It has become common practice over the last five decades or so for teams at all levels of the game – high school, travel ball, college, professional – to put their players’ names on the backs of their jerseys. It’s done as a service to the fans and at the lower levels, perhaps, even the scouts and college recruiters who want to be able to readily identify “their guy.”
At some point in his still blossoming career, Dalton Dulin may have had his name stitched on the back of his uniform. If he did, it’s likely he didn’t even notice. Dulin, now a sophomore at Northwest Mississippi Community College in Senatobia, Miss., couldn’t care less about name recognition or being identified with a big-time, NCAA Division I university.
In fact, if there is any name Dulin would wear proudly across his shoulder blades, it would simply be “Ball Player.”
“I’m a baseball player,” Dulin said matter-of-factly during a telephone conversation with Perfect Game this week. “I like to get out there and do whatever I can do to help the team win; I find ways to win and that’s really the bottom line.
“I try to find ways to get on base, and then get to second and third and let somebody drive me in,” he said. “I don’t try to put too much thought into it because once you start thinking in this game you’ll get yourself in trouble.”
Dulin was a highly regarded prospect when he graduated from Memphis (Tenn.) University School in 2013, and had a scholarship from the University of Mississippi in hand to prove just how highly regarded he was. He arrived in Oxford, Miss., for his freshman year in the fall of 2013 feeling as if he was ready to compete for a starting job in the spring.
He did, in fact, start 11 games and played in 27 others for head coach Mike Bianco in 2014, hitting .264 and stealing six bases in seven attempts. Most importantly, as the season played out, it became a most memorable spring in Oxford.
The Rebels won the Southeast Conference West Division championship, the Oxford NCAA Regional championship and then beat host Louisiana Lafayette in the NCAA Super Regional to advance to the College World Series in Omaha for the first time since 1972 where they were eliminated in the semifinal round. Dulin enjoyed the run as much as any of the Rebels, but something just didn’t seem quite right.
“When I was in high school and doing the whole recruiting thing I wanted to get everything out of the way with Ole Miss, and at the time it seemed like the right thing to do,” he said. “The fans in Oxford and the support I had was great, and then I got to play in the Super Regional and go to Omaha, and that was a great experience.
“It just didn’t work out. I have aspirations of playing in the big leagues and I had to do what was best for me at the time.”
Goodbye, Oxford. Hello, Senatobia.
THE BASEBALL PROGRAM AT NORTHWEST MISSISSIPPI is affiliated with the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II and is a member of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC).
The Rangers have advanced to the NJCAA Tournament 24 times since 1976 – most recently in 2013 – and finished fourth at the 2007 NJCAA World Series; they have won seven MACJC championships since 1976, most recently in 2000. It looked like a good, solid place for Dulin to land after leaving Ole Miss.
“At the time for me, when I sat down with my family … we were just trying to do the right thing,” he said. “You have to put yourself in the best situation (to be successful), and after I knew I was going to be able to go to Northwest and play my game and do everything that I needed to do to get to the next level, it was just the right thing to do, and it’s worked out so far.”
The seven months Dulin has spent in Senatobia – which is only about 40 miles south of Dulin’s family’s home in Memphis – has been one big learning experience. He has worked closely not only with head coach Mark Carson, but with assistant coaches Bill Selby and Taylor Walker, as well.
“This opportunity came along where I could go to Northwest and play for a former big-leaguer in Coach Selby and for Coach Carson,” Dulin said. “They’ve done a great job running their program and I just felt like it was the right fit for me.”
Walker has also played a role, and in one of those strange twists, he actually played in the 2005 PG WWBA 17u National Championship with the Dulins Dodgers, the program ran by Dulin’s father, Tim Dulin. Walker, who is from Senatobia, moved on from the Dodgers to become a two-time NJCAA D-II second-team all-American at NWMCC and then enjoyed two stellar seasons playing at Southern Miss.
“We’re kind of similar players,” Dulin said, speaking about Walker. “We’re baseball players and we get out there and play; that’s just what we do. I’ve learned a lot just by keeping my mouth shut and listening to these guys … and I’ve just learned a lot this spring so far.”
Selby played parts of six seasons as an infielder in the big leagues – 1996 with the Boston Red Sox and 2000-04 with the Cleveland Indians. He has known Dulin for a long time, and has always liked what the kid has shown him. It goes back to those words “Ball Player” across Dulin’s back.
"One of the things that stands out most about Dalton – and I think anyone would agree whether it’s a scout or a coach or even another player – is he’s a throwback to being a baseball player. He is a real baseball player,” Selby told PG. “He’s a kid that you never have say, ‘I need everything you’ve got.’
“He’s a kid who shows up wanting to play, wanting to practice; wanting to work. He’s just a throwback to an old-school baseball player who wants to be out there and play the game.”
Dulin is a switch-hitter, and handles himself with confidence on both sides of the plate. Selby uses the words “high-level” and “elite” when describing him as a hitter because he understands his boundaries and is able to maximize what he can do with each at-bat.
“And he does the same thing at second base and as a baserunner,” Selby said. “All those areas are maximized because of his sheer love for playing baseball.”
Selby calls those “lost attributes” these days, something you don’t see in every young player. He sees too many projectable prospects – talented kids – that are playing the game only because they can throw hard or because everybody is telling them how good they look in a uniform. When he looks at Dulin, he sees just the opposite.
And that is why, to Selby’s way of thinking, Dulin has been such a great fit at Northwest Mississippi. After spending a year at an elite NCAA Division I school, playing for a team that had its season end in the semifinals of the NCAA Division I College World Series, he could have arrived in Senatobia acting like the king of hill, maybe even pretentious enough to feel like somebody owed him something. Selby saw none of that.
“He came in day one as a leader, and he didn’t lead because he screamed and hollered,” Selby said. “He led by the example he set in all those areas (that are important), whether it would be showing up for practice and busting his tail or when we’re playing ballgames, hitting groundballs back to the pitcher and beating them out. Everything he did just spoke of leadership.”
BASEBALL HAS ALWAYS BEEN A BIG PART OF DULIN’S LIFE. He was at 17 Perfect Game events between 2008 – when he was 14 years old – and 2013. Most of the events were PG WWBA and PG BCS tournaments playing with the Dulins Dodgers, the travel ball organization Tim Dulin founded in 1990. (Tim Dulin also operates Dulins Baseball, an indoor training facility for baseball, softball and overall conditioning).
Dalton played in the heavily scouted PG WWBA World Championship with the Dodgers three times (2010, ’11, ’12), was at the PG Junior National Showcase in 2011 and the PG National Showcase in 2012. He also performed at the Area Code Games twice (2011-12) and was at the 2012 East Coast Professional Showcase.
“The way we looked at it with the guys we put together for the Dulins Dodgers, we’d get through our high school season and as soon as that was done, everybody was ready to get to the Perfect Game events and get to the World Wood Bat (tournaments),” he said.
“The whole situation of going out there and playing in those events was huge with all the college and pro scouts coming out, and just going out there and playing baseball and letting them watch us do our thing. That was great.”
The Philadelphia Phillies selected Dulin in the 36th round of the 2013 MLB amateur draft and he did give some consideration to signing professionally at that time. He and his parents sat down with the Phillies and tried to get a deal done before the deadline, but the parties just couldn’t reach an agreement.
It is certainly worth noting that Dulin is a graduate of Memphis University School, a college preparatory independent day school for boys where he carried a 3.20 GPA at a school known for its academic excellence. After high school, Dulin really wanted to experience college.
“I obviously want to play in the big leagues, but academics is a big part of my life,” he said. “I’m going to need that later because I have aspirations of running my own company one day, and (education) plays a huge part in that.”
That emphasis on education doesn’t surprise Selby because he’s always been impressed with Dulin’s maturity. Dulin is a little old for his school grade – he had just turned 19 when he graduated from high school and will be 21 in May – and his maturity has a way of rubbing off on his teammates.
“There’s more of a radiation effect that he has on our program than just being a high-level second baseman and a high-level base-stealer and a high-level hitter,” Selby said. “He brings a lot of intangibles that he probably doesn’t even concern himself with that makes others around him better and makes our jobs at coaches easier.”
DULIN IS LISTED AT 5-FOOT-10, 175-POUNDS ON THE RANGERS’ ROSTER, and he makes the most of every inch, every pound. He has been hitting third in Rangers’ batting order this spring, and has been productive in a manner not usually associated with someone batting in the 3-hole.
He is hitting .358 (24-for-67) – tops among the team’s everyday players – with a pair of triples, six doubles, nine RBI and 13 runs scored. His calling card this spring has been stealing bases – he has stolen 26 in 28 attempts, the most successful swipes nationally in NJCAA Division II.
Hitting third in the order seems to be working out just fine for Dulin, especially with power bat Clay Casey hitting cleanup behind him. Casey, another top high school prospect who originally signed with Ole Miss, is hitting .324 with four home runs, four doubles and 13 RBI.
“I’m comfortable there, and when Clay came to Northwest with me, we’ve been able to provide a one-two punch that is pretty good here,” Dulin said. “The main thing is, I’ve had to adjust a little bit more to off-speed pitches. I’m getting a lot of changeups and curveball that I normally hadn’t been seeing, especially in hitters’ counts. They’re not just going to five me fastballs to drive all day.”
Jim Crawford – known to everyone in baseball simply as “Crawdaddy – is a longtime major league scout in the Chicago Cubs organization. He lives in Madison, Miss., and has been scouting – and signing – Dulins Dodgers players for the last 25 years; he’s been watching Dalton Dulin play since the youngster was 14 years old.
Crawdaddy hasn’t had the opportunity to see Dulin play at Northwest Mississippi because he suffered a stroke and broke a hip last May and is still rehabbing at home. He hopes to get back out soon – “I’m still with the Cubs, as far as I know; they keep sending me a check,” he told PG with a chuckle – and would love to see Dulin play this spring.
“He’s worked awful hard to build up his body,” Crawdaddy said. “He’s got good speed and his feet work (well) at second base, and he hits from both sides. He’s what I call a rat. With his daddy owning that facility, he’s worked hard at making himself into a player. … He’s got the work ethic to be a big-leaguer someday.”
The Rangers are a little more than halfway through their regular season schedule and went into the weekend at 13-8 overall and 6-4 in the MACJC. They will have to do well in both the MACJC state playoffs and state tournament in order to reach the NCJAA postseason.
Once the season is over, Dulin will allow himself to start thinking seriously about the upcoming MLB June Amateur First-Year Player Draft. He has done everything in his power to impress the decision-makers and playing professionally – imagine, getting paid for doing something that is so much fun – has always been one of the driving forces in his life.
“Every year I’m working toward the draft; I’m excited for June,” Dulin said. “But at the same time I’ve got to go up there and just slow everything down and keep playing like I’ve been playing. I also realize how big my education is for me, and I’ve been in touch with Vanderbilt the last couple of weeks.
“Right now, it’s the middle of the season and I’m going out there and playing, and that’s just the way it is.” That name on his back? It says “Ball Player.”