Sports Spotlight: Kyle Marquart, Foundation Academy baseball

A senior on the Foundation Academy baseball team, pitcher Kyle Marquart is in his first full season as a Lion after the 2020 season was cut short. So far this year, Marquart has picked up two wins and has struck out a team second-best 30 batters. He also has given up only one earned run.
 

When did you first get into baseball?

I started in T-ball — which is not really where I fell in love with the game, but got me introduced to it. But as I got older and I started watching the players in the MLB — seeing what they’re doing — and you’re like, “I want to do that.” And then that’s when you kind of fall in love with the game and you work hard to try to get to that level.
 

What was it about baseball that you loved so much?

My dad played in college, so he was always a big baseball guy. So when I grew up, we always had that in common. It was a good way for us to bond, and I also got to play the game, which I loved to pitch and loved to play baseball, so it was a win-win in that situation.
 

When did you first start taking pitching seriously?

About a year-and-one-half ago, I decided that’s where my heart was, so I took out six months and I trained. I worked on my mechanics, and I really just transformed myself into a pitcher, because that’s what I really love to do.
 

What has been your favorite thing about playing at Foundation the last two years?

Honestly, the team — we have so much fun. The way that we interact is kind of fun. It’s never fun when you show up to a baseball team and there’s just no chemistry and no one gets along. But you don’t see that at Foundation — it’s like a family.
 

What’s your favorite part about pitching? The most challenging part?

My favorite part about pitching is being able to control the game, because it’s all in your hands — which I like that feeling. I kind of like that feeling of being under pressure, because I feel like it kind of makes me want it more. The biggest challenge about pitching is the mental aspect — not letting things get to you. You walk a guy, so what? Move on.
 

When you have a tough game, how do you mentally get past that?

You have to forget about it, but you also have to learn from your mistakes. You have to learn what you’re doing wrong, but then you have to realize, “That’s over; you have to move on.”
 

Do you have a favorite pitch that you like to throw?

I really like my curveball. When I was learning from my coach back in New Jersey, he was showing me a curveball grip, and I thought — for whatever reason — he said grip it on the two-seam, so that’s what I started throwing. So now I have a two-seam curveball that’s a 12-6, and I love it.