BRUCE WELLER

Bruce Weller knows how to wait.

He didn't have to wait to play; the center fielder played regularly right from the start of his freshman season. He never had to wait for success, he batted over .290 every year. And he never waited around on the basepaths; he set Harvard's career and single-season records for runs scored.

But what Weller did best was wait, wait and wait some more...for his pitch. The leadoff batter knew his job was to get on base, and he did. Last year the Rutland, Mass. native set the school's single season walks record (47 in just 36 games). This year he drew 39 free passes while batting 372. More than half the times number eight stepped up to the plate this year, he became a baserunner.

The best leadoff hitter I've ever coached," says Crimson mentor Alex Nahigian, who has spent the past quarter century coaching college baseball.

He's got to be the most consistent ballplayer I've ever played with," says pitching ace Charlie Marchese.

Weller did it all, in the field and off the field, as captaian of one of the best teams in Harvard history. He led a squad with seven freshmen and just two seniors to a 28-6 record, an Eastern League championship, a Greater Boston League title and third place in the Northeast.

"He's probably the quietest leader I've ever been involved with," Marchese adds. "I've never seen more clutch performances by one individual."

In the first game of the Northeast Regional, Weller went four for four and scored three runs. He led off the game with a triple. In Harvard's biggest win of the year--a 6-5, 11-inning victory at Yale. Weller's two-out, game-tying triple in the seventh kept the Crimson alive. His RBI single won the game.

"I think most players enjoy getting up in clutch situations." Weller says. "I know I always have."

He handled those clutch situations incredibly well this year, adding power to his arsenal. As a junior, he hit one home run: this year he belted live.

For awhile, at least, his baseball career is over. Weller starts his job June 25 at Providence's Fleet National Bank. "I'm probably done, retired, over the hill," he joked. Harvard baseball "is something I'm definitely going to miss," he adds. "Every game was fun."