Joe Yager
Baseball (1992-1994)
Led NJCAA in Strikeouts in 1994, Chiefs’ record 18 strikeouts in a game
First Team All-Region and First Team All-Skyway Conference in 1994
Waubonsee Male Athlete of the Year in 1994 and Fab-40 Alumnus in 2007
Motivation. For each of us it is something different. For Joe Yager it was simply to prove the naysayers wrong. A kid from the proverbial ‘wrong side of the tracks’ in Urbana, Illinois, he was repeatedly told he would never amount to anything. Cut from the baseball team several times, Yager eventually played just 14 innings his senior year. He then tried out for the Parkland College team and got cut once again. Despite that, he boldly promoted himself to Waubonsee and head coach Dave Randall, who saw something in Yager that so many others had not, potential. “He’s the guy who exemplifies the mission of a community college. He overcame financial issues, his family structure, and athletic set-backs to become an outstanding citizen and a great alumnus,” declares Randall.
With unparalleled drive and determination, Yager eventually increased his pitching velocity from the upper 70’s to 90 miles per hour. By his sophomore year he had blossomed into a premier junior college pitcher, leading the NJCAA in strikeouts. The right-hander was named All-Region IV First Team and All-Conference First Team, was the starting pitcher for the Region IV All-Star game, and was tabbed Waubonsee’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1994. That same year Yager even filled in for Dave Hejtmanek’s wrestling team, nearly qualifying for Nationals. Yager holds the Chiefs’ record for most strikeouts in a game with 18, and finished 7th in career strikeouts at Waubonsee with 131 strikeouts in 125 innings pitched.
Yager took a baseball scholarship to NCAA Division II Lincoln Memorial University in Tennessee before transferring to Upper Iowa University for his senior season. He earned All-Conference honors and the attention of professional scouts, while helping Upper Iowa to an NCAA Division III World Series berth. However, an arm injury just a week before the Major League Baseball draft ended his hopes of playing professionally. “Success is not just about money and fame. I had no hope, no future. But then I got an education. Waubonsee gave me a chance when no one else would,” says Yager.
Yager went on to earn a bachelor’s of science degree in Kinesiology from Upper Iowa. As a certified personal trainer the last 12 years, Yager has worked with professional baseball and football players, NCAA Division I and elite high school athletes through his company Perform Everyday. He got back on the field too, playing Class ‘A’ level USSSA Softball tournaments across the country the last eight years, winning three National Titles and earning All-Tournament status. As a motivational speaker, Yager has shared his story at numerous college’s, high schools and junior high schools. He has coached youth baseball, worked camps at the University of Illinois for a decade, and operated his own baseball camp for 10 years with former Major Leaguer Lou Collier. Yager was tabbed one of Waubonsee’s Fab-40 graduates in 2007. He has also taught high school Physical Education and Health at a foster care facility, mentoring and doing youth counseling. “I just want to give kids the same chances that I had,” explains Yager. These days that alone is enough motivation for Yager.