The roots of Brock Deatherage stem back to two things: farming and baseball. The junior outfielder on the NC State baseball team, who is studying agricultural business management, grew up helping his father and grandfather on the family dairy farm in Burlington, North Carolina. It was there he began playing baseball and dreaming of the major leagues.
He still uses his days off to go back home and help out on the farm, something that head coach Elliott Avent said was a testament to his work ethic. He is one of the rising stars in a State program that has seen its fair share of success, and Avent thinks he is in good company with those that have come before him.
“I hate to use terms like ‘best’ or ‘one of the best,’ but I don’t know if I’ve ever had a better person or ballplayer than Brock Deatherage,” Avent said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever had a more hard-nosed, tougher, greater spirited and good ballplayer than Brock Deatherage. He joins the list of a lot of people that he’s followed in their footsteps. There are not enough good things I can say about Brock.”
Deatherage was a two-sport star in high school and was heavily recruited for football as well as baseball. He originally committed to play baseball at UNC but later pulled that commitment in hopes of playing football as well. It was on his official football visit at NC State that Deatherage got connected with Avent.
“He asked if I was still interested in playing baseball, and I told him most definitely,” Deatherage said. “They got me down here a week later for a visit again and it just felt right. It felt like home. By that point all the pieces had come together and it was what I wanted to do. It was a no-brainer. I have no regrets. It felt perfect.”
Deatherage did not end up playing football for the Pack, but he did make a splash with the baseball team his freshman year. In his first year at State, Deatherage started 35 games, posting a batting average of .291 and an on-base percentage of .383. Deatherage said that the early success he experienced didn’t come easy, but was partly the result of focusing on just one sport for the first time in his life.
“It was a complete transition to sticking with just baseball all year round,” Deatherage said. “It felt great because I was playing the game that I loved every single day. Getting my opportunity early my freshman year I knew that I had to make the most of it to prove to coach Avent and [associate head] coach [Chris] Hart that I could hang with those guys and that I could compete and help the team win.”
To say the jump from high school to college baseball went well for Deatherage would be an understatement, but perhaps that may even be overshadowed by his improvement from his freshman to sophomore year. In his second year with the Pack, Deatherage batted .317 with six home runs and 39 RBIs. He also led the team with five triples and 14 stolen bases.
Deatherage credits a lot of this improvement to his summer ball stint after his freshman year, when he played in the Cape Cod League, one of the most respected summer baseball leagues in the country. Deatherage said that getting into a routine of practicing and playing all day, every day really helped him to develop as a player.
“Doing that just really helped me out and made me a better baseball player both mentally and physically,” Deatherage said. “Playing every day took care of me physically and then playing in Cape Cod is hard mentally. You’re playing against the best guys in the entire country and seeing a guy that’s throwing 90 [mph] plus every single day, every single night. It really makes you a better baseball player.”
The first two years of his college career were impressive on a personal level for Deatherage, but they both ended in heartbreak for the team. Both of the last two seasons have ended the same way for State, losing in a winner-take-all regional game after seeing a late lead disappear.
In 2015, the Pack was on top of TCU 8-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning before eventually losing in extra innings. Last year, State was beating eventual champions Coastal Carolina 5-3 in the ninth inning before rain came and stopped the game. The next day, Coastal rallied to win.
Deatherage said the hardest part of both losses was watching what it did to the seniors on the team. He talked about how it was something that he never wanted to see again, and that it was one of the things driving this year’s team.
“I will do anything in my power to allow that not to happen,” Deatherage said on the possibility of losing in a regional again. “I remember me and Coach Avent texting a while back about it. He got interviewed about it and I said, ‘look coach. Us juniors and seniors, the upperclassmen who have been through it two years in a row, we’re not going to allow that to happen this year.’ I told him to trust me and I plan to stick to my word.”
Everything points to the upcoming season being another successful year for Deatherage, whose future looks bright. According to Baseball America, Deatherage is the 49th best college prospect in the game. Deatherage said that this kind of honor and recognition means a lot to him, and it is evidence that his dreams are starting to become within reach.
“I remember my parents always asking me when I was little what I wanted to do when I got older,” Deatherage said. “I’d say I wanted to be an MLB player. Looking back at it now, it’s kind of something you’ve worked for your entire life and it’s a goal you set when you were 10 years old and you don’t even remember it.”
Deatherage emphasized that those dreams are in the future, that right now he is focused on winning at State. Even still, his days as a member of the Wolfpack are numbered. Deatherage said that he hopes he is remembered at State as a great teammate and leader. Avent had similar remarks when asked about the legacy Deatherage will leave on Wolfpack baseball.
“He loves the game,” Avent said. “He respects the game. He loves his teammates. He respects his teammates. He just comes out here and battles to do the best he can do at whatever he does, whether it’s school or out here on the field. Whatever he does, you know Brock Deatherage is going to give 110 percent.”
Sophomore outfielder Brock Deatherage throws the ball back to infield after catching a pop fly. The NC State baseball team lost to Indiana State 11-7 at Doak Field on March 16.
