Baseball: Newman’s Brendan Tunink named SVM Player of the Year

STERLING – If you would’ve told Brendan Tunink he’d hit 18 home runs before the 2023 IHSA baseball season, he probably wouldn’t have believed you. And he probably wouldn’t have taken it seriously.

And yet, that’s exactly what the junior pitcher/center fielder did in 32 games with the Newman Comets this year.

A Notre Dame recruit and three-year varsity starter, Tunink was the Comets’ biggest weapon all season long both at the plate and on the mound. And he was the best high school baseball player in the Sauk Valley area by a landslide, both offensively and defensively.

Tunink’s dominance this season was truly unparalleled. In a year where he set five single-season school records, he also led the area in almost every statistical category, including home runs (18), RBIs (50), runs (52), batting average (.488), on-base percentage (0.650), slugging percentage (1.268), on-base plus slugging percentage (1.919), strikeouts (104), ERA (1.00), innings pitched (63) and pitching wins (10-0).

And he delivered when he was needed the most. Time after time.

“Brendan’s a five-tool player, and for us during the postseason run, he was huge for us at the plate in so many situations. But then, on the mound, he threw a no-hitter against Morrison in the regional final,” Newman coach Kenny Koerner said. “Gutted out his last couple performances on the mound. Brendan’s arm late in the season was not where it was earlier in the year. We used him a ton. He gave us really big outings on the mound in the supersectional and the third-place game at state. Even when he’s not 100%, he’s really good and he just competes.”

A whopping 26 of his 40 hits this season (2nd on team, 4th in area) were extra-base hits. He hit two triples (led team) and six doubles (t-2nd on team); the 18 home runs were 14 more than the second-most in the area, and 10 of those home runs came on separate streaks of six straight games and four straight games. One of them – a three-run blast to center field – finished off a 6-2 win against Goreville in the state third-place game. Three of those homers came in consecutive at-bats in a single game: a 10-7 win against Dakota in the 1A sectional championship.

The home runs, RBIs, runs, pitching wins and strikeouts were all school records. He earned All-State honors from the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association for the second straight season, and was a unanimous pick on the Three Rivers East all-conference team.

The junior slugger drew a team-high 34 walks – many of which were intentional – and stole 26 bases (2nd on team). He recorded a WHIP of 0.86, limited opposing hitters to a .138 batting average against, and allowed just 30 hits on the season in 63 innings.

For a sensational junior season, and for helping Newman to its first-ever IHSA state tournament berth and a third-place finish in Class 1A, Tunink has been named the 2023 Sauk Valley Media Baseball Player of the Year.

Coming off a terrific sophomore season that saw him named to the IHSBCA All-State Team, expectations were sky-high for Tunink heading into 2023, both for himself and from his coaches.

Although he accomplished so much so early in his high school baseball career, he wasn’t completely satisfied. He felt there was more for him to achieve.

Not wanting to get complacent, Tunink scrutinized his game last offseason and found two main areas for improvement.

Being the perfectionist he is, he attacked them relentlessly.

“I would say [developing] strength helped a lot, just because I had never really weight-lifted all through high school until last summer. I started really weight-lifting in the fall and the start of the spring,” Tunink said. “And then also going to a hitting coach, that helped a lot, too. So I think all of it just contributed to it.”

When Tunink walked in for the first offseason meeting, Koerner noticed the difference immediately.

“He got bigger and stronger in the offseason. He came back with a lot more weight on his frame. He spent a lot more time on hitting and his craft in general,” Koerner said. “He’s not happy – he’ll hit 100 balls and be upset about the two he didn’t. He’s been a perfectionist. He puts so much time in practice and out of practice to get better, and he takes a lot of pride in it.”

That hard work in the offseason certainly paid off. From 2022 to 2023, Tunink’s home run total more than quadrupled, jumping from four to 18. His RBIs and runs nearly doubled, rising from 26 to 50 and 28 to 52, respectively.

“Man, 18′s a big number. I couldn’t have seen that coming. I’ve never seen anything like what he did this season. We don’t play at a home-run friendly field at all. 10 would’ve been a high number for me this year. I couldn’t believe he got to 18.”

—  Kenny Koerner

The ace pitcher also improved his ERA from 1.12 to 1.00, and threw more strikeouts, going from 55 Ks in 43 2/3 innings last season to 104 Ks in 63 innings this spring.

Most of this year’s stats measured up to Tunink’s preseason expectations, but one stat in particular exceeded them.

“I was expecting to do most of that, but I was not expecting to hit that many home runs,” Tunink said. “I was just trying to keep a good pace and not be in a slump. I was trying to stay constant, consistent with my hitting, so I feel like I did pretty good doing that.”

Koerner, who’s watched Tunink develop for the last three years, expected a lot from the junior this season, but even he didn’t forecast 18 home runs.

“Man, 18′s a big number. I couldn’t have seen that coming. I’ve never seen anything like what he did this season,” Koerner said. “We don’t play at a home-run friendly field at all. Really, 10 would’ve been a high number for me this year. I couldn’t believe he got to 18.”

The tremendous improvement is a testament to Tunink’s work ethic and willingness to take hard coaching.

“He likes to be coached, that’s one thing you learn from Brendan when you’re around him. Nobody works harder; he’s here early, he stays late, he hits at night when we’re not here,” Koerner said. “He likes to be coached, he’s talked a number of times about he wants to be pushed, and we were really hard on him this year. And he’s so humble. There were some times during the season where we had to remind him, ‘You’re the best player on the field. You are. I know you made one out in the last game, but you are the best player on the field, keep your head with it.’ It was a special season, and one that I don’t know if you could rival too many times across the state or country when you look at those numbers.

“It was just an amazing season.”

Over the last three seasons, Tunink has been at the center of a historic run for Newman baseball. From 2021 to 2023, the Comets made three straight Elite 8 appearances. In 2023, they finally broke through the supersectional barrier, defeating Chicago Hope Academy 3-2 at Rivets Stadium in Rockford to qualify for state for the first time.

“It’s been super special,” Tunink said. “Being part of history for Newman, people are going to see your name for however long Newman stays alive, so it’s really special to be a part of it.”

In each of the past three seasons, the Comets found themselves on the precipice of the state tournament. This year, they finally made it – not necessarily because they were the most talented team of the last three years, but because they held each other to a higher standard and became more close-knit.

“I think it was us coming together more, and practices were a lot harder, and we could bond more. We were tougher on each other,” Tunink said. “Coaches were tougher this year than the past two years. We always had really good talent, but this year, I wouldn’t say we had the best talent we’ve had in the past three years, but I think we were tougher on each other, and we had a goal this year to make it. So I think that helped a lot to really be tough on each other and become more of a family.”

During that three-year run, Tunink got plenty of support on the field, especially from seniors Kyle Wolfe, Nolan Britt and Jaesen Johns. Whenever he got down or frustrated, they were always there to pick him up.

“I learned a lot from them, especially keeping my cool. They helped me calm down when I wasn’t doing the best. They helped me stay focused, locked in,” Tunink said. “And they helped with fielding a bunch to make me calm on the mound, so I don’t get really mad at the teammates if they do something.”

Looking ahead to next year, Tunink should have plenty of support in his senior season as well. With five fellow starters slated to return from the third-place run – freshmen Garet Wolfe and Garrett Matznick, sophomores Joe Oswalt and Daniel Kelly, and junior Isaiah Williams – the Comets have a lot to be excited about in 2024. The underclassmen’s big-game experience should be invaluable for years to come.

“They helped a lot this year. They definitely will help next year,” Tunink said about the underclassmen. “We’ve got a couple more sophomores and freshmen that couldn’t play because of the transfer, so they’ll help even more, too. Our expectations are pretty high. We’re going to 2A, so it might be a little harder, but our conference is 2A, so it’s not like we haven’t seen the pitching and how they play before. So I think we have a pretty good shot to do something next year.”