Two-way talents lift Gaels’ Malm to player of year
Jeff Malm wasn’t the most prolific hitter in the state this spring. Nor was he the most polished pitcher.
But no high school baseball player in Nevada was more of a dual threat than the Bishop Gorman senior.
Malm batted .564 with an area-best 17 home runs and 69 RBIs. As a pitcher, he was 11-1 with a 1.50 ERA and 87 strikeouts in 65 1/3 innings.
Those two-way talents led to Malm’s selection as player of the year on the Review-Journal’s Class 4A all-state team.
Malm was at his best in the state tournament, during which he turned in two dominant pitching performances to help the Gaels win their fourth consecutive state title.
He pitched 9 2/3 innings in the three-day tournament, allowing two hits and striking out 19 to gain a win and a save.
“What else can you say?” Gorman coach Chris Sheff said. “The kid did it on both sides of the ball. He throws 150 pitches in a three-day tournament and pretty much dominates two clubs in two outings.”
Malm went right after hitters in the state tournament, challenging them with a fastball that touched 91 mph and was routinely in the high 80s.
“His velocity has gone up tremendously,” Sheff said. “He pretty much beat people with his fastball. He threw seven off-speed pitches
in two (state tournament) games. He got on the mound with a bulldog attitude.”
Malm was no slouch with the bat, either. He stepped into the No. 3 spot in the Gorman order as a freshman and never left, leading the
Gaels to their first four state titles. He batted .564 with seven homers and 73 RBIs as a junior.
He has committed to play at Southern California, though there’s a chance he could sign a pro contract after next week’s major league draft. Malm is ranked as the No. 59 prospect by Baseball America.
“I know his ultimate goal is to be a first baseman in the big leagues,” Sheff said.
Regardless if he reaches that goal, Malm has left his mark on Gorman’s program.
“You’re going to have good players come in and out of the program, but you can’t replace the intensity and character that Jeff Malm brings,” Sheff said. “Those are the things that you don’t replace. The will to win and the drive and just the competitiveness he had as a player and as a person, you just don’t match those things.
