Shippensburg University baseball alumnus Kiernan Higgins is a member of the State College Spikes, one of six teams competing in the newly-formed Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft League.
 
It is an exciting venture for Higgins, who was a two-time PSAC Eastern Division Pitcher of the Week in 2021 with the Raiders. Higgins won four games and finished with seventy strikeouts in 53.1 innings pitched.
 
The MLB Draft League is open to any current draft-eligible prospect – Division I, Division 2, Division 3, NAIA, Junior College and even graduating high school seniors. Prep Baseball Report (PBR) is responsible for all on-field operations of the league, including player selection and recruitment, coaches and roster management.
 
Through eight appearances, Higgins has been excellent. He has thrown 11 innings for State College and pitched to a 0.82 ERA, allowing just eight hits and one run while walking two and striking out an impressive 16 batters.
  
Our former graduate assistant Braden Treaster is working with the Spikes this summer, and he recently caught up with Kiernan for an interview.
 
Q: What's it like being in State College?
 
Higgins: "This coaching staff, being guys who have been in the bigs, or at least been through the ranks, them giving us their expertise. It's nice them giving us their spin on what we should do, shouldn't be doing, giving us whatever they can. I'm just trying to be like a sponge and absorb as much as I can."
 
"Overall it's definitely a different vibe in the locker room, at Ship a lot of our guys are all Northeastern, and here we have guys from all over the country, and we're playing against some guys from outside of the country. It's definitely a unique situation and I'm just grateful to be a part of it.
 
Q: What has it been like transitioning from a starter to a bullpen pitcher at State College?
 
Higgins: "Starting, during the year, I kind of made myself get angry when I would throw, and I've taken that to the bullpen for sure. But I've been doing it in a way where I haven't been showing as much emotion per se, but I'm using that aggression to try to be controlled with it as best as I can. It's definitely a lot different, because as a starter you have your own routine, at a certain time before the game to play catch, get as many pitches in in the bullpen, but when you're in the pen you might have one batter to get ready and get out there. That's been the biggest adjustment for me overall, but I honestly love being out of the pen, it's been a great experience so far."
 
Q: PBR, the organization that outfits the MLB Draft League, ranked you as the No. 9 pitcher in the league. What does that mean to you?
 
Higgins: "It's awesome to be recognized for that. I'm definitely appreciative of that, but there's still work to be done though. It's not an "end all, be all," and I'm not going to put too much into it, but at the same time it's grateful to be acknowledged in that respect. There are so many great arms in this league, so overall, it's something to be proud of but there's still a lot of work to be done moving forward."