EAU CLAIRE - Persistence paid off for Garrett Brewer.

“I kept emailing them and one time they called back,” Brewer said of Michigan State, where the Berrien Springs senior recently committed. “We talked and I had a tournament that weekend and they came to watch. They said they were interested and came to see me again two weeks later to watch me pitch in Indianapolis. They offered two weeks after that.”

The fifth-rated senior left-handed pitcher in Michigan obviously made an impression on the coaches at the Big 10 school.

“They said I had a good frame, my mechanics are good and that I do a lot of things right,” the 6-1 170-pound southpaw said.

Admittedly, up until MSU entered the picture there was some uncertainty about his college future, with an offer on the table from Kellogg along with talks with Valparaiso and Wayne State.

“I didn’t have a freshman year because of Covid and sophomore year I didn’t think I was going to go anywhere big, I wasn’t throwing hard,” Brewer reflected. “But I started working hard. In the winter of 2021 I started going to the gym and getting my legs bigger and my velocity went up.”

The numbers show that, with a 73-75 mile-an-hour fastball at the end of 2020 reaching 91 during the 2022 high school season.

“When I was younger I played shortstop, but at age 10 I started pitching,” Brewer related. “I was just a normal kid, not throwing hard, but I was taller than most. Once I got in high school I started focusing on pitching.

“As a kid, college was a dream but I never thought I’d make it. I wanted to go into trades. But freshman year travel ball is when I started thinking I wanted to do this.”

Things soon began to accelerate.

“I started sending emails at the beginning of baseball season and I went to the PBR Trials at Eastern Michigan,” the 39th-ranked 2023 in the state noted. “Then I went to the PBR nationals in Georgia and that’s when it really took off.”

To have an opportunity to pitch at Michigan State is special in the eyes of Brewer.

“This means a lot,” Brewer said. “I come from a small town and there aren’t a lot that go on to D-I. There were a couple of football players but none with baseball for a while, so this is pretty awesome.”

Brewer, who turned 18 on Sept. 14, had high praise for his future college home.

“Michigan State has always been the school I wanted to go to,” Brewer explained. “They have one of the best ag programs in the country and that’s what I want to major in. I love their campus life and the coaching staff. They’re helpful, they’re nice and they’re good at developing players.”

A 3.1 student at Berrien Springs, Brewer is ready to make a splash at the university in East Lansing while majoring in agricultural business.

“I’ll bring a lot of energy to the program,” Brewer said. “I have a strong, reliable arm and I think I can help fill a relief spot.”

The feeling of being a D-I commit is exceptional.

“It’s like a dream come true,” Brewer pointed out. “Sophomore year people kept telling me I wasn’t throwing hard enough so I used that for motivation. That’s when I hit the gym. When I got the call from (assistant) coach (Graham) Sikes it made it all worth it.”

In less than a year, Brewer will be at college a little more than two hours away from his home in Eau Claire.

“I’m looking forward to being able to throw in college against the top-tier teams in the Big 10,” Brewer concluded. “It’s going to be a lot of fun practicing with all the guys and traveling with them.”