Sure, Garrett Olson always wanted to play professional baseball. What kid who grew up falling asleep to Boston Red Sox radio broadcasts in the baseball-mad town of Norway didn’t?
The problem is, coming from that neck of the woods can make your skills as difficult to locate and measure as if you hailed from the other Norway.
Olson, a 20-year-old third baseman, is supremely gifted with the bat and glove, but he also realizes he was born at the right time.
Major League scouts have suddenly discovered the fertile soil beneath the infield grass at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School in South Paris and Franklin Pierce College in Rindge, N.H. Closely connected with those two perennially powerful baseball programs, Olson could be less than one year away from seeing his name pop up on the screen as a plum pick in the amateur draft.
Oh, and being an NCAA Division II All-American doesn’t hurt his chances, either.
After a stellar sophomore campaign in which he led the Ravens in most major offensive categories, Olson was named to the second team of the select, national squad. He was the lone second-year player to receive All-American honors and one of only two players from New England.
“It’s definitely a high honor. I was fortunate to have a great year,” Olson said. “Everything just fell into place.”
Olson batted .375 with 78 hits and 57 runs scored as Franklin Pierce won the Northeast-10 Conference championship and came within one game of a College World Series berth.
The number that pleased Olson most, and the one that probably drew the most attention from pro headhunters, were his 11 home runs. That’s up from three round-trippers during a fabulous freshman season in which Olson batted .335 and finished among the league leaders in runs scored and on-base percentage.
“I worked hard all fall and winter trying to get stronger,” Olson said. “I practiced standing a little more upright in the batter’s box, and it gave me a lot more power.”
You could add another handful of homers to his total if Olson, who has bulked up to 200 pounds on his 6-foot-2 frame, played almost anywhere else in the country.
Northeast-10 is a wooden bat conference. So is the New England Collegiate Baseball League, where Olson currently is enjoying his second summer as a standout for the Keene Swamp Bats. The ball tends to fly faster and farther off the aluminum bats that Olson swung throughout his childhood.
“It was a little different at first,” said Olson. “Once you get used to a wooden bat, you find it just as easy to hit with one. It feels more like the way the game should be played.”
Pine is a prerequisite in the pros, so Olson’s proficiency with the Louisville Slugger should be opening some eyes.
Once a player goes to college, he must be three years out of high school before he is eligible for the draft. Olson hopes to follow in the footsteps of two fellow Oxford Hills’ graduates drafted in 2004. Catcher Eric Cavers went to the Houston Astros, while the Florida Marlins plucked 6-foot-10 pitcher Aaron Easton.
Cavers also played with Olson at Franklin Pierce, where the backstop ranked among the top eight in seven career offensive categories upon his graduation.
Shortstop Shawn Hayes and relief pitcher Matt Fisher were drafted in June, bringing the total of former Ravens currently on a professional roster to six. Eight Franklin Pierce alumni have played in the minors since 2001.
“I played a lot of sports when I was younger, but I always knew I wanted to play baseball in college,” Olson said. “And going beyond that has always been a big dream of mine.”
He’s getting a taste of that dream again this summer with the Swamp Bats, who play to minor league-sized crowds of more than 2,000 spectators on many nights.
Last year, after signing what was originally a temporary contract with Keene, Olson started all but three games and was a second-team all-league pick in center field.
“It’s a step up. I’m playing against a lot of Division I players from a lot of major schools,” said Olson. “It’s good to see how you match up against them.”
As the scouts probably have noticed, Olson matches up just fine, even if they can’t find his hometown on a map.
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