texas Tech early last season. Peters signed with Oklahoma Baptist in February this year.
"Martin and (assistant coach Ramon) Garza did a really good job, same thing with Fairchild last year," Peters said. "When he was over here, he was always looking to get us up to the next level. He was always talking to coaches, always giving us the best advice to get us there. I'm happy coming here. They had the best way to get me to the better player than I am, and then also get me to the next level at the right place."
Prokarym, who says he didn't even know Eastfield existed until other big schools balked on him following his high school injury, got the sense right away he'd be a focal point on the pitching staff in the Hive. Once he locked in to put on a Bees uniform, his coaches elevated his stature a little more. It wasn't long a Power 5 school came calling.
"Coming here, talking to Fairchild and Martin, I kind of knew I'd be the guy here," he said. "They did a great job of getting video out, getting stuff on Twitter, so it's pretty easy after that. I just kind of do my job."
Pushing for Ws with the Ps
Peters lauds his head coach for giving his team a chance to win every time he or any other Harvester Bee is handed the ball.
"It's the great coaching," Peters said. "Martin's been doing this for 20-some years, longer than I've been alive. He knows the game really well, knows how to put guys in situations in a position to win every time."
No matter what they put in their stomach. There are layers to this story, but Prokarym offers the short version.
"Those bus rides over to the field, we'd find some food on the ground, and we'd just ask Marcus if he'd eat it," he said.
Would he?
"Oh yeah," Prokarym said.
During their two years in the Hive, the Eastfield duo have consistently not given hitters much to feast on. That's why the Bees sit on top of the NJCAA Division III baseball world right now.
"No matter where they pitch, they're going to be hard to beat," Fairchild said. "They have some of the best stuff in the conference. Marcus has come a long way, throwing more strikes. Prokarym has always been talented. It's a tough battle. We just tell our guys to go compete, and see what happens."
Since Prokarym and Peters arrived at Eastfield, they've been a tough out. That's the mindset until the end of May.
"I'm just worried about winning right now, and getting this over with," Prokarym said. "Then move on to the next level."
His plan is to report to Lubbock as soon as Eastfield's season is over. But until that time, the goal is to stockpile Ws.
"We've got a great team," Peters said. "We're headed in the right direction. Everyone wants to win, and we're pushing to be where we were last year."
If they get there, Peters and Prokarym will likely have made an impact.
"The biggest impact," Martin said. "If I got two guys like that who give me a chance to compete, they're going to take us a long way. Our pitching staff's going to take us where we need to go. We have some depth there beyond those two guys, but those two definitely anchor our staff."