Immeasurable impact: Austin baseball player has been uplifting to the team – Austin Daily Herald

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Austin senior Cody Petersen has served as a leader and a mentor for the Packer baseball team. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com

Austin’s Cody Petersen makes a throw from third base in the Packer Dome Wednesday. Rocky Hulne/sports@austindailyherald.com

Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a big difference.

It is the first week of baseball practice and Austin senior Cody Petersen is already agreeing to give a younger teammate a ride home. Petersen has never hit a home run or pitched a perfect game, but he has delivered behind the scenes in a big way for the Packers, and he’ll be one of the core leaders this spring for a team that graduated a bulk of its lineup. Austin head baseball coach Jacob Nelson said that Petersen has already gone out of his way to welcome the freshmen to the program.

“Cody is always in a good mood. He’s always happy and he’s always uplifting,” Nelson said. “He doesn’t just care about baseball, he cares about his teammates. He cares about them as people. He’s very genuine and he lives his life with a lot of integrity. He doesn’t just say it, he does it.”

While baseball is a sport that is dictated by numbers such as batting averages and ERAs, there is not a single statistic that can measure the impact of a player like Petersen, who won the Teammate of the Year Award each of the last two seasons for Austin.

“My role is to make sure everyone stays positive. I’m not the best guy out there, but I try to teach (my teammates) a few things here and there,” Petersen said. “The important thing overall is to focus on becoming a better person. You can be an amazing baseball player, but if you’re not picking your teammates up or being a good person, then it doesn’t matter.”

Petersen began playing baseball with his dad and his older brother around the time he learned to walk. By the time he was five-years old, he was playing tee ball and there were about 30 kids in his grade playing. Now there are just two seniors on the Austin baseball team. 

While he hasn’t received big varsity playing time yet, Petersen has stuck with baseball for his love of the game and his teammates. He’s also big on faith and he has made it his mission to lead the team prayer in the C squad, JV and varsity games before the first pitch every time the team competes.

“The most important thing is to stay positive in life,” Petersen said. “You may have a down day or a bad day, but staying positive is the best way to do it. Even if you have an off day, you’re still loved by Jesus.”

Petersen usually plays third base, but he’s willing to play whatever position his coaches ask him to. He said that’s the attitude all players should have.

Petersen is a PSEO student at Riverland Community College and he will finish his Associate’s Degree this spring. He has plans of going into the radiology program in the fall.

Playing baseball and hockey over the winter has kept Petersen in touch with many of his peers at AHS.

“Sports have meant so much to me,” Petersen said. “When I’m able to come back and see my high school buddies, all that stress goes away. If you need to take your mind off something, sports are the best way to do it.”

Austin is scheduled to open its season at Rochester John Marshall at 5 p.m. on April 3 and it is scheduled to host Rochester Mayo at noon on April 5.

Petersen is hoping that a good season is on the horizon.

“We’ve had some amazing young talent and everyone’s getting better each day,” he said. “I’ve gotten to know a  lot of the new guys and they’re becoming my friends. I think this year we’ll have great success.”