March 18, 2002
As soon as Jayce Tingler took a swing prior to stepping into the batter's box against Southwest Missouri State, he knew something was wrong. Tingler, the Tigers' leadoff hitter and center fielder, walked and then was retired on a fielder's choice as Missouri was playing SMS on May 1 of last year. At the time, one couldn't know that that would be Tingler's final appearance of the season.
Tingler suffered a tear in his triangular fibrocartilage complex and he partially tore a pair of ligaments in his right wrist. That injury forced Tingler, who had started 96 straight games for Missouri, to miss the Tigers' final seven games.
"Personally, in terms of baseball, it was one of the roughest things I've ever been through," said Tingler, who has undergone months of rehabilitation with Missouri's sports medicine and strength and conditioning staffs to get ready for the 2002 season. "I had been lucky and not had an injury up that point.
"My biggest change has been to not take things for granted anymore after being injured," continued Tingler, a junior from Smithville, Mo.
"If it's getting cold or getting late at night and I have to run out to play defense, it'll click in the back of my mind how lucky to get to come out here to run, slide and do everything I get to do out here. I remember how frustrating it was not to do the little things, like dive headfirst and things like that. I pick up my pace a little bit and be thankful for the opportunities I have."
Tingler's work ethic has him back on the field and serving as one of the Tigers' leaders again this season. After leading the team in steals and recording a batting average over .300 in both the 2000 and 2001 seasons, Tingler has higher hopes for this season.
"I want people from across the state of Missouri to know we can compete with the southern schools (in the Big 12) and we can play baseball with the best of them," he said. "I want to be in the mix of the Big 12 with something to play for in the final two weeks rather than playing for nothing like last year."
While Tingler's teammates spent the summer in various leagues across the United States, he was in the sports medicine and strength and conditioning areas. Tingler went through various drills to regain his strength and range of motion in the wrist and worked on his overall strength and quickness. In addition to running with the wide receivers and defensive backs on the Missouri football team, Tingler worked on baseball drills with Luke Cassis.
"I think I came in in my best physical condition and possibly as a better athlete, said Tingler, crediting Jeff Fish and Scott Bird of MU's strength and conditioning staff as well as Rob Hunt of the MU's sports medicine department. "I was a little behind in my baseball skills and timing but I felt I had made it up by getting stronger and possibly a step or two faster. "I was real surprised how quickly the baseball skills came back." But there was still that first at-bat in the fall.
"I was real nervous. Actually, I was just hoping to put the ball in play," said Tingler. "After the first pitch went by, it was back to feeling like every other at-bat. There always is the anticipation of 'Am I going to hit it?' but once I saw the first ball go by, I felt pretty confident. I had taken enough swings over the summer to feel pretty confident that I could go get it done on the field."
Now Tingler gets that chance again this season.