STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Johnny Decker and
Brad Hipsley spent their freshman seasons a year ago serving as understudies.
Decker soaked in knowledge from America East Player of the Year
Nick Grande at shortstop. Hipsley learned from defensive standout
Brandon Janofsky at second base.
Now, Grande and Janofsky have graduated from the Stony Brook baseball program. And Decker and Hipsley, along with freshmen
Stanton Leuthner and
Brett Paulsen, all will be given an opportunity to step up to fill the middle-infield void for the reigning America East champs.
"They both were very good leaders on the team," Decker said. "They were great to work behind."
Decker actually received considerable action at third base as a freshman, ultimately making 28 starts at the position and appearing in 40 games overall while hitting .299 with six doubles, 14 RBIs and six stolen bases in 107 at-bats.
Hipsley saw some action at third base and also appeared at designated hitter in 2019. In 23 games (13 starts), he hit .250 with two doubles and seven RBIs in 52 at-bats.
The 6-foot-3 Decker, who hails from Coeyman's Hollow, outside of Albany in upstate New York, suggested Grande particularly helped him with the game's mental side.
Grande was drafted in the 17th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks as a junior last June and turned pro. He appeared in 44 games at the Class A level last summer, and now has retired from the sport and is back at Stony Brook to complete his undergraduate degree.
"Nick was all about how important the fundamental aspect of the game is — if you make a mistake, if you do something wrong, it's always about the next play," Decker said. "That showed up big in the championship game against Binghamton. Both of us missed plays. And we ended up making the next ones. Those were the more important ones, and it helped us win.
"I had a ball hit to my left at third base that I booted. And then there was a slow roller with a guy at third base. It was a tie game at the time. I made the play on the run."
Decker played with accomplished players in the infield at Albany Academy during his prep years. The fellow infielders in his graduating class included third baseman Brett Young, who is now playing at Virginia Commonwealth, and first baseman Ben Seiler, now a pitcher at Siena.
That group reached the Class B state championship game back in 2017 before losing on a walk-off.
As a senior, Decker was a gaudy 29-for-29 in steals while batting leadoff.
With Stony Brook as a freshman, Decker primarily found himself in the Nos. 8 and 9 slots in the batting order.
"Get on base any way possible — whether it be a bunt, hit by pitch, whatever," Decker said about his approach.
The 6-foot Hipsley, raised 50 miles north up Interstate 87 from Decker's hometown, in Saratoga Springs, similarly learned from Janofsky at second base.
"
Brandon Janofsky had one of the better gloves in the conference," Hipsley said. "He made only a few errors on the year. So that was really good to watch for me, and to pick his brain. He attacked ground balls. I remember one play, I think we were at Wagner and he made a really nice backhand play. I asked him why he backhanded that ball, because I didn't know. He said, 'I picked the better hop.'"
Hipsley primarily played shortstop at Saratoga Springs High School, but he manned third base and second base in travel ball.
As for his freshman-year adjustment to college ball, Hipsley learned to slow the game now. That and other lessons came courtesy of experience and by observing Grande and Janofsky.
"The game is a lot faster than in high school and things can speed up on you pretty quickly, so just keeping yourself in the zone and slowing things down is really important to be successful at this level," Hipsley said. "The overall experience, getting to see guys who have done it for the last three or four years, was really important."
