By Connor O’Chuida
Growing up, Bobby Spencer had two passions: baseball and science.
Like his parents, he has long been a Washington Nationals fan. Spencer grew up in Bowie, Maryland, in a family of baseball fanatics. All spring and summer, a Nats game was on TV in the Spencer household.
As a child, even before he was old enough to play baseball, Spencer had a glove in hand, hoping to get invited into the neighborhood game. He eventually did. Spencer wanted to play the game as much as possible. When he was not playing baseball, he was thinking about it. When he was sleeping, he was dreaming about it. He tried all the various positions to see which he liked the most and, more importantly, which he was best at playing. Spencer decided that he would be a pitcher and designated hitter. He absolutely loved the feeling he had on the mound.
Spencer became interested in sports science out of necessity. He suffered an ulnar nerve injury in his elbow during his junior year of high school. His teammates also suffered a variety of everyday injuries—nothing major, but he was interested to learn more about what had happened. Could these injuries have been prevented? What would help them heal?
Eventually, Spencer realized he could combine his two passions. He committed to Xavier University in 2019. During his injury-filled freshman season, he spent significant time in the trainer’s room. While there, he discovered the care that the athletic training staff took in helping athletes stay healthy. He found himself interested in the work they did.
“When I knew more about the sports medicine staff and the recovery process, I fell in love with what they were doing and how they were helping athletes feel better physically,” Spencer said.
Spencer asked the training staff if there was a major called exercise science, since biomedical sciences was not working for him and his future plans. In fall 2020, he declared a major in exercise science, a blend of his two passions.
Spencer transferred to Harford Community College after the 2021 spring season. His goal was to be noticed by professional baseball scouts, but that wasn’t easy at a community college. He focused on learning the ins and outs of his courses like kinesiology, anatomy, physiology and nutrition. During his two-year tenure at HCC, he became focused on exercise science and how it relates to baseball. He learned how to move each part of his body in ways that would give him the best ability while avoiding injury.
As a pitcher, an ulnar nerve injury is complicated, since the elbow is so important in the delivery.
He found himself digging further into every intricate detail involved with his ulnar nerve inflammation and how it worked. He wanted to get back to throwing, but he wasn’t sure how easy that would be. He tried physical therapy and resting his arm.
“I have always been able to look at my movements on the field in completely unique ways,” said Spencer, a redshirt junior. “I take better care of my body.”
Derrick Newman, a senior who came to Towson from Lackawanna College, is in the unique position of knowing Bobby as an opponent and a teammate on the Towson baseball team. Newman stopped playing in fall 2023 for medical reasons but has fond memories of playing with Spencer.
“Going up against Bobby was like trying to solve a puzzle,” Newman said. “He could throw all kinds of pitches and put them right where he wanted.”
Newman described Spencer’s pitching style as “simple but effective.” He noticed that Spencer could move his body in a safe and productive way.
“Bobby was a tough opponent because he could pitch and play the infield equally well,” Newman said. “He moved around smoothly like a natural athlete… He was a force on the mound, whether he pitched one inning or five. Playing with him was always enjoyable because he knew how to control the game.”
Spencer is working toward a degree in exercise science at Towson.
“I always strive to do anything that will keep me from getting injured so I knew I would want to help athletes like me in the future,” he said.
Some of the professions that he is focusing on are athletic trainer, sport psychologist, strength and conditioning coaching or a team dietician.
He finds his major so closely related to his goal of working with baseball in some fashion.
“It’s really helped me know more about the human body and how it ticks,” Spencer said. “I know more about what I should eat, how much rest I need to get, when to work out and when to recover…when and how to listen to my body, when it’s in pain or feeling fatigued.”
Studying exercise science has helped Spencer with his own injuries and rehabilitation.
Whether his future is in baseball or helping athletes, he believes he can excel at either.
“I know it in my heart. I’ve got this,” he said.