By Bethany Porter

Brooks Helton is gearing up for his next season at Trevecca Nazarene University. 

The former Warren County Pioneer pitcher has enjoyed a successful transition into college life even though the pace of the game was a bit of an adjustment.

“College compared to high school is obviously a pretty big talent gap. I also think it’s worth noting the speed of the game increases. Everything gets faster and it can feel like you’ll never catch up sometimes,” said Helton.

Helton was originally going to play baseball at Faulkner University out of high school, but he got injured and was unable to compete. He had to endure Tommy John surgery, which is a total replacement and repair of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in the elbow. The surgery gets its name from baseball pitcher Tommy John, who first had the surgery in 1974.

The recovery process was rough for Helton.

“If I had to pinpoint the one single hardest moment of my career, rehabbing that surgery would’ve been it,” said Brooks.

He had to endure two-hour therapy workouts six days a week, along with returning to a throwing program that took close to 12 months.

“The whole process took about 16 months before I was healthy enough to go into a game,” said Helton.

After he recovered from his injury, he began making his mark at Trevecca. He has a career total of 24 strikeouts, averaging 9.53 strikeouts per game.

While at Trevecca, Helton and his team won the NCAA Midwest Region Championship, sending them to the 2021 NCAA Division II College World Series. 

“My favorite experience at Trevecca was no doubt the World Series. We were one of eight teams left in the country at that point and the players, fans and atmosphere was unreal,” said Helton. 

The Trojans did not end up winning the World Series, but they were the first Trevecca team to advance to the final eight. They lost 9-3 to Northwest Nazarene University. 

Helton hopes to continue his baseball career as long as he can.

“I would love to get drafted and play some pro ball,” he said. 

In the meantime he is studying electrical and computer engineering.

“Ideally I want to work on the electrical components in airplanes,” said Helton. 

Next season is right around the corner, and the Trevecca Trojan is ready for what’s coming next.