As he has for the past 16 years, Saint Vincent College graduate student TJ Dailey is playing summer baseball.

This year, however, Dailey is trading the diamonds and sandlots of southwestern Pennsylvania for stadiums across the southwestern United States.

Following a successful tryout, the five-year Saint Vincent standout was signed by the Weimar (Texas) Hormigas of the Pecos League, an independent professional baseball league with teams located in Texas, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, California and Arizona.

Dailey, a right fielder, makes the leap into the pros after a stellar 2022 season in which he batted .341 and ranked among Presidents' Athletic Conference leaders with eight home runs, 43 RBIs, 40 runs scored and a .645 slugging percentage, earning All-PAC honors for the second straight year. His presence in the middle of the lineup helped the Bearcats to a 24-14 record and the #2 seed in the PAC Championship Tournament, and while he ended his collegiate career in fine fashion, Dailey had no intentions of hanging up his cleats and glove for good.

"After the last couple of years," he said, "I thought about professional baseball. I thought I had the talent to at least give it a shot and say that I tried."

With the Bearcats' season extending into mid-May, Dailey was forced to forgo the bulk of the professional tryouts that are traditionally held across the country throughout the month of April and into early May. He continued to search for opportunities, however, and came across the Pecos League.  

"I learned about the Pecos League tryouts online," he explained. "With our season at Saint Vincent stretching out as long as it did, a lot of the tryouts for other leagues and teams had already taken place. This was one of the last ones. I just wanted to give it a shot and see what happens."

The tryout consisted of a 60-yard dash, throwing from the outfield, traditional batting practice and a 7-inning scrimmage. Dailey estimated that 15-20 players took part in the tryout, and he didn't have high hopes when the day wrapped up.

"I flew into Houston on Monday," he recalled, "did the tryout on Tuesday morning and flew right back on Tuesday night. I had no idea whether I made the team. The next morning, Wednesday, I got a call from the coach and he offered me a spot on the team."

Dailey hardly had any time to savor the news, as he was then told that he was expected to join the team in Austin, Texas, for its first game on Friday evening, meaning that he had less than 24 hours to make the trip from suburban Pittsburgh.

"My dad and I immediately packed everything up on Thursday morning and started driving. We drove all day Thursday and Friday, and then I played in my first game on Friday night in Austin. I pretty much got right out of the car and was in the starting lineup. It was crazy, but it was fun."

Not only was Dailey in the starting lineup for game one, but he smacked a solo home run in his second at-bat. A day later, he would go deep again, this time launching a grand slam.

"It was a good start," he said, modestly.

A little over a week into his new journey, Dailey is still getting acclimated to his surroundings. Instead of playing with a group of 18-22-year old college teammates, he is now surrounded by a roster comprised of players between the ages of 22 and 32 who hail from 11 different states.

"It's very diverse," said Dailey. "There are guys from all over the place. It's been really cool getting to know these guys. There are a couple of guys who played for a Division I team in college, and a lot of others played Division II and NAIA. It's cool being part of a team with them."

The biggest adjustment for Dailey – as it is for any player making the step up from college to the pros – is the step up in competition.

"Pitching is definitely a step up," he said. "We've already faced some serious pitchers. Guys are throwing in the mid-90s and hitters are definitely more advanced. There are some really good ballplayers in this league."

Along with a new and diverse group of teammates and coaches, and the highly advanced competition, Dailey is also experiencing the grind of a professional baseball schedule. The Hormigas will play 50 games in 56 days throughout six different states.

"I've never been on a schedule like this," he said, "with so many games and so much travel. It's definitely adjustment, but it's what I signed up for."

After Dailey batted .377 with 13 home runs, 18 doubles, eight triples and 76 RBIs in 70 games over his final two collegiate seasons, it wasn't a surprise to Saint Vincent head coach Mick Janosko that his pupil was afforded the opportunity to play professionally. The veteran head coach cites Dailey's drive and work ethic as the reasons for his success.

"TJ, first and foremost, deserves all the credit," said Janosko. "He transformed himself as a player. Five years ago, he came in as a primary pitcher and struggled a little bit with that. Then, we saw some progress with him offensively, and the rest is history. Once he fully committed to the outfield, he took it and ran with it. The biggest compliment I can give him is that he worked for everything he got. He earned it. There were no shortcuts. It's a credit to him. He just worked exceptionally hard. It's proof of what we tell all of our players – once you truly commit to getting better, results will show."

Janosko beamed when describing the impact that his star rightfielder had on the SVC program.

"He was huge for us. There's no question he will be extremely difficult to replace. He was such a steadfast presence in the middle of the lineup. Every time he came to the plate, it seemed like there were guys on base. You ask your middle-of-the-order hitters to drive in runs, and that's what he did. He had a tremendous last two years for us."

Dailey, meanwhile, credits his time at Saint Vincent under Janosko for preparing him for this new opportunity.

"The work ethic that Coach Janosko instilled in us, all of the hard work that we put in in the offseason, and just the consistency that he instilled in us, definitely has given me a leg up on a lot of the guys here from what I've seen," Dailey said. "And, having just recently completed the college season, I'm more baseball-ready than a lot of the other guys. The preparation and the mindset of having confidence in yourself that the coaches gave us at Saint Vincent is extremely important here at this level."

Dailey, who earned a B.S. in finance in 2021, is currently enrolled in Saint Vincent's Master of Science in Management: Operational Excellence program and while he will continue his studies in the fall, his focus is now on making the most of his new opportunity.

"I wanted to see if I could get on the team, and I did," he said. "Now, I'm just really excited to see how the season goes and see where this takes me."

And though he may no longer be Dailey's coach, Janosko offered him one last bit of instruction.

"My biggest advice for TJ is to go down there and have fun," Janosko said. "Leave nothing on the table. At the end of the day, you're the one that has to answer to yourself. Did I give everything I had? Did I put forth my best effort? If you can answer yes to both questions, you'll have no regrets.

"And knowing TJ, he won't have any regrets."