Brandon Chung: Buoyant Baseball Batter

When reflecting on his introductions to baseball at Hopkins, he recalled, “My first experience with Hopkins baseball was in seventh grade with Coach [Elliot] Faust and Coach [Joshua] Young. I enjoyed games with my future 

Varsity teammates including Nolan Brant ’22 and Matt Spenner ‘22. J-school baseball was just pure fun.”

Now that he has reached a leadership position within the team, his responsibilities include leading off-the-field activities. He said his extra commitments this year are “creating a team store, making sure everyone gets the correct gear, team dinners, and establishing a strong team culture.” O’Connell said “Brandon always leads from the front” and “keeps everyone in check, offers supportive advice, and constantly motivates others.”

Chung plays the outfield, and described himself as “aggressive, fast, and energetic.” Head Coach Rocco DeMaio called Chung “an aggressive style of player and power hitter,” and recalled,“He had some huge clutch hits his sophomore year and we hope to see some of that magic this season.” O’Connell said,“Brandon plays the game by utilizing his strength, speed, and experience.” 

While describing Chung’s offseason training, O’Connell said “Brandon practically lives in the weightroom enhancing his strength and conditioning skills, and when you pair these features with over a decade of baseball experience, you receive a really well-rounded ball player.” Seluga described Chung’s style of play as “physical. Brandon’s a big beefy boy and runs very fast (60 meters in 6.6 seconds as he notes to us every practice).”

Chung is known for his passionate and energetic leadership style. He said “I like to be vocal and get the team engaged at all times during our games and practices.” O’Connell said that Chung “brings a load of exciting energy to the team as a captain. Brandon’s voice can always be heard whether we’re in the batting cage or on the diamond.” Teammate Eli Balkan ‘24 said, “[Chung’s] play style and leadership style are very aggressive and passionate. He brings a ton of energy and gets loud.” DeMaio noted that Chung “is very vocal, loud and high energy.” He also recalled, “He was out sick last week for two days and the energy and enthusiasm in practice was very noticeably missing.” When asked to describe the energy Chung brings to the team, Seluga simply said “Loud.” He also noted that “[Chung’s] emphatic “let’s go boys” is so iconic to the team that we placed bets on how many times he’d say it over the spring break trip (27).”

Speaking about the season ahead, Chung said “Team goals of course are to win the FAA title and have fun and enjoy ourselves.” He continued “My personal goal is to make the first team FAA, put up some strong hitting numbers, enjoy and reflect on my time at Hopkins and my memories playing baseball for Hopkins, and establish a stronger, harder working team culture than in years previous.”

Chung will continue his baseball career next year, playing in the outfield for Grinnell College.