As the Brewers can tell you, left-handed hitters are sometimes hard to come by. Ben Yaucher was one of the more valued senior lefties in the state of Wisconsin. Although Yaucher got the attention of some D1 programs, Yaucher is going to take the Community College route to start his collegiate career.

If Yaucher knows anything about baseball, he knows about getting off to a good start. He prepared a little bit extra each day to prepare for an upcoming game and did a little extra before the game itself to get himself in the right mindset. "Every game day I get to school at 7 A.M. to hit for about a half an hour. Before each game I listen to Lil' Wayne because his music gets me energized and ready to go."

Yaucher and his teammates at Janesville Craig didn't get to taste victory at the State Tournament this season, but he can reflect on an outstanding 2008 campaign. He hit nearly .500 for the season, and had an OBP of nearly .600. In addition, he was the 2008 Big 8 Player of the Year. He will also be at the WBCA All-Star game in late June.

Several schools watched Yaucher, debating whether to make offers to Janesville Craig's left-handed Pitcher/Outfielder. He garnered interest from West Virginia, Central Connecticut State, and Cleveland State, among others. "Ultimately, I chose a Junior College," Yaucher said, "because I wanted to develop my game even more than I already have; I felt attending a JUCO would help me with that." There were three of them from Iowa alone hoping to reel Yaucher in. Iowa Western CC ended up winning the battle. "I chose Iowa Western CC because they have a winning tradition," Yaucher said. "They have been to the D1 JUCO World Series 3 of the past 4 years. I liked the coaching staff a lot also. I felt very comfortable on my visit."

Yaucher is indeed joining a solid program. They were 54-12 last season under Coach Marc Rardin. "We heard some good things...had him here at a showcase we have. He did a lot of things that were above average," Coach Rardin said. "We're gonna have high returns on him. We recruit by character, then ability. His family upbringing was outstanding."

The Reivers (which is basically a "river pirate") have some high expectations for Yaucher in the coming seasons. Coach Rardin said of him, "Being a left-handed hitter, if he puts together a good fall, I really think he could put himself on the D1 radars for the next couple years." They're looking at Yaucher to give them great at-bats every time up and do well on the basepaths. "He's not gonna be a white-collar guy, he's gonna be a blue-collar guy." The coach also looks for Yaucher to take over the every day job in Left Field and "maybe even do some Center Field duties for us."

Yaucher had one other thing to say before we finished talking with him, something which backs up Coach Rardin's comment about Yaucher's character. "I would like to thank my parents and coaches for putting in a lot of time and effort to help make me better, whether it was sending me to a camp or throwing an extra round of BP."