WESTFIELD Kevin Hummer is intent on pursuing a coaching career in baseball after graduating from college.

To that end, the Shrewsbury resident and rising senior at Western New England University has enhanced his rsum by giving private pitching lessons; interning as a regional scout and social media coordinator for Prep Baseball Report, a national scouting service; and serving as an assistant coach for a Top Prospect Showcase team.

I want to stay in baseball for as long as I can, Hummer, who is majoring in sports management and minoring in athletic coaching, said last week. I have a path lined up for me once I finish my education, but I definitely, definitely love baseball and want to continue to be in the game for as long as I can. I would love to coach in college, travel ball, anything like that.

In the meantime, Hummer will continue learning, studying and, of course, playing baseball while pitching for the Worcester Bravehearts in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League. The Bravehearts close out a three-game homestand at 4 p.m. Sunday against New Britain at Doyle Field in Leominster.

The 6-foot, 185-pound righty previously spent his summers playing for the Shrewsbury Post 397 American Legion team and the Shrewsbury Dirt Dogs of the Central New England Baseball Association before accepting an invitation to join the Bravehearts this season.

Hummers objectives as the Bravehearts pursue a third straight FCBL championship and their fifth since joining the league in 2014 are simple.

To compete, he said. Theres obviously a lot of great competition here, and make sure I get my innings in. Not having a college season really sucked, and obviously I have a lot to prove still, so hopefully I can come out here and compete and make sure Im ready for the next college season.

The early returns have been mixed as Hummer allowed five runs, seven hits and a pair of walks in two relief stints totaling 2-1/3 innings. He did record three strikeouts.

The transition back to the mound has been challenging physically.

Hummer only threw 11 innings in two games for Western New England before the season was canceled in mid-March and then, like most everyone else, had to work out on his own although throwing with dad definitely helped with gyms and fields closed.

But Bravehearts manager Alex Dion, a WNEU graduate, is confident Hummer will get untracked.

I think its there, I think Kevin has really good stuff, Dion said. Hes had success at Western New England, so hes proven he can do it at the Division 3 level.

I think its probably just working through some things and putting it all together, but another guy that I see in the middle innings being a solid reliever for us the rest of the way.

Indeed, Hummer was a Commonwealth Coast Conference first-team selection as a sophomore when he went 4-2 in eight starts with 35 strikeouts in 39 innings and a 3.46 earned run average as the Golden Bears went 23-14 and won the CCC regular-season championship.

That was the one of many successful squads for which this 2017 Shrewsbury High graduate has played.

Hummer was a Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Association all-state selection as a junior while helping the Colonials reach the Central Mass. Division 1 final, where they lost to St. Peter-Marian, 3-1. He went the distance, scattering seven hits and allowing no earned runs.

That was a tough one for sure, Hummer said. St. Peter-Marian is a great school, great competition against us. It was the first high school game I pitched on the varsity team that I lost that year. So that was definitely a heartbreaker because that was our goal the whole time, but it was a battle.

Hummer, who was called up to the varsity at the end of his sophomore season, finished with a career record of 9-2. His other loss, in another close contest, came against eventual champion Wachusett Regional in the CMass semifinals as a senior.

But a few months later, Hummer found himself representing Shrewsbury Post 397 along with Bravehearts teammates Nick Martin and Jack Gardner at the American Legion World Series in Shelby, North Carolina. The Northeast Regional champions finished fifth in the field of eight.

That was an unbelievable experience, Hummer said. Going down there, they welcomed us with that southern hospitality everybody talks about. It didnt matter where we were from, they treated us like royalty. And obviously being on ESPN was really cool.

I actually said this to Nick (Martin) the other day, how it was a very similar experience to playing for the Bravehearts with all the kids wanting our autographs. So that was really cool. It was definitely a great experience.

Contact Rich Garven at rgarven@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @RichGarvenTG.

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Bravehearts: Kevin Hummer of Shrewsbury is ready to serve the game - Worcester Telegram