x
Breaking News
More () »

Former Eagle baseball standout commits to the University of Miami

When it came time to start his collegiate baseball career, Eagle High School alum Kam Lane got an unexpected curveball.

EAGLE -- Two years ago, Eagle High standout Kam Lane was set begin his collegiate baseball journey. On national letter of intent day in 2015, he accepted a scholarship to play at Washington State.

But when it came time to play ball, WSU Athletic Director Bill Moos through him an unexpected curveball.

"Right before we were leaving I got call," recalled Lane. "Our coaches got fired at Washington State, the ones that recruited us."

The new staff that took over were honest with the incoming players. They conveyed to Lane directly that he was a young developmental player, that the goal was to find experienced guys who could help them win immediately.

"I respect the way they handled it a lot," said Lane. "We weren't their players and they weren't our coaches. I'm glad things worked out the way they did. It was kind of one of those things where they told us, 'you freshman aren't going to get the chance to play a lot.' So a lot of us left."

So Lane's Division I baseball dreams would take a detour through Salt Lake Community College. He would play in the Scenic West Athletic Conference, a league that required players to use wood bats instead of aluminum.

"That was one of the things about junior college that I really enjoyed, learning how to hit with a wood bat," Lane said. "Melt bats are forgiving. Your mechanics don't have to be perfect with every swing. With a wood bat you have to really square it up."

Lane proved to be a big hit at SLCC. He batted .304 with 9 home runs and 72 RBI's during his freshman and sophomore seasons.

His performance was so noticeable that a prestigous program over 2,000 miles away, was eager to make contact with him.

"It was the day after my birthday, May 22. My coach from SLCC called me and said, 'hey, Miami just called and was asking about you.' As you would expect, my reaction was kind of crazy."

Miami Hurricane Baseball is one of the most respected programs in the country. It is a program that has won four national titles in the last 34 years and participated in 44 of the last 45 NCAA National Tournaments.

"I don't think it has," replied Lane with a smile when asked if the opporuntity to play for Miami has hit him yet. "I know what to expect work-wise. The caliber of play is something I haven't seen a lot. Everybody in that conference and on that team is really, really good."

Clearly, patience paid off for Lane, and his ability to adjust to a curveball off the field means he will now be able to swing away at achieving his lifelong dreams.

"I take a lot of pride in coming from Idaho. Growing up you dream about playing at the highest level you can," Lane said. "I couldn't be more excited."

Before You Leave, Check This Out