It was a breakout season that ended suddenly and unceremoniously. Santa Clara sophomore Robert Hipwell was one of the key components to a 2023 Broncos club that reached the NCAA Regionals. As the spring progressed, he was positioning himself to be a top-100 MLB Draft prospect in 2024. But as his teammates made their postseason push last May, Hipwell found himself on the outside looking in thanks to a failed drug test.
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The suspension came after he tested positive for an undisclosed performance-enhancing drug toward the end of his sophomore year. He missed the final three weeks of the 2023 season — including the postseason — and the first 34 games of the 2024 season.
It was a shocking turn of events just as Hipwell was emerging as one of the West Coast Conference’s top players. In 43 games last season before the suspension, Hipwell hit .329/.500/.706 with 14 homers and a 45:42 BB:K. He went from a struggling part-time player as a freshman to a stalwart in Santa Clara’s everyday lineup.
Hipwell holds himself accountable for the failed drug test. He says the PED came from a substance in one of the pre-workout supplements he purchased over the counter. Hipwell said he took the supplement orally.
“It was all my fault because I didn’t get them checked before I took them,” he said over the phone last month. “(The drug) didn’t have any effect on me. I’ve learned my lesson, and it’ll never happen again.”
After returning to the Broncos’ lineup on April 20, Hipwell had to race to make up for the time lost in front of scouts in his draft season. He never fully found the rhythm he had in 2023, posting a .273/.442/.515 line with three homers and an 18:21 BB:K in 18 games. Hipwell is currently competing in the MLB Draft League, where he has a .306/.432/.444 line in 12 games through Monday.
Robert Hipwell scorches a 105.5 mph double back up the middle for his first @mlbdraftleague hit pic.twitter.com/6XneiPfjIn
— MLB Draft League Data (@draftleaguedata) June 27, 2024
Santa Clara head coach Rusty Filter has known Hipwell for years, dating to when Hipwell was in high school and attended the school’s summer camps. He says Hipwell always brings a positive energy and an infectious laugh wherever he goes. Filter said he could not comment on Hipwell’s suspension, but had nothing but positive things to say about the makeup of his third baseman.
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“He’s just a super young man. He’s very outgoing. He likes to see others have success,” Filter said over the phone last month. “He’s just a rare breed. It’s nice to have your better players that work really hard and pull for others.”
Hipwell played in only 15 games as a freshman, but he positioned himself to be a key contributor as a sophomore through work with the Broncos assistant coaches to develop his tools. He also solidified his approach at the plate, adopting what he termed a “split-rhythm,” which has him focused on hunting fastballs middle-middle and middle-away.
“What that does is it puts me perfectly on time with a hanging breaking ball that a pitcher might throw,” Hipwell said. “I’m very selective first pitch. A lot of the time in college, they throw a lot of first-pitch fastballs, so I’m definitely looking for the fastball first pitch, but if they hang one, I’m ready for it, too.”
Hipwell was among the top college hitters in terms of chase rate (16.7 percent) this season.
“He really bought into the plan of contact with power, versus just selling out and pulling the ball, which is what he kind of came in as,” Filter said. “As he started being comfortable, letting the ball go a little deeper, using the middle of the field, and taking his hits when necessary, everything opened up for him. It definitely was a big transformation from what he was to what he became, and it happened pretty quickly.”
Hipwell also credits the work he did with mental performance coach Brian Cain, whose Mental Mastery program is used by several college baseball teams (including Iowa, where Brody Brecht worked with Cain, as well). They spent a lot of time focusing on how to deal with failure and emphasizing the quality of at-bats rather than the results.
Focusing on process became especially important for Hipwell while he served his suspension. He says the hardest part of missing those games was not being able to help his team win on the field. He did what he could to help off the field — he was allowed to work out with the team during the week — mentoring younger players and assisting during practice.
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“It definitely wasn’t fun not playing, but coming back was the best thing in the world. And it felt like as soon as I got back, everything was back to normal,” he said. “It was a long process, but I’m happy it happened, honestly. It’s a lesson that I’ve learned and it will never happen again, because I’m very, very picky and cautious about what enters my body.”
This season, knowing he’d be able to return to the field in late April, he tried to stay sharp, though he wasn’t able to get as many live at-bats in practice as planned due to injuries that hit the Santa Clara pitching staff hard. When he returned on April 20, he immediately jumped back into the starting lineup.
He doubled twice in his season debut but it wasn’t always smooth sailing after that. He reached base safely in 16 of the 18 games he played and he posted a .442 on-base percentage, but his average dipped from .329 as a sophomore to .273 and his slugging percentage dropped from .706 to .515. All still solid numbers but not quite the standout stats of his breakout season.
Because he wasn’t able to get as many at-bats as they had planned in practice, coming off the suspension Hipwell had to use a more “see-pitch approach” than he normally would to get his timing and rhythm back.
“I wish I had been my full-season form the entire season, but it definitely took some time,” Hipwell said. “Still, it was just so much fun to be out there. The adrenaline and everything that I got when I came back was the best thing in the world.”
Now Hipwell’s focus is on the upcoming MLB Draft, where he is projected to be a Day 2 pick. A Northern California native who went to high school just outside of Santa Cruz, Hipwell grew up a San Francisco Giants fan, attending countless games at Oracle Park. They were the first team he met with at the MLB Draft Combine in Phoenix last month.
That major-league dream became a bit more tangible for Hipwell at the combine, where he participated in the on-field workouts at Chase Field. Walking out onto the diamond for the first time was unforgettable.
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“I was like, oh my God, this is just special,” he said. “I’ll always remember that moment.”
Hipwell had five recorded hits during the combine batting practice session, all of them registering between 98 and 100 mph. The left-handed hitter profiles as a top-third-of-the-order bat. He has above-average plate discipline and power to all fields.
“He really has a good idea what the strike zone is, and it’s kind of rare to see guys with power at that young age still take their walks when necessary,” Filter said.
Hipwell has average foot speed and admits he isn’t always the most graceful athlete on the field. He was the Broncos’ primary third baseman the past two seasons but has played all over the field. Filter says Hipwell “really locked down third base” for his club, but his versatility is an underrated aspect of his game.
He’s moved around in the MLB Draft League, logging time at third, second and first. Hipwell hasn’t played in the outfield in the draft league, but has some experience there with Santa Clara and one scout thought his future was in left field.
Though Hipwell’s junior season wasn’t ideal, he says he’s ready for the challenge of professional baseball.
“I really want to start my pro career, but I want to be treated fairly. That’s the big thing,” he said.
Hipwell already has one connection to the big leagues. His JV baseball coach at Scotts Valley High was Milwaukee Brewers left-hander Jared Koenig, another Santa Cruz area native who at the time was trying to find his way into affiliated baseball while pitching in independent leagues. Seeing Koenig’s unique, winding journey to the major leagues has been inspirational for Hipwell.
“Everyone has their own different path and I see how hard he works and I know that hard work can get you anywhere,” Hipwell said. “It gives me hope and makes me want to work harder because he took the rocky road to the pros. That makes me know that anything is possible with me if I work hard.”
(Photo of Robert Hipwell: Don Jedlovec / Santa Clara Athletics)
