Cody Bowker of Bowdoinham (Thornton Academy) has transferred to Vanderbilt University after two successful seasons pitching at Georgetown. Bowker was effective in his three exhibition starts in the fall and is projected as a weekend starter for the Commodores, traditionally one of the nation’s top baseball teams. Courtesy Vanderbilt Athletics

Cody Bowker met Vanderbilt baseball coach Tim Corbin after his freshman year at Thornton Academy. Bowker had just pitched a summer league game with his Maine Lightning Club.

“He essentially told me, you’re not yet ready for that level,” Bowker said.

Five years later, Bowker had changed Corbin’s mind.

After two strong seasons as a right-handed starter for Georgetown University, Bowker was the first player Vanderbilt and Corbin took from the NCAA transfer portal last summer.

Now, the Bowdoinham resident is on the Commodores’ staff and ready for a season that began Friday at Grand Canyon University, in Phoenix, Arizona. Vanderbilt, one of the top Division I programs in the country, will also play Saturday against Nebraska and Sunday against UC Irvine.

Prior to the season opener, Bowker said he hadn’t been told his role. At Georgetown, he was primarily a starter last season (eight starts in 12 appearances), going 5-1 with a 3.00 ERA and striking out 59 over 48 innings. His freshman numbers were similar, albeit with more work out of the bullpen (just four starts). He struck out 47 in 42 innings, with a 2.57 ERA.

“Wherever they need me and whatever they tell me to do,” Bowker said. “Nothing is handed to you. It’s all earned. All of us just want to do whatever is best for the team.”

Vanderbilt baseball generates a lot of local media coverage, and the consensus — from the student newspaper to Nashville’s daily, The Tennessean — is that Bowker will start one of the three games this weekend.

This fall, he made two starts in an intrasquad scrimmage, each time pitching three scoreless innings. He also threw two scoreless innings in an exhibition start against Tennessee Tech.

Starter or reliever, Bowker will face meaty lineups from the likes of Tennessee and Texas A&M, the 2024 College Worlds Series champion and runner-up, respectively. Nine other Southeastern Conference teams, including Vanderbilt, are ranked in the top 25 of the USA Today preseason poll. Vanderbilt, coming off a 37-24 season (13-17 in SEC), is No. 18. Seven SEC teams are ranked higher than Vandy.

Can he get those hitters out?

Cody Bowker is the latest Maine player to join the powerhouse Vanderbilt baseball program, following other notables such as Hunter Owen of South Portland, Ryan Flaherty, Regan Flaherty and Andrew Giobbi of Portland, and current teammate Jacob Humphrey of Standish. Courtesy Vanderbilt Athletics

“For sure. He definitely has a very high ceiling,” said Vanderbilt teammate Jacob Humphrey, a senior outfielder from Bonny Eagle High. “I think he will be a very big part of the team this year and I’m looking forward to seeing how that plays out.”

Humphrey is hoping he can stay healthy enough to contribute more this season. He transferred to Vanderbilt after the 2023 season following two standout seasons at UMass Lowell, but tendinitis in his tricep and other arm ailments limited Humphrey to primarily a pinch-running role as a junior. This past fall, hamstring and groin pulls slowed him further.

“But I’ve been healthy since returning this spring,” Humphrey said. Like Bowker, he hasn’t been told his role. Vanderbilt will play 18 nonconference games before its March 14 SEC opener.

Reflecting back on his first meeting with Corbin, Bowker said the direct assessment of his young baseball self didn’t faze him.

“He’s going to tell you how it is and he was right at the end of the day,” Bowker said earlier this week. “Think about it. When it comes to high schoolers, he recruits first rounders in the MLB draft, and I was nowhere near that.”

Bowker was dominant when it came to Maine high school baseball — on the mound and at the plate. He was chosen the Varsity Maine Player of the Year as a senior, when he led Thornton to its first baseball state championship, going 9-0 as a pitcher, striking out 97 and walking just four over 60 innings. He finished with a 0.47 ERA, and opponents hit only .124 against him. At the plate, Bowker hit .500 with 11 doubles, two triples and four homers. From the leadoff spot, he drove in 22 runs and scored 36.

At Georgetown, Bowker started out as a two-way player and hit .250 as a freshman with two homers and 17 RBI in 88 at-bats. He was solely a pitcher as a sophomore, however. As he focused more on pitching, his velocity and command improved. This past summer, he posted a 3.28 ERA over 32 innings in the Cape Cod League, America’s premier amateur wooden bat league.

“It takes a lot to build up and become a high-level pitcher,” Bowker said. “My velocity is higher just from getting stronger. I’m able to command the strike zone better, throw strikes where I want them. That happens as the game becomes harder.”