Seated with his parents Christine and Larry Hammer, Tippecanoe Valley High School senior Eric Hammer signed his national letter of intent Tuesday to play baseball at Northern Illinois University. In the back row are TVHS administrator Scott Smith, TVHS baseball coach Justin Branock, Indiana Chargers travel baseball coach Justin Barber and TVHS athletic director Duane Burkhart. (Photo by Mike Deak)

AKRON – If you blinked, you may have missed Eric Hammer’s junior baseball season at Tippecanoe Valley. But Northern Illinois saw him during the summer, and that was enough to persuade the hard-throwing lefty to sign on to become a Husky.

Hammer, who missed most of his junior season to an arm injury, signed his national letter of intent Tuesday to continue his baseball career at Northern Illinois. Playing in a summer tournament in Georgia, NIU baseball staff saw Hammer throwing for the Indiana Chargers travel baseball team and the conversations began. After a college visit this fall, the decision was made and Hammer will become the second Valley baseball player in three years to earn a Division I scholarship.

“It was the way they treated me, the way they talked to me,” Hammer said following his signing flanked by his family and baseball coaches. “I really liked the campus. The coach was coming to a lot of our travel games and doing more than what a lot of the other programs were doing. He made sure to come and talk to me, made me feel comfortable about choosing Northern.”

Hammer started the 2015 season with success, going 3-1 before suffering the arm injury. Returning from the injury to pitch in the sectional, Hammer didn’t have a good outing as Valley was soundly beaten by NorthWood in the sectional tournament. Hammer’s final season numbers had him strike out 44 and walk 21 in 27.1 innings, giving up just seven runs in his 25 innings before the injury.

At the plate, Hammer hit .279 with 19 hits and 12 RBIs with eight runs scored and two stolen bases. Hammer also becomes the latest Valley baseball player to sign a Division I letter, the last being Tanner Andrews to Purdue in 2013.

“It just made me want to work harder in the summer, because I didn’t end that season the way I wanted,” Hammer said. “I realized that arm care is very important and I started strength training a lot better than I was to make sure I don’t have that injury again.

Tippecanoe Valley baseball head coach Justin Branock feels Hammer, despite missing most of last year, has all the tools to pitch at the next level. And has some unfinished business left to attend.

“There is no doubt that in this area Hammer is one of the top arms,” Branock said. “And being a left hander, he is extremely marketable. A lefty that throws in the mid-80s is like a righty that throws in the mid-90s. You just don’t find that typically. Their ball usually runs a little more, it’s harder to hit and is deceiving. You always love having someone like that on your staff, and we’re lucky to have him another year.”

Hammer, who carries a 9.08 GPA (on a 12 scale), is ranked 39th in his class of 148 students. He is choosing to major in structural engineering with a focus on construction.

“I’ve always liked building,” Hammer said. “I started working construction with my dad since I was a freshman. I thought structural engineering was best for me. I felt that was the best decision.”