A year that nearly wasn't: Iowa's Ryan Erickson thriving in bounce-back season

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — A hard-earned mixture of dirt, sweat and who knows what else encircles the gold, block-lettered “I”, giving the black cap a grimy, brownish-green tint that stands out among its peers.

Ryan Erickson’s hat has been through the ringer — and it has a story to tell.

It starts almost three years ago with a simple email begging for a tryout, the result of a rediscovered baseball passion after a season off. Eventually, the hat began to rack up heavy mileage as Erickson progressed through the Hawkeye baseball ranks, gaining more and more responsibility with each passing season. The run nearly ended last year, but Iowa’s southpaw senior knew he couldn’t close things out in demoralizing fashion.

So Erickson and his cap returned for one final year.

“This has been my hat for three years, and I’ve worn it every weekend,” Erickson said. “I probably have like four or five new black hats, but they’re in the closet right now.

“This hat will be with me forever.”

Erickson penned the latest chapter Friday, tossing 7 2/3 scoreless frames as the Hawkeyes upended Nebraska, 2-0, to advance to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals. One day after the Iowa bats picked up a struggling Nick Gallagher, Erickson piloted through the regular-season champ’s potent lineup without a blemish.

It took a month before the senior left-hander cracked Rick Heller’s weekend rotation —Erickson’ first start this season didn’t arrive until March 17 at Kansas State — but he’s provided the necessary stability to help keep Iowa’s injury-riddled pitching staff afloat.

"He’s pitched extremely well for us all season long," Heller said. “He stepped up when C.J. Eldred went down the first weekend. We were already down arms that we thought would be weekend arms, and then we lose our No. 2 guy. … Things looked pretty dire.

“But Ryan stepped in and filled that hole for us.”

Multiple scenarios nearly prevented this final surge from happening. After a frustrating 2016 campaign that saw Erickson drop from solidified MLB draft pick to a beaten-up reliever with a lofty ERA, the thought of calling baseball off was heavily considered —despite having one year of eligibility remaining.

Erickson was almost finished with his computer science degree. Maybe this was the realization every athlete eventually faces.

“I was like, ‘What do I do?’” Erickson said. “It was very frustrating. I had a lot of questions.”

An eye-popping performance on this same Big Ten Tournament stage ultimately cemented Erickson’s decision. His numbers that day certainly jumped off the page.

In the worst way possible.

With the Hawkeyes one win away from their second straight regional berth following a riveting tourney run, Erickson entered in the fourth inning of Iowa’s title-game bout with Ohio State. He had a four-run cushion to work with.

Then…

Single.

Single.

Double.

Single.

Single.

Only one out sandwiched in between.

All five runners scored. Iowa eventually fell, 8-7.

“I just felt like I let the whole state of Iowa and my teammates down,” Erickson said. "We were this close — had a great run. Our hitters were just going off.

"And I came in, and they just destroyed me. I didn’t want that to be my last outing as a Hawkeye.”

So Erickson pulled his baseball cap back out, embraced the sting and trekked back to work. Nothing new for a player who had to lobby just to get a walk-on tryout as a junior, after Erickson left the Johnson County baseball program in 2013 and spent his first year at Iowa as just a regular college student.

He eventually clawed his way onto the 2015 squad and thrived as a left-handed arm with a low-to-mid 90s fastball, going 4-1 with a 2.79 ERA in 18 relief outings. Professional offers soon emerged — but Erickson ultimately opted to stay, hoping to amp things up in 2016 and then bounce to the draft.

It didn’t unfold as planned. Opportunity, though, soon sprouted.

With Eldred already lost for the year and Gallagher battling some early-season arm issues, Heller desperately needed some rotation assistance. Erickson was strong at Kansas State — he yielded two runs over 5 2/3 — and never left. After Friday’s riveting performance, the Mason City native’s 2.96 ERA is tops among Hawkeye starters.

And Iowa certainly needed it. Facing the Big Ten’s regular-season champ with a potential doubleheader looming, a quality start was the most feasible route to a Hawkeye win. Erickson scattered 12 baserunners over 7 2/3 — but never surrendered the monumental blow.

“Ryan shut it down completely,” said teammate Chris Whelan, who provided an early boost with a third-inning homer. “It gave us supreme confidence up there, even at the plate. We didn’t put up a ton of runs, but we were all confident that Ryan was going to get it done.”

Erickson’s next step is to be determined. The MLB draft is still an option after a resurgent season, but the real world could also come calling. Either way, he’s content with one thing.

That he came back — and decided to add more wear-and-tear to that rugged cap.

“Coming back,” he said, “was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”

Dargan Southard covers preps, recruiting, Iowa and UNI athletics for the Iowa City Press-Citizen, The Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.