Lefthanders can sometimes seem unusual, weird or uncanny. After all, roughly only one in every 10 people is left-handed and may have difficulty using simple objects such as scissors or even a computer mouse.

But when it comes to baseball, being left-handed is considered a blessing, especially for pitchers because of the simple fact that most hurlers, just like most people, are righties. Hard-throwing high school lefties can virtually take their pick as to which college they want to attend.

Thankfully for N.C. State, freshman lefthander D.J. Thomas was a Wolfpack fan growing up. The former Durham Riverside standout has impressed teammates and coaches in his first season of college baseball and given the Wolfpack (24-18 overall, 9-12 ACC) a dependable left-handed arm out of the bullpen.

“He’s done outstanding,” coach Elliott Avent said. “He’s come into a lot of big situations and something positive always happens when he’s on the mound. He fills up the zone a lot and does a good job holding runners on base.”

Junior lefthander Grant Sasser’s move to the starting rotation three weeks ago left only two left-handed relievers on the roster besides Thomas – senior Nick Rice (4.82 ERA) and sophomore Mike Clark (18.00 ERA). Needless to say, Thomas’s seamless adjustment to the college level has come as a pleasant surprise for the Pack.

But the Thomas-N.C. State marriage almost did not happen. After earning all-state honors as a high school senior for finishing with a 7-1 record and a 1.49 ERA, Thomas was pursued by perennial baseball powerhouses South Carolina, Virginia, East Carolina and North Carolina before signing with the Pack.

“I’ve always been a State fan so that was a big factor,” Thomas said. “My mom kind of wanted me to go to [North] Carolina because she went there, but a bunch of guys I knew went there and I just wanted to do something different.”

Teammates joke with Thomas about his high school exploits and are quick to point out one performance in particular – a 16-strikeout effort, which included a 3-4 day at the plate and four RBIs. With a fastball that tops out in the upper 80’s and good offspeed stuff, Thomas was quick to catch the attention of State coaches.

“We got on him early and really liked what we saw out of him,” Avent said. “Coach Hart did a good job locking him up and he’s just been a real positive influence on our ballclub since he’s been here.”

One of only three freshmen on the roster, Thomas has taken the brunt of upperclassman pranks and forced to lug equipment around on some occasions.

“We have to take it easy on him because if we made him do everything, he would probably just want to leave,” Sasser jokingly said.

Thomas said his best moment so far in his first season was when he was the first pitcher out of the bullpen in the Pack’s season-opener against Elon.

The Durham native’s best performances have interestingly come against the very teams that recruited him. Against East Carolina on April 5 and North Carolina on April 17, Thomas worked 2.2 innings and surrendered only two hits each time. Thomas pitched two innings Sunday afternoon against No. 1-ranked Virginia, giving up only one hit to keep the Pack’s chances alive.

Perhaps the biggest pill to swallow for Thomas was going from one of the state’s top starting pitchers to joining the Pack’s bullpen as a reliever.

“It was definitely a wakeup call,” Thomas said. “You’re back to the bottom of the totem pole and just have to work your way up.”

In addition to being more highly sought after, lefthanders naturally have a better pickoff move than righthanders because they are already facing first base. Thomas has shown a knack for picking base runners off as he is tied for the team lead after picking two players off in the same week.

“We were working on that all week and D.J. goes out and ends up picking a couple guys off in big situations, so we were like, ‘I guess the kid does listen,'” Sasser said.

As the homestretch nears and the Wolfpack jockey for position in the ACC standings, Thomas’s role will be increasingly vital to the team’s success as he has now asserted himself as the Pack’s top left-handed reliever.