Grant's Stroup headed for NIU

It's all about pitching.

Kyle Stroup has been showing off his 90-mph-plus fastball about twice a week since the start of the high school baseball season in the spring.

After putting together an all-conference season for Grant, the strapping right-hander spent the summer playing for three teams and traveling to places such as Charleston, S.C., Atlanta and Cincinnati.

On Sunday, he pitches in Madison, Wis., for another team called the Midwest Blazers.

"My arm's holding up," assured Stroup, who's limited to 90 pitches or 6 innings, whichever comes first.

When he isn't pitching, Stroup lets others pitch to him.

Northern Illinois pitched its DeKalb university and baseball program to Stroup, and on Thursday he accepted the Huskies' offer.

"It's close to home so my parents can watch me," said Stroup, the youngest of five kids of Terry and Gina Swanner. "It was just a good fit all-around. Plus, I have a good relationship with the coach (Ed Mathey)."

There's a chance, however, that Stroup might not pitch for NIU. He's leaving open the possibility of being drafted next June and signing a pro contract if it's the right offer.

The Philadelphia Phillies, in fact, plan on visiting the Stroup house next month.

At 6-feet-5 and 235 pounds, with a fastball that's been clocked at 94 mph this summer, Stroup figures to draw the attention of a lot of major league teams. He usually hits 91-92 mph on the radar gun and his repertoire also includes a curve, slider and split-finger.

"It all depends on what I get," Stroup said of whether he would opt out of his verbal commitment to NIU to sign a major-league contract, if he's drafted next year.

Stroup might not be done growing either. He won't turn 18 until March.

"I'm supposed to get up to 6-8," he said.

Stroup chose NIU over Indiana State and said he also had scholarship offers on the table from Illinois, Iowa, Charleston Southern, Louisiana Lafayette, Mississippi State and South Florida.

"When I committed (Thursday), it took so much stress off my back," Stroup said.

"Now I can pitch for my team and not the scouts."

Stroup's team-first attitude was apparent this summer when he declined an invitation to the prestigious Area Code Games in California.

"I was really bummed about that," he said. "I really wanted to go to Area Code, but it was our (Midwest Stars) team's first big tournament of the summer, and my team comes first. I didn't want to let my team down."