Joe Panik makes St. John's coach Ed Blankmeyer proud

Three years ago, Joe Panik was dominating Big East pitching. Today, the St. John's product is a world champion.

As Panik's San Francisco Giants defeated the Kansas City Royals in Game 7 of the World Series -- a game in which Panik made a diving stop to begin a critical double play -- his college coach watched with pride.

"It's an absolute thrill to be able to watch Joe in his rookie season," said Ed Blankmeyer, who coached Panik from 2009-11 and has led the Red Storm for 19 seasons. "I'm very, very happy for him because this kid is one terrific young man."

The Giants were in first place, 41/2 games ahead of the Dodgers, when Panik became the everyday second baseman on June 21. They wound up a wild-card team, six games behind the Dodgers, but Blankmeyer said, "Once they started plugging him in, they really started going."

Panik, who had 287 plate appearances, led National League rookies with a .305 batting average and was second in on-base percentage (.343). He was third among NL rookies in Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

He hit only .233 with a .273 OBP in the 2014 postseason, but he made a huge contribution in the Giants' 3-2 victory in Game 7 of the World Series.

With the score 2-2 in the third inning and the Royals' Lorenzo Cain on first with a leadoff single, Eric Hosmer hit a grounder to Panik's right that had the potential to put runners on first and third. Instead, Panik made a diving backhand stop and flipped the ball with his glove to shortstop Brandon Crawford, who turned a double play.

"I was telling myself just to get to the ball, kind of knock it down and try to get one [out]," Panik told Comcast SportsNet. "Never even thought about two, but instincts told me to use the glove because I couldn't get my bare hand to it. It was just instinctual."

Said Blankmeyer, "To me, that was the key to the game. If that ball gets through, the game was over."

In Panik's three seasons with the Red Storm, he posted a .370/.474/.597 slash line.

"He came in a freshman with a maturity beyond his years, with a plan, a work ethic and a serious desire to get better," Blankmeyer said of the Giants' No. 2 hitter, who turned 24 on Thursday, a day after Game 7. "That was unique for a freshman coming in, similar to what you're seeing with the Giants. He was a rookie but he played like a veteran and had the respect of a veteran. He earned the job and became an integral part of his team as a freshman."

Panik, who was born in Yonkers and played high school ball for John Jay in upstate East Fishkill, hit .322/.426/.513 as a St. John's freshman. He improved to .374/.477/.621 in his second year, finishing ninth in the Big East in on-base plus slugging percentage and leading St. John's to a Big East title and trip to the regional finals.

"Each year he got better," Blankmeyer said. "He trained hard. Physically he developed and got quicker and a little more athletic."

This improvement culminated in a stellar junior year. Although collegiate offense on the whole declined as a result of new bats that performed more like wooden bats than their aluminum predecessors, Panik's numbers continued to improve.

In the 2011 season, the Big East's overall batting average dropped from .303 in 2010 to .274. The conference's slugging percentage fell from .453 to .378. But Panik led the conference in batting average (.398), on-base percentage (.509) and OPS (1.150) and had a .642 slugging percentage, leading St. John's back to the regionals.

After his junior year, the Giants selected Panik with the 29th pick in the 2011 draft.

"He's a regular Joe,'' Blankmeyer said, adding that he keeps in contact with Panik via text message. "He's an outstanding player, no doubt, but he was never bigger than the team.''

Blankmeyer also said he has no doubt that Panik has what it takes to sustain his big-league success.

"He's not going to rest on his laurels,'' he said. "He's a baseball player. He knows what he needs to do to maintain his success. I know he's going to do it."