Mercyhurst ace from Freeport looks for landing spot for final college baseball season

May 17—Jarrett Heilman graduated from Mercyhurst on May 11, closing out four years of academic studies at the Erie university.

The Freeport product, who also fashioned a standout three-year collegiate pitching tenure with the Lakers baseball team, now is searching for a place to conclude that career with one year of eligibility remaining after taking a medical redshirt this spring while recovering from elbow surgery.

"I have decided to enter the transfer portal, and my teammates and coaches have been super supportive," said Heilman, the 2023 PSAC West Pitcher of the Year.

"It was cool to see that they really wanted what was best for me. I am grateful for Mercyhurst baseball and the opportunities they gave me to put some numbers behind my name. I am excited for the opportunities yet to come. My Mercyhurst career is done, but it was an incredible experience."

Heilman, who also is looking for a solid master's program, said he should have a decision finalized on where he will go within the next couple of weeks.

"I didn't know what to expect going into (the transfer portal process), but luckily some teammates prepared me for what to expect at each step," he said. "I picked their brains about it and asked them their experiences."

Heilman's 2023 season ended prematurely when he felt something give way in his elbow while pitching against Seton Hill in the last conference series before the playoffs.

"I threw a slider and instantly felt it go," he said. "I knew what it was whenever it happened, but I just said that I was going to go until I got hit too hard or the coach thought it was time for me to leave the game. There was just so much on the line. I ended up finishing the game."

He ended up surrendering just four hits and one walk while striking out four in the 5-0 complete-game victory over the Griffins.

The injury, however, forced him to miss the Division II Atlantic Region tournament, and it ultimately ended his season.

Heilman's impressive stats for the 2023 season included a 1.38 ERA, the third lowest in Division II.

Additional season awards included selection to a pair of Division II All-America teams: the American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings first team and the National College Baseball Writers Association third team.

But while he received those accolades, Heilman knew that he most likely was going to have to have the dreaded UCL replacement, more commonly known as Tommy John surgery.

Many times, pitchers who have that surgery will miss a year or more of game action while recovering.

"Going into the PSAC tournament, people were wondering why I didn't throw Game 1," Heilman said. "At the time, I was still throwing to see if I could work it out to see if I can throw at all. I gave the coaches updates every day. I said it didn't feel right, but it was progressing. The training staff was doing whatever it could to help me be able to throw. I didn't tell anybody that I thought it was a UCL. I was alluding to it just being a forearm muscle issue."

Heilman wasn't on the active roster for the regional tournament, and more people, he said, called and texted asking what was going on.

"I got it checked out and was given a handful of opinions," he said. "They all concluded it was, in fact, a torn UCL. I got an MRI, and the rest is history."

Heilman had surgery in July, and the recovery began.

"My doctors told me nine to 12 months, and that it could go even longer than that," Heilman said.

When January and early February rolled around, anticipation for his senior season led to a number of organizations placing Heilman on preseason All-America lists.

"All of the (Tommy John) recoveries are pretty unique," Heilman said. "Whenever I was talking about nine months, I was being pretty optimistic that I could throw (in the 2024 season), maybe be ready for PSAC play. I feel I am ready to go in a game for the team when I can throw 100 competitive pitches. That number normally equates to a complete game or going deep in a game. I could tell I wasn't going to be ready, and the feel for all my pitches wasn't there. So, we just decided that getting a redshirt was the best way to go where I would be ready for next year."

Without Heilman's services, Mercyhurst finished 21-20 overall and 18-10 in the PSAC. The Lakers fell to West Chester, 8-7, on May 8 in the first round of the conference tournament. West Chester went on to win the tournament title.

Heilman, who graduated last weekend, said it was tough being at the field for practices and games and not being able to be out there with his teammates.

"But being there also was a beneficial experience because I developed a better relationship with many of my teammates and the coaches," he said. "They all were so supportive of me and my recovery. They made sure I knew that they understood my situation and how it was important not to rush anything. Once I was able to accept that, it was a smooth process.

"It also was good to be able to see the game from a different point of view. I learned a lot more about the game, for sure."

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.