Brayden Frazier's late-season ascension a microcosm of Iowa baseball's resiliency

OMAHA — He could've called it a career after four circuitous seasons, and everyone associated with Iowa baseball would've completely understood. Increased playing time was far from guaranteed in 2023. Academic dominance was bound to offer enticing real-world opportunities. Did Brayden Frazier really want to grind through another arduous athletic campaign?

He did.

And it's paying off way more than the Hawkeyes could've ever imagined.

The guy who's seen his playing time rise the most over Iowa's previous 10 games since top slugger Keaton Anthony exited the lineup, Frazier has delivered a quality lesson on career perseverance, the importance of leadership and remaining ready even when consistent at-bats aren't arriving.

"Brayden's just a veteran guy, and he knows what it takes every day," Iowa reliever Jack Whitlock said. "He brings it every day and brings it out of us to do the same thing — every single day, get better."

It's why things like Tuesday's monumental grand slam, which ignited Iowa's run-rule victory over Michigan to start the Big Ten Tournament, are happening. It's why Frazier is in his second year as a Hawkeyes captain, a designation not always given to role players.

It's a microcosm of why Iowa continues to roll through adversity with little sign of stopping.

"Knowing there was going to be a lot of competition going on this year, Brayden still came back for the right reasons," Iowa coach Rick Heller said after Tuesday's victory in Omaha. "He knew this year's team was a quality team and had a chance to be very special. He paid his dues. He wanted to help lead that team. It's like having another coach in the clubhouse and he's done everything we've ever asked him to do."

Reaching this productive point required a hardened mental focus that not every athlete can deliver.

After a redshirt season in 2019 and a COVID cancellation in 2020, Frazier entered his third year in the Iowa program with only 20 career at-bats. The Cedar Rapids Jefferson product made 19 starts in 2021 and 17 in 2022 as a reserve outfielder — but hit just .174 last season while other outfield pieces cemented themselves around him.

Still, Frazier didn't let sporadic playing time diminish his influence elsewhere. Earning team-captain status primarily from off-the-field importance accentuates Frazier's value to Iowa baseball even more. Pair that with two academic All-Big Ten selections — plus a Dean's List appearance in 2020 — and it had become clear Frazier was going to be a beneficial asset in whatever 2023 role fit him best.

"It's always kind of been the same thing for me," Frazier said. "I'm going to do the job when I'm in, and if I'm not in, I'm going to cheer on the guy who's in there for me. That's just been my mantra the whole time."

For Frazier, that's why returning this season was an easy call. His fifth year began in familiar, do-whatever-is-needed fashion — as Frazier made several early-season starts in right and left field, then later filled in for an injured Sam Petersen during the beginning portion of Big Ten play. But Petersen returned at the start of the Nebraska series on April 21, which forced Frazier back to the bench and left him without a start for seven consecutive games. By college baseball standards, that's a long stretch with minimal at-bats.

Then came the sports-betting investigation that Heller has alluded to being the reason why several players are sidelined, which broke over May's first weekend.

There was little time for Iowa baseball to process what just unfolded before baseball had to be played — and Frazier was the perfect weapon to handle the sudden change. He was in the lineup for Anthony on May 5 against Ohio State, just hours after the Hawkeyes found out they'd be down several pivotal pieces. Only someone who remained locked in through anything could answer the bell as swiftly and as timely as Frazier has.

Since the suspensions happened, Frazier is hitting. 467 (14-for-30) with five runs scored, seven extra-base hits (two homers, five doubles) and 11 RBIs. He's started seven of the 10 games Anthony has missed and has piled up more than 45% of his season hit total in that span.

When Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Connor O'Halloran spun Frazier a hanging slider Tuesday afternoon in a pivotal spot, this grizzled in-state veteran knew exactly what to do with it. Frazier raised his arm as the mistake pitch sailed deep into the Iowa bullpen, having just delivered the Hawkeyes' ninth grand slam of the year.

A tight affair had suddenly whipped hard in Iowa's favor, thanks again to Frazier's valued contributions.

"There's nothing greater for me than putting on this Iowa jersey and playing for the Hawkeyes, especially in a big situation like this," Frazier said. "There's nothing greater than having those fans who've traveled so long to get here, and they're cheering us on. at 10 a.m. on a Tuesday morning,. It's been a crazy ride for me, but I wouldn't change anything for the world."

A different team with a weaker culture could've wilted under Iowa's late-season adversity, leaving a promising campaign well short of earning the historical due it has rightfully earned.

The Hawkeyes and Frazier, though, haven't let it happen. His loyalty to the Iowa program is getting cashed in now more than ever before.

"I'll never be able to thank him enough for what he's done for the program," Heller said. "To see him go out and have big hits and pick up the slack and be successful — not just myself but all the coaches and all the staff couldn't be more proud of Brayden.

"And there's way more to come."

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com.