Iowa City High senior Cade Obermueller may face dilemma: College baseball or go pro?
IOWA CITY — Former big-league pitcher Wes Obermueller stands on the pitching mound of Iowa City High School’s baseball field at Mercer Park between games of a doubleheader on June 27 and gets it ready for Game 2 against rival Iowa City West.
As Obermueller drags dirt from side to side, his son, Cade, a left-handed pitcher for the Little Hawks, stands intently by his side chewing on sunflower seeds.
“He gets very particular of his landing spot,” Wes said. “So, he comes and kind of keeps an eyeball on it.”
Everything needs to be perfect when Cade is pitching. After all, there’s a lot on the line. Cade is not just trying to pitch his team to a state championship this season. Every time he’s on the hill, there’s always an audience.
Up to 10 scouts from Major League Baseball teams will sometimes sit behind home plate with radar guns aimed at him so they can track all his throws this season.
“I don’t get too nervous at all about the scouts,” Cade said. “I just kind of let it happen.”
A lot is happening for Cade right now. The senior southpaw is one of the best pitchers in the state, but he has much room to grow. As he matures physically, he could be an even bigger star. So while he polishes off his final high school season, pro scouts are keeping close tabs on him, possibly more than any high school player in the state, as they decide whether or not to select him in the MLB Draft which takes place July 17-19.
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Cade becomes a pitcher … but not like his dad
When Cade was around 2-years-old, Wes got him his first glove. Wes, a pitcher himself, figured Cade was a right-hander like him. The glove had Cade's name etched in it and was for a righty. But when Wes handed him the glove, Cade continually took it off, put it on his other hand and began throwing left-handed. Wes figured Cade didn't understand what he was doing and kept trying to put it back on the correct hand.
But Cade kept taking it off.
"I was like, 'Alright, I'm not going to fight it anymore,'" Wes said.
Like that, Cade became a lefty. Even though they were different pitchers, Cade and Wes were alike in a lot of ways, especially in their development. Wes flew under the radar during most his high school and college career. The Iowa native attended Kirkwood Community College as an outfielder and then transferred to Iowa, where he played the infield before going back to the outfield.
Wes, who pitched off and on during his first three seasons of college, didn't pick up interest until late in his career. Early in his senior season at Iowa, he squared off against Ben Sheets, an elite pitching prospect playing for Northeast Louisiana. The scouts came to see Sheets. But when Wes started throwing fastballs in the mid-90s, they turned some of their attention to him. Wes was drafted in the second round of the 1999 draft and went on to play parts of five seasons in the big-leagues with the Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers and Florida Marlins.
Just like his dad, Cade was a late bloomer as well. Pitching didn't come easy for him. When Cade was younger, he could rarely find the strike zone. Wes said he was often the last person used on his teams to pitch. It wasn't uncommon for him to hit as many as four batters an outing, even early in high school.
"He was just wild," Wes said.
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But Wes sensed there was pitching potential in Cade, who picked up a lot of the knowledge and even the training habits his father had during his professional days. The two went with an old-school approach. Instead of using plyometrics and weighted and medicine balls, Wes and Cade mostly steered away from them. The two also did lots of their throwing at the family farm Wes's parents have in Vinton. Wes and Cade would go there to do some farming. They'd jump in a combine or tractor.
But when they weren't farming, they were throwing.
"He always used to tell me stories about how he would throw out there," Cade said.
The approach paid off for Cade who grew and got stronger. And as he got a better understanding of his long and lengthy body and what it could do on the mound, he started throwing strikes and throwing harder. During his junior season, Cade began hitting the high 80s with his fastball. When Cade pitched in the team's substate championship game at Ottumwa, his adrenaline took him to new heights, with him hitting 90 for the first time.
"I couldn't have guessed it," Cade said.
Turns out, there was more in the tank.
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Cade gets more velocity — and more attention
Like his dad, Cade wasn't on the radar of most college and pro teams early in his high school career. He checked in at 135 pounds during his junior year. But as soon as he touched 90, everything changed. With that body type and that velocity, college coaches and pro scouts understood his potential.
If Cade filled out, there could be even more to his fastball.
Turns out, they were right. Cade hit the weight room hard in the off-season leading up to his senior season and added muscle. He shot up to around 6-feet tall and checked in about 152 pounds. And like he hoped, more velocity came.
Cade said he's hit 93 this season and could be just scratching the surface if another growth spurt comes. Wes, who didn't stop growing until he was a sophomore in college, expects the same thing to happen to Cade. And once he gets into a college weight room, his body should transform more. And that could lead to even more velocity.
"I got up to 6-3, 6-2 and a half," We said. "But I graduated (high school) at 5-11 as well. He's go size 12 feet. I didn't have 12 feet until I could play … at junior college."
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All that potential could make into a potentially prized pitcher down the road. He's already committed to playing baseball next season for the Hawkeyes, just like his father. But Cade is also drawing plenty of pro interest.
City High skipper Brian Mitchell said as many as 10 scouts have been at some of Cade's outings this season. There's so much attention that Mitchell has tried to pitch him every Monday so they can plan their trips in advance to see him throw.
Cade has impressed them with a dominating senior season. Through his first eight outings this season, Cade has compiled a 1.58 ERA with 71 strikeouts in 35.1 innings. He's walked just 24 hitters. Opponents have hit just .098 against him.
"He dominates every time he's out," Mitchell said. "He's got such movement. There's hardly ever contact against him."
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That's why Cade may have a tough choice to make later this month. With MLB teams following his every move, Cade could be selected in this month's draft. Or he could go to college and try to improve his stock for the draft. Because of his birthday, he's eligible again as a sophomore.
Cade said he'd like to go to college but nothing has been decided. The family has hired an advisor to help them through the process. But Cade insists he isn't worried about any of that right now.
"I've kind of been letting that take its own course," Cade said.
Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He's the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468. Follow him on Twitter @TommyBirch.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa high school pitcher Cade Obermueller's dilemma: College or pro?
