By
Maxx Wolfson
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Kaiser continues to impress teammates and coaches
As a senior at Reno High School in Reno, Nev., Marc Kaiser had options.
Option one was to join the Cincinnati Reds, the team that selected him in the third round in last year's Major League Draft. Option two was to attend Louisiana State University, a perennial powerhouse in baseball and a school that is to baseball what Duke and North Carolina are to basketball.
Option three was short-lived - to go to Arizona State.
And option four - which he eventually chose - was to become a Wildcat.
Looks like he made the right choice.
UA is nearly halfway through the Pacific 10 Conference schedule and Kaiser has quickly blossomed into the ace of the Wildcats' staff. The freshman right-hander enters tonight's game against Pac-10 opponent Washington State with a 6-3 record and a 4.12 earned run average.
Kaiser, 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, leads the team in wins, strikeouts (53) and innings pitched (67.2).
"He is our number one guy," UA head coach Jerry Stitt said. "He has done more than we expected of him as a freshman."
Kaiser, who doesn't turn 19 for another month, opted against playing professional baseball and is happy with the opportunity he has gotten with the UA.
"I really didn't expect to end up in college," he said. "I have just been taking it one game at a time."
Prior to the season, Baseball America listed Kaiser as one of the top three players to bypass the Major Leagues and enter college.
Kaiser said he chose UA (21-16 overall, 4-5 Pac-10) over LSU and ASU because he saw an opportunity to start right away.
Though he was initially penciled in as a designated hitter/third baseman, Kaiser has flourished as of late on the mound.
He threw a complete game March 30 against Oregon State in which he notched four strikeouts and allowed eight hits.
"It was a very emotional win for us," Kaiser said. "It also helped start out the series with a victory."
Being the No. 1 pitcher typically means that Kaiser has to match up against the opposing team's ace. So far this season Kaiser has been equal to, if not better than, two All-American candidates - UCLA's Josh Karp and Southern California's Mark Prior.
"It's really nice to get a chance to learn from these guys," Kaiser said. "If I want to be the best, I've got to beat the best."
David Brockman, scheduled to start Sunday against WSU (11-19), agrees.
"I think he looks forward to the challenge of being able to go against the best pitchers in the nation," Brockman said.
In today's opening game of a three-game set against the Cougars, the opposing pitcher won't be the only challenge Kaiser will have to face. He will have to also face the weather.
Temperatures are expected to be in the upper 30s with a chance of showers tonight in Pullman, Wash.
"I'm from Reno, so I'm used to the cold weather," he said.
This time, Kaiser's only option is to pitch.
