On June 8, 2000, Colin Brackeen started his third game for the St. Paul Saints. It was a Thursday night match-up against the Duluth Dukes in front of a sell-out crowd of 6,382 in Midway Stadium. Sometime in the fourth inning Brackeen knew something was wrong with his arm, but he kept on throwing.

He didn't know it, but he had just torn a ligament in his elbow. He didn't know it, but if he wanted to throw again he would have to have Tommy John surgery and undergo extensive rehab. He didn't know it, but the Saints would release him following the game.

"I've always had a very competitive nature and I acted kinda stupid when I injured it," said Brackeen. "I kept throwing. It was hard to put the ball down. I don't think I hurt [my elbow] any more, but the coaches had seen enough. It was horrible."

After four years of hopping around from team to team, Brackeen had to make a choice. If he underwent surgery on his left elbow, he would be forced to undergo nine months of rehabilitation before he could throw again. If he didn't have the procedure done, Brackeen wouldn't even be able to play catch.

"I had to think about it for a long time," said Brackeen. "But after thinking it over, I decided to get it fixed. Even if it turned out badly, I could someday still throw with my kids." While under the knife, the doctors made three incisions near Brackeen's left wrist, borrowing ligaments to reinforce the elbow.

With his first down time since leaving St. Olaf in the spring of 1997, Brackeen called St. Olaf Baseball Coach Matt McDonald to see if he could help out with the baseball program. "In late November I found out about Colin's injury and he expressed interest in coming back to school," said McDonald. "I jumped at the chance to get him involved with our program." Brackeen returned to the classroom to finish his degree and joined fellow alum Charlie Brookins as pitching coaches for the Oles.

"We have the strongest coaching staff in the MIAC. It's not all me though. I've come in on a gold mine of experience and young pitchers," said Brackeen. "Matt has built a strong baseball program on the field and around campus."

Brackeen has tried to bring his competitiveness and experience to the Oles. After four years of minor league baseball, Brackeen feels like an authority on mechanics and the mental approach to the game. "I try to keep a light attitude on the field, but remind them to keep their composure and stay in control. That's one of my mature points. On the field I was always strictly business. You've got to stay focused on what you are doing."

One of the biggest problems for pitchers at Mark Almlie Field is the almost constant wind gusting over the left field fence. "[The wind] is in every pitcher's mind, but you need to use it as an advantage," said Brackeen. "It's a tough wind, but it can make your movement that much more nasty. With the winds going, you know it's going to be a high score. There are two approaches to it: ŒGod this is horrible' or ŒI can aim further out, use the wind and my curve will move another six inches.'"

The team has enough coaches this year to allow McDonald to focus on the big picture. Assistant coaches Sean Goldsworthy and Chris Schwartz focus on the infielders and outfielders respectively, while Brackeen and Brookins watch pitchers and catchers. All of the individual attention has helped the Oles to their 12-2 start in the MIAC.

Relying on just two pitches, Brackeen was a strikeout artist while in college. Throwing a fastball that was consistently clocked at 87 mph, paired with a slider that he could spot for strikes, Brackeen led all Division-III pitchers with 14.1 strikeouts per nine innings his senior year. Attracting attention from around the country with his impressive statistics, Brackeen was named third team All-American.

"He's been the most dominating pitcher to come through St. Olaf since I got here in 1986, and although I can't speak for Dimmer's [former head coach Jim Dimick] teams, maybe ever," said McDonald.

By June, Brackeen had drawn enough interest that the Toronto Blue Jays selected him in the 15th round of the amateur draft. He was assigned to a rookie team in Medicine Hat, Alberta. "It was out in the sticks, but there wasn't much to do so there were a lot of fans at the ballpark every night," Brackeen said. As a closer he posted solid numbers and kept his ERA under 2.00, earning him a year-end promotion to an advanced Class A team, Dunedin.

At the start of the next season Toronto assigned Brackeen back down to a middle Class A team and he battled throughout the season finishing with a 3.80 ERA. "As the year came to a close I became the low man on the totem pole," said Brackeen. "But I kept working hard and became one of their go to guys during the playoffs."

Two weeks after the end of the season the phone rang and Brackeen learned that he had been released by the Blue Jays. After talking to his agent, Brackeen packed his car and drove 35 hours south to Florida for a try-out with the Marlins. And while the Marlins didn't bite, a scout for the St. Paul Saints did. "I couldn't believe it," said Brackeen. "I drive 35 hours south and end up playing for a team five minutes from my house."

Despite all the time spent in buses, lousy motels, and in rehab, Brackeen has no reason to be upset. "I got to be a kid for another four years," said Brackeen. "If I'm still a little immature today it's because of that. Brent Larsen asked me one day how old I was. When I told him that I was 26, he couldn't believe it."

Brackeen is almost done with his rehab and is excited for his upcoming season. Taking advantage of his extra time this spring, Brackeen has added a change-up to his arsenal. "I definitely need it. For a lot of pitchers with the Saints it's their best pitch," said Brackeen. "When I was at St. Olaf I could blow it [his fastball] by guys and then spot my slider for strikeouts."

For the start of the summer, Brookins has talked Brackeen into playing for Hastings' town ball team, with the hope he'll be ready to pitch for the Saints in mid-June.

"Someone once told me that as long as you're left handed and have a pulse, you've got a place in the bigs," said Brackeen. "While it's not quite that easy, by mid-June I'll see if the Saints need a lefty. We're kinda rare."