In the spring of 2022, head baseball coach Billy Uberti appointed then-sophomore outfielder Bryan Baumann a captain for their upcoming season. This was the first time an underclassman was selected by Uberti and the first time for the program since third baseman Bobby Stachura (’13) in 2011.
Baumann has since guided the program forward through three highly productive seasons, building a legacy.
“It’s definitely a huge honor especially because that year we voted for our captain,” Baumann said. “A lot of guys had like trust and faith in me and they wanted me to be in a position of power, to kind of be that bridge between them and the coaches.”
A major challenge as a leader early on was connecting with and leading a group of upper-classmen. Despite large first-year and sophomore classes, the team still had eight players who were a junior or older, three being graduate students using the first year of extra COVID eligibility, and most of that group played regularly.
“I have respect for a lot of those guys. They have a lot of respect for me…I still looked up to them, just based on experience and how long they've been a part of the program,” Baumann said. “It definitely helped set the culture, and those guys created the culture and we kind of embodied it and just rolled with it.”
Baumann admits things have gotten easier with time and experience, now a senior with three classes looking up to him. “I definitely had some times where I put the foot down a little too hard and was maybe a little too tough on the guys. I think now I've gotten a little better, like realizing when you need to put that foot down,” Baumann said. “I'm definitely not the easiest person to follow or to look up to, but a lot of the guys have taken to it pretty easily and allowed me to kind of be myself, and it's made the team a lot better.”
Assistant coach Matt Sammarco, a coach Baumann has developed a strong relationship with, remarked that Baumann isn’t like most college students or athletes and that was evident early in his collegiate career.
“Is he the best baseball player Lasell has ever seen? I don't know. But he is the best competitor I've seen in a very, very long time,” Sammarco said. “Everything that he does, he wants to be the best. If he's lifting, if we're doing any kind of drills, playing a video game, academics, you know, his work. He has this fire that you don't see too often.”
A lingering question for Baumann is his potential return to the Lasers’ side in 2025. With his first year falling in the 2020-21 season, Baumann still has one more season of athletic eligibility. According to Baumann, his decision to return to graduate school will depend on his opportunities in law enforcement.
Sammarco noted the unprecedented situation that could develop in a Baumann return, a four-year collegiate captain. “But at the end of the day, like whichever team he's on next year, ours or whatever department, they're very lucky to have him,” Sammarco said. “He's going to go down as definitely one of the best captains, best leaders Lasell has ever seen. He goes about it in a unique way for sure.”
Whether you look at the three years served as captain, his more than 115 career hits, or the team’s growth into a Great Northeast Athletic Conference contender, Baumann has left an indelible mark on the program during his undergraduate career.