Athlete of the Week: Marc G. Hordon '04

The outlook was anything but rosy for the Harvard baseball team entering its Ivy-opening weekend. The Crimson dragged a 3-11 record and a three-game losing streak into doubleheaders against Princeton and two-time defending Ivy champion Cornell.

But four victories later, Harvard stands atop the Rolfe Division with a perfect Ivy League record.

Sophomore Marc Hordon spearheaded the reversal of fortune. Hordon’s ability to pitch and play first base makes him one of the most versatile players on the Crimson roster. When asked which position he prefers, Hordon’s answer is short and sweet.

“I’m a baseball player,” Hordon said. “I will play wherever, whenever, however I can to help the team win a couple of ball games.”

And help he did.

Hordon, who will play in the prestigious Cape Cod League this summer, went 6-for-16 over the weekend to raise his team-leading average to .361. In the process, he collected three RBI and scored two runs while starting three games at first base.

The sophomore also managed to find time to start Sunday’s 6-2 victory over the Big Red. Hordon (1-1) allowed just one unearned run and five hits while striking out nine in eight dominating innings.

“When I’m playing first, I understand that my duty is to be able to hit the ball, hit it hard and drive in runs,” Hordon said. “But when I’m pitching, there’s so much energy and mental preparation that I have to go through to be successful on the mound.”

But Hordon, despite the added pressure of pitching, went 1-for-3 at the plate and scored a run to help his own cause in his first start in over two weeks.

Hordon’s ERA is now the lowest among Harvard’s starters at a miniscule 1.29.

The weekend sweep that Hordon’s win sealed finally demonstrated the dominance that the Crimson players promised would appear entering the season.

Harvard had been suffering from inconsistent offense while it received strong starting pitching and solid defense. But the Crimson bats finally awakened to string together rallies missing in earlier competition.

Hordon credits both Coach Joe Walsh’s pre-game pep talk to the hitters and the seniors’ leadership for the emergence of the offense.

“I have to give great props to our seniors because they absolutely showed so much heart and determination and fire this past weekend,” Hordon said. “It really motivated the rest of the team because we fed off their play. We really came together as a team.”

Harvard only stands to benefit when one of its top offensive threats remains unconcerned with his personal statistics—and can be counted on to toss a gem or two on the side.

“We won and I was able to help,” Hordon said. “And that’s all I care about.”

That’s an understatement. Hordon broke his arm over the weekend and will be out a few weeks.