By JOHN BOHNENKAMP
Owen Oreskovich had a theme with his hitters that worked well in Mount Mercy’s run to the NAIA national baseball tournament this spring.
Oreskovich is bringing that theme with him as he begins his third summer as manager of the Burlington Bees.
The Bees open the Prospect League season on Tuesday on the road against the Clinton LumberKings and then open the home schedule on Wednesday against the Alton River Dragons at Community Field.
Most of the Bees’ 34-player roster arrived over the weekend and Oreskovich spent Sunday and Monday getting to know his team.
The one thing he does know is how he’s going to approach his players, and it is what worked at Mount Mercy.
“One of the things we talked about with the hitters, and you could always hear it in the dugout, was ‘being you,’” he said Monday. “We mean, ‘Be you,’ by being the type of baseball player you are. Know who you are. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. And that’s kind of the theme we took this year. Don’t try to do too much — if you’ve got runners in scoring position, do what you can do to get them in.
“‘Being you’ was a giant thing that worked with our guys, and I plan on integrating that in the future. And I’ve talked about it with the guys here — I want you to come here, play hard, compete, have the will to win, but at the end of the day be you.”
Oreskovich has taken a sort of hands-off approach with the Bees’ players during the last two summers — recommend some alterations if he sees something mechanical, but most of all it’s been about the players getting experience against the summer competition.
“I’m not here to change them,” he said. “I’m not going to change who you are. Maybe recommend some tweaks here and there, but I’m not going to change them.”
The biggest challenge, Oreskovich said, is putting together a roster, but as the Bees and the league gain a reputation with college coaches, it helps in finding players.
“Most (college) coaches know about the league,” Oreskovich said. “The word’s going around Iowa, especially with Clinton and this team, that this is an extremely competitive league. I want to win, and I want guys who are going to come here and compete.
“Being in my third year, I’ve got some coaches who know me now and know I treat their guys right, know I expect a lot out of them. I’ve had some kids here have good summers, go on to new schools, and it’s been good for them.”
Seven players on the roster have played with the Bees in the past.
“It helps in the clubhouse,” Oreskovich said. “You can have some cohesiveness there. But it’s huge to have guys back. They know what we expect and how we go about the game.
“Everyone says, ‘Well, it’s just summer ball.’ Well, yeah, in a way. But you’ve still got to go about your business and learn. You can learn from everybody. I still learn as a coach today. You can never have too much knowledge in baseball. You can learn from someone every day.”
Oreskovich says his approach hasn’t changed over the last couple of years.
“I’m not here to change you,” he said. “I’m going to make sure you work. But just be who you are.”
Photo: Bees manager Owen Oreskovich (left) laughs during the team’s Community Basket Day scrimmage last summer. Oreskovich, back for his third season as the team’s manager, leads his team into Tuesday’s Prospect League opener at Clinton. (Steve Cirinna/Burlington Bees)
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