Fetching the fun: Playing with dog leads to change in Kevin Kopps' career

Before Kevin Kopps was a Triple-A reliever for El Paso in the San Diego Padres organization, before he was the 2021 NCAA player of the year for Arkansas, before he put himself on the cusp of the Major Leagues, he was on the cusp of the abyss.

He pitched 11 innings for the Razorbacks as a junior in 2020 before COVID shut it down. He had an 8.18 earned-run average, and he wasn't even sure he was wanted back for a senior year. Kopps was, but he had to figure something out quickly.

He figured he was doing too much figuring. Kopps came to that revelation while playing fetch with his dog.

"Baseball is mental," said Kopps, whose El Paso Chihuahuas are in the middle of a six-game homestand against Albuquerque. "As baseball players, we're constantly searching to be better, and a lot of times, we fail.

"All that searching had led me to fail so I just went back to simple things like, 'How would I throw if I wasn't thinking how to be better. What is the real Kevin? What is the Kevin that God intended me to be?' Not somebody I'm looking up to or trying to be.

"I was playing fetch with my dog and I was like, 'That's my natural arm stroke.' I ran with it. I didn't have anywhere else to go, I couldn't keep doing what I'd been doing so I thought I'd try that."

Here's how the playing fetch approach worked in 2021 for Arkansas: a 12–1 win-loss record with an NCAA-best 0.90 ERA and 11 saves in 89 2/3 innings. He was the SEC pitcher of the year, the Collegiate Baseball national player of the year, and the winner of the Golden Spikes Award, which goes to the NCAA's best player.

"That year felt like a hug from God," Kopps said. "I was in a rough spot, I was calling out to Him. It didn't just change my trajectory in baseball but in life, keeping my focus on God no matter the situation and trusting his plan, even if I can't see it."

Since making the career-changing adjustment, his trajectory has been upward. After graduating from Arkansas with a degree in biomedical engineering, Kopps was a third-round pick by the Padres in 2021 and worked his way from Single-A to Double-A. Then, late last year, he got called up to El Paso.

He's making that adjustment now. He went into July 4 with a 6.31 earned-run average in 35 2/3 innings pitched.

"The experience has been good," Kopps said. "I've learned a lot, I feel like there's a lot to learn at every level. You have to figure out how the game has changed, continue to grow and not give in to those hard times that come because they do come.

"It's going well. I've had a lot of good learning experiences that every career needs. I had a lot in college, a lot in high school and I need to continue to learn and continue to grow."

As for what he brings to the mound: "My strengths are my offspeed and my sinker," he said. "I'd say my strengths are reading the game as it's going and understanding what I need to do to help us win the game."

That's something Kopps has honed after making the move from starter to reliever in college.

"The transition was easy," he said. "I like the adrenaline spike coming out of the bullpen and not having to think, 'I need to get through so many innings.' Just take it one batter at a time and keep going."

That's a mindset he began adopting that fateful day while playing fetch with his dog. He is now one stop away from his ultimate dream of making it to San Diego.

"I try not to think about the future, where I should be, because I feel like every time I make plans, God has different plans," Kopps said. "I try to look for the path that He makes clear."

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Fetching the fun: Playing with dog leads to change in Kevin Kopps' career