OXFORD | When Derek Diamond left the mound on March 8 after five innings of two-run work against Princeton, the next task was supposed to be a series finale against LSU the following week — the start of what his teammates had told him was the "real season."
Instead, Diamond, who was Ole Miss’ No. 3 starter the four weeks before play was halted because of COVID-19, traveled back to California by that following weekend and wouldn’t see a mound in a live game for four months.
The wait ended on Sunday, as he threw two innings for the Fond du Lac (Wisconsin) Dock Spiders of the Northwoods League. After just 20.2 innings in those four weeks as a freshman for the Rebels, the goal this summer is to compile as many appearances as possible and work toward next season.
“We were doing something special, and it was ripped away from us,” Diamond said about the college baseball season halting with the Rebels 16-1. “The plan was to throw a full season in Oxford and then hit all summer in a league in California but instead they got me in the Northwoods League, and it’s a great opportunity. It’s a prestigious league with a lot of high-major players, and I can work on some things.”
While many of the collegiate summer leagues canceled their seasons, the Northwoods League found enough host families for players, and the teams are playing a pod schedule of nearby opponents instead of a full-league slate. There’s only one off day this month, as the league attempts to cram as many games as possible into a shortened calendar. All players took COVID-19 tests, but otherwise Diamond said the league is operating normally.
Ole Miss players Justin Bench, Tim Elko and Knox Loposer are also with the Dock Spiders. It’s Elko’s season summer with the organization.
Diamond, who was a top 50 national prospect per Perfect Game out of Ramona, California, put up a 1.09 WHIP and 3.48 ERA in starts against Louisville, Xavier, Indiana and Princeton. His emphasis this summer is to continue to work on his mound position. He’d primarily worked from the far left side of the rubber before college, but Ole Miss coaches moved the right-hander to the right side of the rubber.
“It was huge for me but tough to get used to, so I’m using this time to get more comfortable with it,” Diamond said. “Throwing the slider is different because 17 inches make a big difference. I’m also working on my four-seam and throwing it inside to righties because I’d always had a bit of a whip arm motion and would throw a lot of two-seams, and I have a drill from (Mike Bianco) I like to work with on that to be better with my mechanics and use that four-seam more.”
Diamond used the months at home to work out daily with a home gym in his garage and hike most days. He said he’s in the best shape of his life and has kept his weight around 200 pounds on his 6-foot-2 frame.
Diamond doesn’t have an at-bat in Wisconsin yet but should get some opportunities to hit. He still has the goal of being a two-way player for the Rebels, but it’s’ complicated when three of the two-way possibilities are the entire starting rotation with Doug Nikhazy and Gunnar Hoglund.
“Coach Bianco doesn’t want to give us too many opportunities to bust a finger,” Diamond said.
The Rebels are expected to be a top-five team nationally when the 2021 season begins, as the bulk of the roster returns other than the left side of the infield — as Tyler Keenan and Anthony Servideo have signed with professional organizations. Servideo signed for $950,000 with Baltimore on Tuesday.
Diamond called the sudden end to the season “unreal” and the “Twilight Zone” as the plan went from no fans to postponed to canceled in 48 hours. Now there’s another wait, but at least he’s back on the mound and preparing for what’s to come next season.
"We were all so tight as a team and the no fans thing didn’t faze us and we said we’ll still kick some ass, but then it kept getting worse and no one knew what to say,” Diamond said. “We were on the bus and saw the NBA was canceled and knew things were in trouble.
“We have most people back even though Tyler and Ant are huge losses. What makes it work is the chemistry and competition. We’ll get back in the fall and we’ll have that fire and energy. We know we can’t roll the ball out there and expect to win, but we’ll put the work in. We’ll be ready to go. I’ve already started the work.”
