COLUMBUS – If Ohio State Buckeyes baseball coach Bob Todd had a shopping list, Justin Myers would be item No.

Wednesday, November 22, 2000

COLUMBUS – If Ohio State Buckeyes baseball coach Bob Todd had a shopping list, Justin Myers would be item No. 1.

Okay, cross item No. 1 off and put it in the cupboard.

That first item on Todd’s shopping – or recruiting, if you prefer – list was Symmes Valley Vikings senior righthanded pitcher Justin Myers. Todd made his purchase Monday when Myers signed a national letter-of-intent to play next fall for the Buckeyes.

"Justin Myers was definitely one of our top priorities," Todd said. "I told him, and I firmly believe, that he’s one of the best pitchers in the state if not the best. We could lose as many as four or five pitchers off our staff, so it was a need. And because of his ability, he was a priority for us."

Myers, a 6-foot-5 senior who has been clocked at 91 miles an hour, has logged 62 innings in each of the past two seasons and has racked up 220 strikeouts including 122 last year.

He has a 1.29 earned run average and 15-3 record during that span with 53 walks and 59 hits allowed. He has 16 complete games and has yielded just one home run.

"We really like the potential arm strength. It’s a big jump from high school or American Legion to Division I college, but I certainly think he has the potential. That’s why we recruited him," Todd said.

Recruiting potential is something Todd has done well since his arrival at Ohio State. Since taking over the program in 1988, Ohio State has had the eighth winningest program in the country.

One of the reasons for the Buckeyes success is the weight training program which Todd said should help bring out the additional ability in Myers’ right arm. The program was formulated by Tim Maxey, the former Portsmouth Notre Dame and Shawnee State University standout.

"We have a great strength and conditioning program. It was set up by my former assistant Tim Maxey who is now the strength coach for the Kansas City Royals. They use it throughout their entire organization. He puts on clinics and seven or eight other major league clubs use it," Todd said.

"If Justin gets on the program, I see his potential going up and up."

Another reason Ohio State was interested in recruiting Myers was the young pitcher’s interest in attending Ohio State as opposed to other schools recruiting him such as Ohio University, Kentucky, and Cincinnati.

"With the people we recruit, we have to have people who are committed to coming here for at least three years and getting an education. We have a quality program and we want people who want to play for us," Todd said.