SIDEBAR: Lance Salsgiver '06

“You don’t see many kids at Harvard get off the plane in a T-shirt with the ‘Runs Like A Deere’ slogan,” Joe Walsh says of freshman Lance Salsgiver. Salsgiver’s showing up in a lawn mower shirt speaks to his general ebullience, but only begins to hint at his game.

“Runs Like a Deere” is a good start. He’s stolen eight bases on eight attempts so far. But he’s also hitting .347 through 19 games, and could play right field—as he has so far—or the middle infield, and he may pitch down the road. The shirt says lawn mower, but the game screams all-terrain vehicle.

Right now, that terrain includes leadoff and the outfield. Given Salsgiver’s versatility, that could change, but his importance to the team remains the same.