Hanover Central senior third baseman Aidan Creasbaum has taken another step in his fourth season as a starter.
In baseball, it’s an important one. The Valparaiso recruit no longer fears failure.
“I’ve gotten a lot stronger mentally, and being able to handle failure a lot better has been a big thing for me,” Creasbaum said. “That’s where my strong suit was over the offseason.
“You get in the big moments and games, and it’s different when you’re younger. But over the offseason, it was just working hard and realizing that you can’t succeed every time. That was a big thing for me.”
That has been a big thing for Hanover Central too. Creasbaum was batting .343 with two homers, a team-high 30 RBIs, 21 runs scored and six stolen bases before the Wildcats (16-9, 8-3), who are ranked No. 8 in the Class 3A state coaches poll, played No. 1 Andrean in a Northwest Crossroads Conference series on Monday and Tuesday.
Nic Sampognaro, a 2011 Hanover Central graduate and former assistant in his first full season as coach, appreciates Creasbaum’s evolution.
“We have middle school baseball here, so I’ve known him since he’s about 12, 13,” Sampognaro said. “So it’s been really fun to watch him grow. He’s been a good leader, especially on the field and at practices.
“He’s gone from being kind of a fun, goofy kid — he’s still a fun kid — to being able to lock in and have a good year so far.”
Creasbaum has embraced that leadership role along with teammates like senior shortstop Dylan Bowen, an Oklahoma State recruit, and senior pitcher Matt Cook, an Evansville recruit.
“I like that we have our core three guys that we’ve had the last four years, and with a lot of young guys we’ve had come in, it’s helped a lot,” Creasbaum said. “It’s a really good place to be.”
Creasbaum wasn’t in such a good place several years ago. He suffered an elbow injury in seventh grade and couldn’t play for a year and a half. That experience is one reason he’s considering becoming a physical therapist.
“That was rough,” he said. “My tendons blew my elbow apart because I was growing too fast for my body. I had pins put in for a while.
“I was bigger for my body, so the tendons were too tight, and with the pressure from throwing over time, it just took it apart. The tendons tore the bone in half. It was completely split. It was an unfortunate thing. It definitely taught me about mental toughness as well.”
Creasbaum, whose younger brother Gage is a junior second baseman and pitcher for the Wildcats, aims to end his high school career on a high note. He can draw inspiration from his older sister Mikayla, who reached two Class 4A state championship games at Lake Central, first as a freshman in 2018 and then as the starting third baseman in 2021, and later played at Eastern Illinois.
“We just want to stay together and have fun,” Creasbaum said. “That’s kind of my biggest goal. But obviously the state championship, that’s the big one.”
Creasbaum has also been trying to savor the moments along the way.
“Just kind of taking it slow, one game at a time, because I don’t have that many left, so just doing what I’m supposed to do for the team, helping out everywhere I can,” he said. “Just kind of giving the young guys someone to look up to other than just a baseball player, and trying to be a role model this year.
“I got that feeling in the winter, in the middle of the winter after break, when things finally got started up, and once we stepped on the field for the first time, I realized this is the last go-around.”
But Hanover Central senior pitcher Jacob Siska, a South Suburban recruit, knows Creasbaum can look forward to much more.
“I’ve shared a lot of memories with him throughout my high school career on and off the field,” Siska said. “He’s very professional around parents and people. He’s a good kid with a bright future ahead of him.”
Valparaiso coach Brian Schmack agrees.
“Strength and athleticism that plays at the college level — Aidan checks both of those boxes,” Schmack said in a news release. “He can play all over the infield, and his hitting ability is going to help bolster our lineup.
“Aidan is an uber confident competitor who enjoys playing the game. We are excited to bring him into our family.”
