2010 Johnny Bench Award Watch List

53 Catchers On The Initial List

Wichita, KS– The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission has announced the official watch list for the 2010 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award delivered by Papa John’s Pizza.  A total of 53 catchers were nominated for the honor by their coaches.  The award is given annually to the nation’s top collegiate catcher.

The watch list will be narrowed to 10 semi-finalists, which will be announced on May 19th.  Ballots will then be sent to a national voting panel at the end of May to determine the three finalists for the award.  Finalists will be announced on June 2nd prior to the NCAA baseball Regionals and the Major League Baseball Draft.  A final vote will take place during the College World Series, and the award will be presented at the 13th Annual Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on July 1st.

See the complete Watch List below.

2010 Coleman Company – Johnny Bench Award delivered by Papa John’s Pizza Watch List
Jeff Arnold SR University of Louisville
Jared Avchen SR East Carolina University
Chris Berset SR University of Michigan
Alex Black JR Coppin State University
Ty Boyles SR Gardner-Webb University
Ross Brayton SR Cal Poly
Tyler Bullock SR Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Dan Burkhart JR Ohio State University
Tony Caldwell JR Auburn University
Chad Comer JR University of Texas at Arlington
Josh Cryer JR Southeastern Louisiana University
Kevin David JR Oklahoma State University
Aaron Dudley SR University of Toledo
Justin Echeverria SR Stony Brook University
Tyler Elkins SR Bowling Green State
Kyle Enders SR University of South Carolina
Erick Fernandez JR Georgetown University
Kevin Flynn JR Hofstra University
Blake Forsythe JR University of Tennessee
Dean Forthum SR Columbia University
Micah Gibbs JR Louisiana State University
Victor Gomez JR Marshall University
Travis Graves SR University of Southern Mississippi
Ben Heath JR Pennsylvania State University
Bryan Holaday SR Texas Christian University
Jose Iglesias SR Coastal Carolina University
Ed Jayjack SR University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Aaron Johnson SR University of Illinois
Jim Klocke SR Southeast Missouri State
Kyle Knudson SR University of Minnesota
Matt Koch SO Loyola Marymount University
Francis Larson SR UC Irvine
Rafael Lopez JR Florida State University
Myckie Lugbauer SR University of Maine
Kyle Mahoney JR High Point University
Jeremy Mayo JR Texas Tech University
James McCann SO University of Arkansas
Cameron McConnell JR University of Notre Dame
Mike Murray SR Wake Forest University
Rafael Neda JR University of New Mexico
John Nester JR Clemson University
Marcus Nidiffer SR University of Kentucky
Joe Oliveira SR University of the Pacific
Tyler Ogle SO University of Oklahoma
Dominic Piazza JR Cal State Northridge
Nick Rickles SO Stetson University
Cameron Rupp JR University of Texas
Joey Stevens SR Eastern Kentucky University
Beau Taylor SO University of Central Florida
John Turk SR University of Akron
Cody Stanley JR UNC Wilmington
Chris Wallace SR University of Houston

College Baseball Notebook-Week 2

A By The Numbers Look At The First Full Week Of The Season

3…Weekend wins over Stanford by Texas.  The Longhorns had dropped 2 of 3 games at home to New Mexico on opening weekend, while the Cardinal had started the season with a home 3-game sweep of Rice.

20-5…Combined score of Texas’ three wins.

1…Home run by Longhorn DH Russell Moldenhauer in the series.  The single longball surpasses his 2009 regular season total.  All four of Moldenhauer’s home runs last season were at the College World Series.

0…Hits allowed in five innings of relief by UT pitcher Cole Green.  He fanned 6 with no walks in the series finale.

18…Strikeouts by UT Arlington pitcher Jason Mitchell in Friday’s win over Missouri State.  Mitchell lost a no-hitter with one out to go in the game, which the Mavericks won 1-0 in 14 innings.   The 18 Ks breaks a school and Southland Conference record.  He struck out at least two batters in all but the 8th inning (1).

0…Runs allowed in 5 innings of relief in that same game by Arlington reliever Adam Boydston, who fanned 8 himself with just one walk and one hit allowed.

2…Wins in three games  by TCU at Cal State Fullerton over the weekend.

4…Home losses by the Titans already this season.

8…Home losses by Fullerton in 2009.

2…Losses in his first two starts by Cal State Fullerton pitcher Daniel Renken after allowing 3 ER in 6 IP in Friday’s loss to the Horned Frogs.

3…Losses by Renken all of last year.

2…Wins by #19 Coastal Carolina over #4 UC Irvine on Saturday in Myrtle Beach, SC.

9…Runs in the 8^th inning of game two of the doubleheader by the Chanticleers to beat the Anteaters 13-6.

2…Combined losses by Irvine pitchers Daniel Bibona and Eric Pettis in Saturday’s twin bill.

3…Combined losses by Bibona and Pettis in 2009.

109…Pitches thrown in 5 1/3 IP by Bibona in his loss.

119…Pitches thrown in 6 2/3 IP by Pettis in his loss.

5…RBIs by Coastal Carolina catcher Jose Iglesias in the doubleheader sweep.  He was 6-for-8 at the plate in the games.

6…Runs scored by Irvine in the 8th inning on Sunday to beat James Madison 15-9 for their only win in Myrtle Beach.  In addition to their losses to Coastal Carolina the Anteaters also fell to North Carolina State.

8…Strikeouts and earned runs allowed in 3 ½ innings by Tennessee’s Bryan Morgado in Friday’s 17-1 loss

to Oregon State.

0…Runs allowed with 9 strikeouts by Oregon State’s Greg Peavey in Sunday’s 1-0 win over the Vols.  Peavey allowed just three hits with one walk in his first win of the season.

0.64…Peavey’s ERA in his first 14 innings pitched this season.

9…Strikeouts in 6 innings by Louisville pitcher Thomas Royse in Friday’s 2-0 win over Michigan.

10…Strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings by Todd McInnis in 26th ranked Southern Mississippi’s 8-2 loss to LeMoyne.

2 of 3…Games Southern Miss. dropped to LeMoyne after falling 12-11 in the series finale.

20…Runners left on base by the Golden Eagles in the pair of defeats.

5…RBIs by Dolphin LF Chris Edomonson in the 12-11 win over USM.

84…Runs scored by Arizona State in its 7-0 start to the season.

18…Runs allowed by the Sun Devils (two unearned) for a 2.36 staff ERA.

15…Runs and hits by Georgia Tech in Saturday’s 15-0 win over Xavier.

1…Win over a top 10 team in the history of Xavier baseball after Sunday’s 7-6 win over #4 Georgia Tech.

4 & 3…Respective errors and unearned runs allowed by the Yellow Jackets in their first loss of 2010.

13…Errors in three games committed by Notre Dame en-route to a 1-2 weekend at the Big Ten/Big East Challenge.

6…Of those errors committed by the Fighting Irish in Sunday’s 8-7 10-inning win over Penn State.

1…Win this season for Maine (1-5) after Saturday’s 5-3 upset of #12 North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

1…Career win for Black Bear pitcher Jeffrey Gibbs, who earned the win vs. the Tar Heels.  He struckout seven and allowed 2 ER in 5 1/3 IP.

2…Career starts by Gibbs-a 6′4-190 lb. freshman from Toronto, Ontario.

12…Strikeouts in 7 IP by Virginia sophomore Danny Hultzen in a 13-0 win over Rhode Island.  The lefty allowed no runs and no walks on two hits to improve to 2-0.

43…Runs scored by the Cavs in their 3-game sweep of URI while allowing just 7 runs to improve to 6-1.

0…Runs allowed in 4 IP by Manhattan freshman reliever John Soldinger in Sunday’s 12-7 win over the 10th ranked Miami Hurricanes.

7…Earned runs allowed in 5 IP by Jasper starting pitcher Mike Gazzola who got credit for the win after exiting with his team leading 9-5.

7 & 9…Combined runs scored and RBIs, respectively, by Manhattan 2-5 batters Mark Onorati, Mike McCann, Chad Salem, and Austin Sheffield in the upset of the Hurricanes.  The quartet also combined to hit .500 (10-for-20).

6-0…Washington State’s record after Sunday’s 10-7 win over Texas Tech in Lubbock, TX.  It’s Wazzou’s best start since going 9-0 to start the 1988 season.

4, 11 & 13…Home runs, RBIs & runs scored by New Mexico State shortstop Ryan Aguayo.  The junior hit .440 with an 1.120 slugging percentage in six games last week.

3…Of Aguayo’s home runs that came in one game-a 17-5 win over Akron.  He hit half of the Aggies’ 6 HRs in the contest.

4 & 9…Home runs and RBIs by Eastern Kentucky’s Anthony Ottrando in the Colonel’s season-opening 3-game series vs. Western Carolina.

11…RBIs with 3 home runs in 3 games by Auburn’s Brian Fletcher.  His 10th inning walk-off home run gave the Tigers a Friday win over Boston College.

15…Strikeouts in 7 IP by Ole Miss lefty Drew Pomeranz in a win over Oakland.  He allowed just a run on a solo HR.

8-0…The deficit top-ranked LSU faced in the middle of the 6th inning at home Saturday vs. William & Mary. The Tigers scored 8 runs in the bottom of the 6th and then added two more runs in the 7th to win 10-9.

22…Years since LSU had overcome as big a deficit.  They came back from 10 runs down to beat Ole Miss in 1988.

13 1/3…Total innings pitched in two outings last week by Kansas pitcher Cameron Selik.  The junior allowed just one earned run with 10 strikeouts vs. Eastern Michigan and Sacramento State.

Ten College Baseball Questions For 2010

Ten Questions On The Eve Of The College Baseball Season

By Collegebaseball360.com Editor Sean Stires

A new college baseball season is about to begin.  It’s a season that is started a week earlier than it was originally slated to begin, and one school (James Madison) has already canceled its season opener, because (spoiler) it snows in roughly two-thirds of the country in mid-February.

Anyway, from time to time different thoughts pop into my head and I have managed to corral a few of them here.  So, here are Ten College Baseball Questions For 2010… (in no particular order)…

1.  Can LSU Repeat? The odds say it’s not going to happen.  Oregon State (2006-2007), LSU (1996-1997) and Stanford (1987-1988) are the only teams to win back-to-back crowns since Rod Dedeaux’s USC Trojans ended a streak of five straight titles from 1970-1974.  Paul Mainieri’s Tigers have a lot of key elements returning, like Blake Dean’s bat and Anthony Ranaudo & Matty Ott’s arms, but the odds just aren’t in their favor.  On the other hand…

2.  Can Texas Be Stopped? The odds (along with a sick pitching staff and a lot of returning everyday players) would seem to be in Augie Garrido’s favor.  The Longhorns return three starters, Taylor Jungmann, Cole Green and Chance Ruffin who could all be just about anyone’s number one starter.  The trio combined to win 26 games last year.  Cameron Rupp, Kevin Keyes and Omaha long ball ace Russell Moldenhauer are also back to lead the offense.  With all that back the biggest question right now seem to be can they stay number one from now until season’s end?

3.  Would An LSU vs. Texas Championship Re-Match Be Good For College Baseball? It would be good for TV ratings, but I don’t know that it would actually be good for the game as a whole.  Does anyone who’s not a Yankees fan think that the cash cow’s 27th title is good for any other MLB team other than the one in the Bronx with the new stadium and overpriced (and often empty) seats?  Texas and LSU at the College World Series is good for college baseball, because it gets casual fans a little more interested.  But when it comes time for all the marbles David vs. Goliath  is just more fun.

4.  Speaking Of David…Who Will Be This Year’s Cinderella? Fresno State was the ultimate Cinderella two years ago, but Mike Batesole’s great-great-great grand children will be playing before we see that kind of run again.  But that doesn’t mean there won’t be more Cinderellas.  They’re quite common when it comes to the CWS.  Fresno State, Southern Mississippi, Louisville, Southwest Missouri State, Notre Dame, and San Jose State all made it to Omaha in the last decade in what was either their first appearance or their first trip after a long CWS drought.  The odds say there’ll be a Cinderella, but the waiting is the hardest (and most fun) part.

5.  Will Bryce Brentz Win the NCAA’s Triple Crown? The Middle Tennessee State slugger just about did it last year.  He led the nation with his .465 batting average, and he tied Alabama’s Kent Matthes for the home run title with 28.  Brentz also topped the charts with his .930 slugging percentage, but he missed the Triple Crown with “just” 73 RBIs.  That technically tied for 31st nationally, but Brentz was just 14 RBIs behind NCAA leader Paul Goldschmidt of Texas State.  Logical thinking would say Brentz, now a junior, doesn’t have a chance, but logic never pitched to Brentz.

6.  Can Arizona State Overcome The Loss Of Pat Murphy? Love him or hate him, it’s hard to argue with the success that Murphy had in his 15 years in the ASU dugout.   But it’s not like ASU had never won prior to Murph’s arrival.  He led his team to Omaha four times, but the program has 21 CWS appearances since 1964 thanks to Bob Winkles and Jim Brock.  Now it’s Tim Esmay’s turn to guide the cruise ship Sun Devil.  Esmay, a former Utah head coach, himself played for Brock in Omaha twice, and he was also on Murphy’s staff for the last five seasons.  He also has a lot of experience sitting with him in the dugout.  Ken Knutson is in his first year as an assistant on the ASU staff after 17 seasons as the Washington Huskies’ head coach.  ASU’s line-up is loaded again, and there’s plenty of pitching too.  For now anyway the good ship ASU doesn’t show any signs of running aground.

7.  Is Virginia The Next National Power Or A One-Hit Wonder? The Cavaliers can hardly be considered a Cinderella.  Yes, last year was their first-ever College World Series trip, but they are from the ACC and they won their conference tournament last year.  Glass slippers aside, it would be easy to write-off UVA as a team that got hot and made a big run.  However, last year’s CWS squad included 23 underclassmen and set 11 school records…and the most prominent components-like Danny Hultzen, Jarrett Parker and Kevin Arico to name a few-are all back this year.  Who saw North Carolina coming prior four years ago?  Mike Fox’s Tar Heels hadn’t been to Omaha since 1989 prior to 2006 & now they’ve gone four straight times.  Cavalier head coach Brian O’Connor has now guided the Cavs to six straight NCAA berths, and he has been a guy whose destiny has always seemed to be Omaha.  He grew-up in the shadow of Rosenblatt Stadium in Council Bluffs, NE, pitched in the ‘91 CWS for Creighton, helped Notre Dame get to Omaha in 2002 as the Irish pitching coach, and finally took his own team to the promised land last year…not to mention the fact that his mug is one of the players on the famed “Road To Omaha” statue outside Rosenblatt.  So, if you’re asked what lies in the shadow of the statue the safe answer might be “O’Connor’s Cavaliers”.

8.  Is A Northern Team Ready To Make A Real National Statement? Michigan and Notre Dame flirted with it last decade.  St. John’s has had its moments, and Ohio State and Minnesota have each had some success, but it all comes down to pitching.  Or more specifically, pitching depth.  The biggest difference in teams in the good southern teams and the good northern teams is pitching depth.  There are guys coming out of the bullpen in the ACC and SEC who could be starters on most Big Ten and Big East teams.  Just look at last year’s save numbers in those conferences:  157 in the SEC & 160 saves in the ACC compared to 110 and 121 in the Big Ten and Big East, respectively.  But save totals don’t even tell half the story.

When it comes to playing in an NCAA Regional winning the first game is important, but for a northern team winning the first two games of a regional is critical.  The team that starts 2-0 at a regional is at least one starting pitcher ahead of each opponent it plays the rest of the weekend.  Look at Minnesota last year:  They lost their regional opener to Baylor, then out-slugged Southern 11-8 and Baylor 15-12 atfter that before falling 10-3 to LSU.  They played respectably, but they gave-up 10 runs a game over their last three contests, while LSU gave-up 3 runs with its third starter on the mound.   Ohio State lost 24-8 to Georgia to its regional opener last year, then won 6-4 and 13-6 in elimination games before getting trounced 37-6 by Florida State in game four (game 3 for FSU).  OSU’s starting pitcher gave-up 7 runs without getting an out in that game.  But what about Michigan in 2007?  The Wolverines won the first two games of their regional, lost game three, but then beat Vanderbilt in the deciding game four to advance to a Super Regional.  In 2002 Notre Dame used just five pitchers while going 3-0 at their Regional en-route to being the only northern team to advance to Omaha since the ’80s.  The Irish also used just two pitchers in their two Super Regional wins over Florida State the following week.   It’s no coincidence that in recent years only teams from the south have come back  to win a Regional after losing one of their first two games.

9.  Is Conference USA The Most Underrated Baseball Conference In The Country? Quick question…what three conferences have sent at least one team to the College World Series in each of the last five seasons?  If you said the SEC, Pac 10 and Conference USA you get the gold star for the day (but remember to raise your hand before blurting out the answer next time).  Rice, Tulane and last year’s darling Southern Mississippi have all gone to Omaha in that stretch.  Terry Rooney left LSU after a trip to the 2008 CWS in part because C-USA had earned a reputation as a three bid league.  But Conference USA didn’t just get three bids last year.  Rice, Southern Miss. and East Carolina all advanced to Super Regionals, and ECU and USM did it by beating South Carolina and Georgia Tech, respectively, in Regional action.  USM then beat Florida on the road to advance to Omaha, Rice lost to eventual National Champ LSU in its Regional while ECU fell to a North Carolina team that made a fourth straight CWS appearance.  C-USA has arrived, and based on the talent the aforementioned ‘09 Super Regional teams have back, the conference doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.

10.  Will The Season Just Start Already? Really, aren’t you tired of waiting?  Oops, that’s another question, we don’t have room for eleven.  Is it here yet?  That’s another questions too…

Pac 10 Baseball 2010 Preview

Can ASU Keep On Winning Without Murphy?

2009 Pac 10 Champion:  Arizona State (No Pac 10 Postseason Tournament)

The More Things Change…:  There wasn’t much change at the top of the Pac 10 ranks, but there was some turnover in the middle.  Arizona State’s 2009 Pac 10 title was its third straight to give the Sun Devils their 10th straight NCAA appearance.  However, Washington State went from the bottom of the conference in 2008 to a second-place finish last year.  It was the Cougars’ first top five finish in the conference since 1991 and they earned their first NCAA Regional appearance since 1990.  Meanwhile, Oregon brought back baseball & played its first games since 1981, Oregon State was back in the tournament after staying home in 2008 and Stanford missed the NCAAs after a 2008 trip to the CWS.  The biggest news from the Pac 10 in 2009 though came in the off season with the departure of ASU head coach Pat Murphy.  The big question now is: Can ASU continue its success with a new head coach?

2010 Pac 10 Baseball Preview

Arizona

2009 Record:  (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot:  Wildcats

Head Coach:  Andy Lopez

Location:  Tucson, AZ

Vitals:  .314 BA, 46 HR, 71 SB, .387 OBP, .965 Fld%…5.46 ERA, 0 CG, 13 SV, 379 K, 215 BB, .293 opp. BA

Slight Returns:  The Wildcats have just 12 returning players from last year’s roster.  They will have as many as 16 freshman on the roster this season.

The Holes:  Pac 10 batting champion Dillon Baird (.433, 8 HR, 55 RBIs) leads the list of departed players.  Hunter Pace (.372, 15 SB) and Dwight Childs (.331) are gone from the line-up as well.  Arizona also loses its top starting pitcher, Preston Guilmet (6-5, 3.74 ERA), as well as relievers Cory Burns (2-0, 3.80 ERA, 40 appearances) and Jason Stoffel (2-1, 4.67 ERA, 39 app., 11 SV).

Who’s Back:  The top returning pitcher include Daniel Workman (3-1, 3.86 ERA), Joe Allison (5-1, 4.66 ERA) and Kyle Simon (3-5, 6.03 ERA, 11 starts).  Bryce Ortega (.324, 16 SB) and Steve Selsky (.318 will lead the offense).

Family Ties:  Brothers Michael and David Lopez will both wear the Wildcat uniform this season.  Their dad is head coach Andy Lopez.  Michael is a pitcher who redshirted last year, while David is a freshman infielder.

Tucson Time:  Arizona plays its first 26 games, including its conference-opening series vs. Oregon, on its home

field in Tucson, AZ.  The Wildcats have a total of 44 home games in 2010.

Arizona State

2009 Record:  (51-14, 21-6)

Mascot:  Sun Devils

Head Coach:  Tim Esmay

Location:  Tempe, AZ

Vitals:  .303 BA, 75 HR, 116 SB, .418 OBP, .969 Fld%…2.90 ERA, 11 CG, 12 SV, 608 K, 157 BB, .239 opp. BA

Meet The New Boss:  Pat Murphy is gone after 15 seasons in the desert.  Murphy’s last win in a Sun Devil uniform was a 12-5 victory over North Carolina in Omaha, and it was the 1,000th of his career.  New head coach Tim Esmay is no stranger to the ASU

program.  He played in the College World Series for Jim Brock’s Sun Devils in 1987 and ‘88, and he was also an assistant to Murphy for the last five seasons.  Esmay was also the head coach at Utah from 1997-2004.

Line-Up Lowdown:  ASU returns 7 of its top 9 hitters who saw significant action in 2009.  The glaring losses are Pac 10 Player of the Year Jason Kipnis (.384, 16 HR, 71 RBIs, 27 SB) and catcher Carlos Ramirez (.338, 19 HR, 75 RBIs).  However, Kole Calhoun (.313, 12 HR, 53 RBIs) is back for his senior season.  Calhoun hit 3 HR with 11 RBIs in Omaha.  Sophomores Johnny Ruettiger (.360, 12 SB) & Drew Maggi (.309, 21 SB) and junior Matt Newman (.305, 7 HR, 54 RBIs) all return as well.

Oh Brother:  Senior co-captain Rauol Torrez (.250,15 SB) and soph. Riccio Torrez (.280, 6 HR) are the fifth set of brothers to play at ASU at the same time, but they are the first to start alongside one another in school history.  All 54 of Rauol’s starts came at third base, while most of Riccio’s were at first base.  The brothers are back as well to anchor the Sun Devil infield in 2010.

An Ace Down:  RHP Mike Leake (16-1, 1.71 ERA, 7 CG) and LHP Josh Spence (10-1, 2.37 ERA) were both good enough to be any team’s ace last year, but only senior Spence is back this season.  Leake signed after being taken in the first round of last year’s draft by Cincinnati.  Spence decided to return for his year after going in the third round to the Angels.  Other notable returning pitchers are LHP Mitchell Lambson (9-5, 3.01 ERA, 5 SV) and RHP Jordan Swaggerty (4-1, 4.50 ERA, 4 SV).

California

2009 Record:  (24-29, 9-18)

Mascot:  Golden Bears

Head Coach:  David Esquer

Location:  Berkeley, CA

Vitals:  .298 BA, 65 HR, 66 SB, .375 OBP, .966 Fld%…5.74, 2 CG, 13 SV, 423 K, 249 BB, .284 opp. BA

Big Bear Losses:  Cal loses three of its top four batters from last year, including two-way player Blake Smith (.319, 10 HR, 38 RBIs), who was drafted in the second round last year by the Dodgers.  Smith had two saves out of the

bullpen while starting three games as well.  Jeff Kobernus (.341, 8 HR, 20 SB) and Brett Jackson (.321, 8 HR, 11 SB) are both gone as well.

Top Bear Back:  Cal’s top overall hitter, Mark Canha, is returns.  The junior led Cal in average (.366), HR (12), RBIs (43), slg% (.634), and OBP (.444).  Brian Guinn (.315, 10 SB) and Danny Oh (.303, 7 HR) is back as well.

Plenty Of Pitching: The Golden Bears return most of their pitchers from a staff that finished with the worst ERA in the conference last year.  Reliver Dixon Anderson (3.98 ERA, 3 SV), LHP Chris Petrini (4-3, 3.98 ERA) and Erik Johnson (3-6, 4.41 ERA, 9 starts, CG, 4 SV) are among the top returnees.

No-Nonsense Non-Conference:  In consecutive weeks Cal plays non-conference games vs. 2009 CWS team Arkansas (3 at home), 2009 Super Regional team Rice (4 in Houston) and ‘09 NCAA team Cal Poly (3 on the road).  They follow that with their Pac 10-opening series at Arizona State.

Call From The Hall:  Former Cal head coach Bob Milano was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame in January.  He won 688 games at Cal from 1978-1999 and led the Golden Bears to the College World Series in 1980, 1988 and 1992.

Oregon

2009 Record:  (14-42, 4-23)

Mascot:  Ducks

Head Coach:  George Horton

Location:  Eugene, OR

Vitals:  .227 BA, 16 HR, 60 SB, .296 OBP, .961 Fld%…5.07 ERA, 4 CG, 8 SV, 357 K, 239 BB, .271 opp. BA

Growing Pains:  Oregon fielded its first baseball team since 1981 last year, and things looked bright early when the Ducks beat St. Mary’s 5-3 in their season opener.  They lost the next two games of the series, but then won 2 of 3 games at home vs. defending national champion Fresno State.  That would be the high point of their inaugural season though, as they won just three games after March 31 en-route to a 14-win campaign.  Oregon finished last in the Pac 10 in these (and a few other) statistical categories:  Batting average, HR, runs, slg%, OBP, hits, RBIs, doubles, total bases, walks, strikeouts (by pitchers), saves.  They also committed the second most errors (85) in the conference behind USC”S 101.

The Bright Side:  After a bumpy first year George Horton returns all but five players who saw action last year, while nine freshmen and a handful of junior college transfers join the team.  Here’s a look at some of the returnees with the category in which they led the Ducks last year Curt Raulinaitis (batting avg.-.291), K.C. Serna (RBIs-19 & HR-3), Danny Pulfer (starts-55 & BB-19), Drew Gagnier (ERA-2.70, appearances-23, saves-7).  Starting pitchers Erik Stavert (5-6, 3.04 ERA, 14 starts) & Tyler Anderson (2-9, 15 starts) are both gone.

Homecoming:  Oregon opens the season at Cal State Fullerton, where Horton played and later spent 11 seasons as the Titans’ head coach.  Horton guided Fullerton to six College World Series appearances and the 2004 National Championship.  Current Fullerton head coach Dave Serrano was an assistant under Horton.

Oregon State

2009 Record:  (37-19, 15-12)

Mascot:  Beavers

Head Coach:  Pat Casey

Location:  Corvallis, OR

Vitals:  .278 BA, 23 HR, 53 SB, .392 OBP, .977 Fld%…3.93 ERA, 3 CG, 13 SV, 431 K, 199 BB, .245 opp. BA

Locked Line-Up:  Oregon State returns six starters from last year’s team.  All-Pac 10 honoree Adalberto Santos (.320, 4 HR, 43 RBIs, 15 SB) and team HR and RBI leader Stefan Romero (..291, 5 HR, 51 RBIs) head the group.

Plus Pitching:  The Beavers’ 3.93 team ERA ranked second in the Pac 10 last year to Arizona State, and they return two starters, Sam Gaviglio (10-1, 2.73 ERA) and Tyler Waldron (6-4, 4.15 ERA), and closer Kevin Rhoderick (3-3, 4.18 ERA, 9 SV).  Gaviglio was a Freshman All-American last year.

Turn The Page:  Baseball America recently named Oregon State the #2 team of the past decade, while tabbing head coach Pat Casey the coach of the decade.  The Beavers won back-to-back National Championships in 2006 and 2007 and made an additional trip to Omaha.  They averaged 35.6 wins a season from 2000-2009.

Stanford

2009 Record:  (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot:  Cardinal

Head Coach:  Mark Marquess

Location:  Palo Alto, CA

Vitals:  .279 BA, 49 HR, 46 SB, .360 OBP, .977 Fld%…5.12 ERA, 2 CG, 8 SV, 381 K, 222 BB, .268 opp. BA

Rare Absence:  After a trip to the 2008 College World Series Stanford missed the NCAA Tournament last year.  It was

the second time in three seasons that the Cardinal failed to receive a post season bid, but it’s also just the third time since 1990 that Stanford did not at least go to an NCAA Regional.

Core Cardinals:  Stanford returns 2B Colin Walsh (.320, .466 OBP), SS Jeff Schlander (.232), catcher Zach Jones (.239, 3 HR), and OF Kellen Killsgard (.313, 9 HR, 46 RBIs).  Walsh was the team’s top hitter as a sophomore and was named a Cape Cod League All-Star last summer,  while Schlander was named the 2009 Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Year.  The team loses top run producer Brent Milleville (.306, 14 HR, 52 RBIs).

Cardinal Arms:  Starting pitchers Jordan Pries (4-4. 4.62 ERA) and LHP Brett Mooneyham (6-3, 4.14 ERA) are back to lead the weekend rotation.  The duo combined to make 22 starts last year as freshmen.

Gerhart’s Gone:  Two-sport sensation Toby Gerhart (.288, 7 HR, 36 RBIs, 7 SB) burst on the national scene on the football field in 2009.  He was the Heisman Trophy runner-up and won the Doak Walker Award after rushing for a school record 1,871 yards and 28 TDs.  Gerhart hit 16 home runs in three years with the Cardinal baseball team.  He was an outfield starter on the 2008 CWS squad.  He won’t play baseball this year as he prepares for the April NFL Draft.

Tough Tests:  Stanford opens the season by hosting a 3-game series with perennial power Rice.  They go to Austin, TX the next weekend for a 3-game set with 2009 national runner-up Texas.

UCLA

2009 Record:  (27-29, 15-12)

Mascot:  Bruins

Head Coach:  John Savage

Location:  Los Angeles, CA

Vitals:  .285 BA, 54 HR, 55 SB, .382 OBP, .969 Fld%…4.28 ERA, 5 CG, 12 SV, 509 K, 197 BB, .259 opp. BA

Power Outage:  UCLA loses its top two run producers, Cody Decker (.322, 21 HR, 53 RBIs) and Casey Haerther

(.305, 9 HR, 42 RBIs) from last year’s team.  Haerther was selected in the 5th round of last year’s MLB Draft by the Angels, while Decker was tabbed in the 22nd round by San Diego.

The Line-Up:  Justin Uribe (.318, 3 HR, 23 RBIs) and Blair Dunlap (.301, 7 HR, 39 RBIs, 15 SB) are the top hitters back in the Bruin batting order.  Uribe will move from the outfield to first base this year.  Junior college transfer Dean Espy will be expected to step-in at third base as well.

Bruin Pitching:  Sophomores Gerrit Cole (4-8, 3.49 ERA) and Trevor Bauer (9-3, 2.99 ERA, 4 CG) will lead the pitching rotation.  Bauer had pitched a  team-high of 105 1/3 IP last year.  Cole is a Preseason All-American who struckout 104 in 85 IP last year.  He pitched for the USA Collegiate National Team last summer.

Big 12 West:  UCLA plays five games against three Big 12 teams in 2010.  The Bruins host Oklahoma State in one of their three games in the Dodgertown Classic (Vanderbilt & USC are the other two opponents there).  They also host a 3-game series vs. Nebraska and play Oklahoma in their last game of the Whataburger College Classic in Corpus Christi, TX.

USC

2009 Record:  (28-28, 13-14)

Mascot:  Trojans

Head Coach:  Chad Kreuter

Location:  Los Angeles, CA

Vitals:  .274 BA, 41 HR, 58 SB, .359 OBP, .954 Fld%…4.06 ERA, 5 CG, 10 SV, 438 K, 231 BB, .259 opp. BA

Top Losses:  USC loses three players, Grant Green (.374, 4 HR, 32 RBIs, 16 SB), Brad Boxberger (6-3, 3.16 ERA) and Robert Stock (5-4, 2.90 ERA, 4 SV), who were taken in the first two rounds of last year’s MLB Draft.  Green went with the 13th overall pick to Oakland.

Returning Trojans:  Ricky Oropesa (.314, 13 HR, 48 RBIs) was named a Freshman All-American last year.  He and Mike O’Neill (.319) are the top returning players in the USC line-up.  Sophomore RHP Andrew Triggs (5-3, 3.96 ERA) is expected to be the staff’s #1 starter.  Fellow Soph. Chad Smith (3-4, 3.40 ERA) and Sr. Kevin Couture (3-3, 5.66 ERA) return as well.

New Faces In Many Places:  A total of 15 newcomers (7 transfers and 8 freshman) will look to contribute for USC in 2010.  One of them is redshirt sophomore Mike Greco, who hit .250 with 2 HR and 27 RBIs in 46 games as a freshman at Army.  He sat out last year after transferring and will battle for a spot at first base this year.

Washington

2009 Record:  (25-30, 13-14)

Mascot:  Huskies

Head Coach:  Lindsay Meggs

Location:  Seattle, WA

Vitals:  .265 BA, 64 HR, 42 SB, .357 OBP, .967 Fld%…4.88 ERA, 1 CG, 14 SV, 387 K, 194 BB, .276 opp. BA

New Skipper:  2010 will be Lindsay Meggs’ first season as head coach at Washington.  He arrives after three seasons at Indiana State.  Meggs was named the 2009 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year after guiding the Sycamores to a 33-21 record and a second-place conference finish.  Prior to that Meggs spent 13 seasons at head coach at Chico State, where he won Division II National Championships in 1997 & 1999.

Draft Losses:  The Huskies lose their top run producer, Ryan Conley (.303, 19 HR, 55 RBIs), who was taken by St. Louis in the 7th round of last year’s draft.  Top reliever Brian Pearl (3.05 ERA, 8 SV) and starter Jason Erickson (5-4, 4.34 ERA) were both drafted and signed as well.

Husky Returns:  Pierce Rankin (.299, 6 HR, 26 RBIs) and Troy Scott (11 HR, 31 RBIs) are the top returnees in the line-up.  Sophomore Andrew Kittredge (4-5, 4.27 ERA, 3 SV, 7 starts) and LHP Geoff Brown (4-4, 5.01), who made 31 relief appearances, are among the top returning pitchers.

Big Home Slate:  Washington’s first nine home games are three 3-game series vs. 2008 National Champion Fresno State, perennial power Cal State Fullerton and intrastate rival Washington State.

Washington State

2009 Record:  (32-25, 19-8)

Mascot:  Cougars

Head Coach:  Donnie Marbut

Location:  Pullman, WA

Vitals:  .273 BA, 56 HR, 44 SB, .358 OBP, .971 Fld%…4.34 ERA, 1 CG, 15 SV, 453 K, 184 BB, .279 opp. BA

The Drought Is Over:  Last year’s NCAA Regional appearance was the first for the program since 1990.  The Cougars swept five series in 2009, including three in Pac 10 play.  All of the sweeps came on their home diamond, where they had just three series sweeps in the previous 11 seasons combined.

Leaving & Staying:  WSU loses its top three hitters, Alex Burg (.346, 7 HR), Jared Prince (.343, 7 HR) and Greg Lagreid (.332, 5 HR), from last year’s NCAA squad.  They return stolen base leader Garry Kuykendall (.299, 11 SB), Matt Argyropoulos (.277), Shea Vucinich (.230, team-high 40 runs), and Derek Jones, who hit a team-best 12

home runs despite just a .223 batting average.

On The Mound:  Junior Chad Arnold (8-3, 4.39 ERA) will lead the weekend rotation.  Arnold got the team’s only NCAA win with an elimination game victory vs. Wichita State in the Norman, OK Regional.  He’s joined by David Stilley (3-3, 4.64 ERA) and reliever Seth Harvey (2.25 ERA, 22 app.).  The Cougars lose starter Matt Way (8-4, 2.43 ERA) and closer Jeremy Johnson (6-2, 2.90 ERA, 10 SV).

Texas Time:  Washington State plays 12 of its first 18 games in the state of Texas.   After four games in Lubbock they return home for a 4-game set vs. Utah and then return to the Lone Star State for three games at Texas A&M and two games at Dallas Baptist.  They end their spring trip with a 3-game series in Wichita, KS vs. Wichita State.

2010 Pac 10 Conference Predictions

Player of the Year:  Kole Calhoun – Arizona State

Pitcher of the Year:  Sam Gaviglio – Oregon State

Conference Champion:  Arizona State, with Oregon State giving the closest challenge

Baseball America 2010 Preseason All-America Teams

The SEC Leads The Way With 13 Selections

Baseball America has released it Preseason All-American college baseball teams.  BA annually polls major league scouting directors to vote on the team and make their selections based on performance, talent and professional potential. In the past, the preseason All-America team has been a predictor both of the first round of the draft and of team success. For example, 11 of the 15 college players drafted in the first round last June appeared on Baseball America’s preseason All-America list – eight of them on the first team. And for the second year in a row, 11 of last year’s preseason All-Americans played for teams that reached the College World Series.

Virginia outfielder Jarrett Parker was named to the first team, along with Georgia Tech pitchers Deck McGuire and Kevin Jacob. The second team includes Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal, Florida State pitcher Tyler Holt, Boston College designated hitter Mickey Wiswall and Virginia pitcher/first baseman Danny Hultzen. Virginia Tech outfielder Austin Wates and pitcher Jesse Hahn were third-team selections, along with Florida State outfielder/pitcher Mike McGee.
Alabama second baseman Ross Wilson is the only repeat member of the preseason first team. Cal State Fullerton shortstop Christian Colon is also a repeat preseason All-American, but he moves up from the third team last year to the first team this year. Middle Tennessee State outfielder Bryce Brentz—who also received votes as a two-way player—is the only player who appeared on every scouting director’s ballot.

Rice’s Anthony Rendon and Arkansas’ Zack Cox are the only sophomores on the first team, which is otherwise dominated by juniors. There are four sophomores on the second team and three on the third team, but there are no seniors on any of the three teams.

The SEC led all conferences with 13 preseason selections to the team.  The ACC had 10 players tabbed.   The Big 12 and Conference USA each landed four players on the team, while the Pacific-10, Big West and Big Ten produced two All-Americans apiece. Eight other conferences placed one player apiece on the team: The Atlantic Sun, Big East, Mid-American, Mountain West, Ohio Valley, Southland, Sun Belt and West Coast conferences.

First Team

C    Micah Gibbs, Louisiana State
1B    Hunter Morris, Auburn
2B    Ross Wilson, Alabama
3B    Anthony Rendon, Rice
SS    Christian Colon, Cal State Fullerton
OF    Bryce Brentz, Middle Tennessee State
OF    Todd Cunningham, Jacksonville State
OF    Jarrett Parker, Virginia
DH    Zack Cox, Arkansas
UT    Brett Eibner, Arkansas
SP    Deck McGuire, Georgia Tech
SP    Drew Pomeranz, Mississippi
SP    Anthony Ranaudo, Louisiana State
SP    Chris Sale, Florida Gulf Coast
RP    Kevin Jacob, Georgia Tech

Second Team

C    Yasmani Grandal, Miami
1B    Andy Wilkins, Arkansas
2B    Kolbrin Vitek, Ball State
3B    Tony Thompson, Kansas
SS    Rick Hague, Rice
OF    Gary Brown, Cal State Fullerton
OF    Michael Choice, Texas-Arlington
OF    Tyler Holt, Florida State
DH    Mickey Wiswall, Boston College
UT    Danny Hultzen, Virginia
SP    Gerrit Cole, UCLA
SP    Sonny Gray, Vanderbilt
SP    Taylor Jungmann, Texas
SP    Alex Wimmers, Ohio State
RP    Kevin Rhoderick, Oregon State

Third Team

C    Cameron Rupp, Texas
1B    Cody Hawn, Tennessee
2B    Chris Bisson, Kentucky
3B    Rob Segedin, Tulane
SS    B.A. Vollmuth, Southern Mississippi
OF    Ryan LaMarre, Michigan
OF    Leon Landry, Louisiana State
OF    Austin Wates, Virginia Tech
DH    Jedd Gyorko, West Virginia
UT    Mike McGee, Florida State
SP    Jack Armstrong, Vanderbilt
SP    Kyle Blair, San Diego
SP    Jesse Hahn, Virginia Tech
SP    Brandon Workman, Texas
RP    Addison Reed, San Diego State

Conference USA Announces 2010 Baseball TV Schedule

Eleven Regular Season Games On Preliminary TV Slate

IRVING, Texas –Conference USA has announced its preliminary baseball television schedule for the 2010 season.  The schedule currently features games to appear nationally on CBS College Sports as well as regionally on Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS), Bright House Networks and Cox Sports Television.  Additional games remain a possibility and will be announced at a later date.

“Conference USA has established itself as a national power in baseball and we are pleased that more of our fans will be able to watch our teams play this season on television,” said Conference USA Commissioner Britton Banowsky.

Included in the current schedule are 11 regular season games as well as a live broadcast of the C-USA Baseball Tournament Championship Game on Saturday, May 29.  Additional C-USA Championship games may be added to the television schedule.

2010 C-USA Baseball Television Schedule

(as of February 4)

CBS College Sports

Saturday, April 24                   East Carolina at Rice                    3:00 p.m. EDT/2:00 p.m. CDT

Friday, April 30                       Southern Miss at Tulane               8:00 p.m. EDT/7:00 p.m. CDT

Friday, May 14                        Southern Miss at Rice                  8:00 p.m. EDT/7:00 p.m. CDT

Friday, May 21                        Houston at East Carolina              8:00 p.m. EDT/7:00 p.m. CDT

Saturday, May 29                    C-USA Championship Game         8:00 p.m. EDT/7:00 p.m. CDT

Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS) (regional coverage may vary within CSS footprint)

Tuesday, March 16                 Texas at Rice                              7:30 p.m. EDT/6:30 p.m. CDT

Thursday, April 1                     Houston at Rice                           7:30 p.m. EDT/6:30 p.m. CDT

Friday, April 2                         Houston at Rice                           7:30 p.m. EDT/6:30 p.m. CDT

Tuesday, May 18                    Rice at Houston                           7:30 p.m. EDT/6:30 p.m. CDT

Bright House Networks (Florida)

Tuesday, March 9                   Miami (Fla.) at UCF                      7:00 p.m. EDT/6:00 p.m. CDT

Tuesday, March 16                 South Florida at UCF                    7:00 p.m. EDT/6:00 p.m. CDT

Tuesday, March 9                   Stetson at UCF                            7:00 p.m. EDT/6:00 p.m. CDT

Cox Sports Television (Louisiana)

Tuesday, May 18                    LSU at Tulane                              7:30 p.m. EDT/6:30 p.m. CDT

Conference USA’s 15th baseball season gets underway on February 19.  The conference tournament is scheduled for May 26-30 in Houston, with UH serving as the host for the new six-team, pool-play format.  C-USA’s nine baseball schools have produced 62 NCAA appearances and nine College World Series teams over the past 14 seasons.

NCBWA 2010 Preseason College Baseball Poll

Texas Tops Another Preseason Poll

DALLAS - The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association continues
its tradition of NCAA Division I polls for the 13th year with its 2010
preseason predictions and weekly surveys. Weekly polls will continue
from Feb. 22 through June 29 following the NCAA World Series in Omaha,
Neb.

The poll voters come from 40 college baseball writers and related media
persons from throughout the nation. After a preseason Top 35 listing,
the remainder of the polls will feature a national Top 30.

Texas is the preseason NCBWA poll choice for the third time in history.
Last year coach Augie Garrido’s crew finished second to LSU (No. 2 in
the NCBWA pre-2010 survey) in the NCAA World Series during the
next-to-last venue at historic Rosenblatt Stadium, which will be razed
after the ‘10 CWS. The Longhorns also earned top billing in 2003 and ‘06
while North Carolina managed its first preseason top rating in 2009.

LSU held down the No. 1 slot in both the 1998 and 2001 NCBWA preseason
selections while other No. 1 placers in the initial polls are Southern
California (1999), Miami (Fla.) (2000), Stanford (2002), Cal State
Fullerton (2005), Rice (2004, 07), and Arizona State (2008). The three
final No. 1 choices prior to LSU in 2009 have come from the Far West in
Fresno State (2008) and two-time NCAA champ Oregon State (2006 and ‘07).

This week’s poll has representation by 12 different conferences among
the 302 baseball-playing schools in the 2010 NCAA Division I ranks. The
polls of 2009 had teams from 16 different DI conferences rated at least
one week. For more information or to join the NCBWA, please go to
www.ncbwa.com.

Rank-School-2009 Record-Final ‘09 Poll Place

1 Texas  Big 12 50-16-1 2

2 LSU  SEC 56-17 1

3 Virginia  ACC t 48-15-1 6

4 Cal State Fullerton  Big West 47-16 7

5 Rice   Conference USA 43-18 9

6 Florida State   ACC 45-18 10

7 UC Irvine   Big West 45-15 13

8 Arizona State  Pac-10 51-14 3

9 Georgia Tech ACC 38-19-1 19

10 Florida SEC 42-22 14

11 TCU   Mountain West 40-18 11

12 Miami (Fla.)   ACC 38-22 20

13 North Carolina   ACC 48-18 4

14 Clemson  ACC 44-22 15

15 Arkansas  SEC 41-24 5

16 East Carolina   C-USA 46-20 16

17 Coastal Carolina   Big South 47-16 21

18 Oregon State   Pac-10 37-19 24

19 Louisville   Big East 47-18 17

20 Mississippi   SEC 44-20 12

21 South Carolina   SEC 40-23 23

22 Southern Miss   C-USA 40-26 8

23 Ohio State   Big Ten 42-19 NR

24 San Diego   West Coast 29-25 NR

25 Oklahoma   Big 12 43-20 18

26 Georgia   SEC 38-24 26

27 UCLA   Pac-10 27-29 NR

28 Texas A&M   Big 12 37-24 25

29 Vanderbilt   SEC 37-27 29

30 Stanford   Pac-10 30-25 NR

31 Wichita State  Missouri Valley 30-27 NR

32 Alabama   SEC 37-21 30

33 Kansas   Big 12 39-24 NR

34 Kansas State   Big 12 43-18-1 22

35 Minnesota   Big Ten (40-19) NR

Others receiving votes (listed alphabetically): Army (26-21), Auburn
(31-25), Bethune-Cookman (32-28), Cal Poly (37-21), Charlotte (33-22),
Connecticut (36-24), Dallas Baptist (38-17), Dayton (38-19), Elon
(41-18), Florida Gulf Coast (36-18), Florida International (34-23),
Fresno State (32-30), George Mason (42-14), James Madison (30-24),
Kentucky (28-26), Long Beach State (25-29), Middle Tennessee State
(44-18), Mississippi State (25-29), Notre Dame (36-23), Oklahoma State
(34-24), Oral Roberts (33-15), Pepperdine (31-23), Rhode Island
(37-20-1), San Diego State (41-23), South Florida (34-25), Tennessee
(26-29), UCF (22-35), UNC Wilmington (31-23), Washington State (32-25),
Western Kentucky (42-20), Xavier (39-21) .

By conference: SEC 9, ACC 5, Big 12 5, Pac-10 4, Conference USA 3, Big
West 2, Big Ten 2, WCC 1, Big East 1, Big South 1, MVC 1, MWC 1.

CAA Baseball 2010 Preview

Will 2010 Conference Race Be As Close As 2009?

2009 Regular Season Champion:  George Mason

2009 Tournament Champ:  Georgia St. beat UNC Wilmington 12-10

Last year’s CAA regular season race was one of the closest in the history of the conference.  Just 1 1/2 games separated second place from eighth place in the final regular season standings.  In fact, five teams were vying for the final three spots in the 2009 CAA Tournament on the last day of the 2009 regular season.

2010 CAA Preview

Delaware

2009 Record:  (28-20, 11-10)

Mascot:  Blue Hens

Head Coach:  Jim Sherman

Location:  Newark, DE

Vitals:  .319 BA, 85 HR, .407 OBP, .962 Fld%…5.40 ERA, 6 CG, 5 SV, 341 K, 181 BB, .285 opp. BA

Into The Hall:  Head coach Jim Sherman was recently inducted into the Delaware Athletics Hall of Fame.  Sherman helped the Blue Hens to three NCAA Tournaments during his playing days from 1979-’82.  The outfielder set the program record with 46 career home runs.

Everyday Alonso:  Senior Carlos Alonso (.380, 37 RBIs, 20 doubles) reached base safely in each of the Blue Hen’s 48 games last year.  The third baseman is the first player to do so in Delaware program history.  Alonso also stole a team-high 12 bases.

Blue Hen Pop:  Another senior, Ryan Cuneo (.285, 17 HR, 56 RBIs), is back as well to provide the pop in the Delaware line-up.  He’ll have to help Delaware overcome the losses of Bill Merkler (.371, 17 HR) and Scott Shockley (10 HR).

On The Mound:  Rich O’Donald (5-4, 4.32 ERA, 3 CG) and Brian Rorick (4-3, 4.85 ERA, 3 CG) give the Blue Hens two-thirds of their weekend rotationn back from last year.  They combined for all six of the pitching staff’s six complete games.  They must replace Corey Crispell (5-4, 3.88 ERA) who had a team-best 3 saves.

George Mason

2009 Record:  (42-14, 19-5)

Mascot:  Patriots

Head Coach:  Bill Brown

Location:  Fairfax, VA

Vitals:  .321 BA, 82 HR, .401 OBP, .970 Fld%…4.45 ERA, 1 CG, 15 SV, 379 K, 164 BB, .275 opp. BA

Banner Year:  Head coach Bill Brown was named the ABCA East Region’s Coach of the Year in 2009 after leading his team to a school records for wins, home wins, winning percentage and home runs as well as an NCAA Tournament bid.  A school record six Patriots were also taken in the MLB Draft.

Lone Patriot:  George Mason had five players named First Team All-CAA last year, but RHP Kevin Crum (8-4, 4.64 ERA) is the only one back in 2010.

Big Shoes To Fill:  The Patriots lose their top three hitters, Chris Henderson (.413, 14 HR, 1.189 OPS), Scott Krieger (.372, 20 HR, 80 RBIs) and Justin Bour (.339, 17 HR, 66 RBIs), from last year’s team.  They also lose their top two relievers Ben Reade (3-1, 3.03 ERA) and Shawn Griffith (4-0, 3.05 ERA), who combined to make 51 appearances, and starter Mike Modica (11-2, 4.34 ERA) who tossed the staff’s only CG.

Georgia State

2009 Record:  (39-22, 12-9)

Mascot:  Panthers

Head Coach:  Greg Frady

Location:  Atlanta, GA

Vitals:  .310 BA, 74 HR, .403 OBP, .961 Fld%…5.44 ERA, 5 CG, 19 SV, 474K, 261 BB, .283 opp. BA

Good Times:  Georgia State set a school record with 39 wins last season en-route to winning the program’s first CAA Tournament championship.  The Panthers were 0-2 in the Atlanta (Georgia Tech) NCAA Regional.

Panthers On The Prowl:  Senior first baseman Bradley Logan (.309, 10 HR, 49 RBIs)  and pitchers Ryan Moore (7-2, 4.41 ERA) and Justin Malone (1-0, 1.35 ERA, 7 SVs) are the team’s top returnees.  Malone held opponents to a .216 average, and he didn’t allow a home run in 26 2/3 IP.  Five other pitchers who combined for seven more saves are

back as well.

Tough Losses:  The team’s top two runs producers from a year ago, Marc Mimeault (.398, 15 HR, 58 RBIs) and Derek Simmons (.316, 13 HR, 53 RBIs),  are gone.

Top Transfer:  Mark Micowski comes to the Panthers after the University of Vermont eliminated its baseball program after last season.  Micowski was named to the 2008 America East All-Rookie Team and earned 2nd Team America East Conference honors last year after hitting .365 with 28 stolen bases.  He set a Vermont single season record with 80 hits last year.

Raising The Bar:  After opening last season by hosting four games vs. Cleveland State the Panthers will open 2010 with a 3-game series in Tallahassee, FL vs. Florida State.

Hofstra

2009 Record:  (11-32, 6-18)

Mascot:  Pride

Head Coach:  Patrick Anderson

Location:  Hempstead, NY

Vitals:  .294 BA, 20 HR, .383 OBP, .958 Fld%…9.78 ERA, 1 CG, 3 SV, 218 K, 181 BB, .375 opp. BA

Tight Pen:  Hostra used just 10 pitchers last season.  Nine of them made at least 14 appearances and pitched at least 14 2/3 innings.

Slight Returns:  The Pride loses three of its top four batters from last year.  Mark Stuckless (.392), Chris Mentrasti (.323) and Tom Legregni (.308) combined to steal 47 bases in 2009.  Matt Prokopowicz (.344, 3 HR, 30 RBIS, 4 SB) is the team’s top returning hitter.  Junior RHP Jeff Guthridge (4-2, 4.38 ERA) returns as well.  He was the only Hofstra pitcher with a winning record last year.

ACC Challenge:  Hofstra plays three games at Florida State Feb. 26-28 and then goes to Maryland for three games the following weekend.

James Madison

2009 Record:  (30-24, 12-11)

Mascot:  Dukes

Head Coach:  Spanky McFarland

Location:  Harrisonburg, VA

Vitals:  .330 BA, 75 HR, .410 OBP, .965 Fld%…6.84 ERA, 2 CG, 14 SV, 438 K, 233 BB, .300 opp. BA

Missed It By That Much:  The Dukes missed the CAA Tournament by percentage points last year, becoming the first

school in league history with a winning record to miss the tourney.

Knight Time:  JMU is led by CAA Preseason Player of the Year Trevor Knight.  The redshirt junior (he missed what would have been his freshman season in 2007 with injury) does a little of everything for the Dukes.  He hit .377 with 14 HR, 55 RBIs and a .641 slg% as a first baseman/DH.  Knight was also 3-2 on the mound with a 4.32 ERA in 41 2/3 IP.  He made 10 relief appearances and one start.

And Then Some:  Knight is one of eight returning JMU everyday position players.  The others include Matt Towsend, who hit .390 with 17 HR, 17 doubles and 17 SB, and 59 RBIs,  Matt Browning (.376, 9 HR, 59 RBIs),  David Herbek (.370, 10 HR, 50 RBIs, 20 doubles), Alex Foltz (.351),and  Mike Fabiaschi (.328).   Each of those six batters stole at least 13 bases to help the team total 108 swipes along with 75 HR last year.

And Some Pitching:  Starter Turner Phelps (8-2, 5.33 ERA) leads the rotation, while Kevin Munson (3-3, 2.85 ERA, 9 SVs) and his 95 mph fastball are back to close things out. JMU returns nine pitchers who compiled 87% of the team’s innings pitched last year.

Cape Kings:  Knight, Phelps and Munson were teammates with the Bourne Braves in the Cape Cod League last summer.  They teamed with the likes of East Carolina’s Kyle Roller to help Bourne win its first ever Cape championship.

Northeastern

2009 Record:  (28-25, 13-11)

Mascot:  Huskies

Head Coach:  Neil McPhee

Location:  Boston, MA

Vitals:  .288 BA, 50 HR, .352 OBP, .964 Fld&…4.60 ERA, 3 CG, 14 SV, 422 K, 200 BB, .286 opp. BA

Playing The Sox:   The Huskies are slated to face the Boston Red Sox on March 3  in Ft. Myers, FL.  It will be the seventh straight exhibition meeting with the MLB club.  The Red Sox haven’t allowed a Northeastern run since 2006, and have outscored the Huskies 73-2 since their first meeting in 2004.

Staying And Going:  Senior OF Frank Campagnone (.343, 19 RBIs) and soph. OF Matt Miller (.310, 21 RBIs) are the top returning hitters back from last year’s CAA Tournament team.  However, the Huskies lose their top run producers Mike Tamsin (.347, 45 RBIs), James Donaldson (.332, 12 HR, 43 RBIs) and Frank Pesanello (.281, 13 HR, 40 RBIs).

Strong Arms:  A pair of lefties are back from the Husky bullpen.  Senior Dan Zehr (2-3. 3.30 ERA) and soph. Andrew Leenhouts (1-1, 2.37 ERA) combined for 51 appearances and 10 saves last year.

His Own Glavine:  Northeastern assistant coach Mike Glavine is entering his fourth season on the Husky coaching staff this year.  The younger brother of Tom Glavine, Mike was inducted into the Northeastern Hall of Fame in 2006.  He had a 10-year professional career after hitting 28 home runs with 110 RBIs at Northeastern, which rank third and ninth, respectively, in the school record books.

Old Dominion

2009 Record:  (22-27, 13-11)

Mascot:  Monarchs

Head Coach:  Jerry Meyers

Location:  Norfolk, VA

Vitals:  .292 BA, 35 HR, .365 OBP, 75 SB, .972 Fld%…5.51 ERA, 7 CG, 5 SV, 275 K, 186 BB, .300 opp. BA

McAloose Is Loose:  Senior Jake McAloose is ODU’s only preseason All-CAA honoree.  The third baseman hit a team-best .413 with 6 home runs and 43 RBIs last year.  He also had an OPS of 1.111, while scoring a team-high 48 runs.  He’s joined in the line-up by Donnie Corsner (.323, 5 HR, 21 RBIs) and Josh Wright (.263, 11 HR, 49 RBIs).  Wright is a redshirt sophomore who made the CAA All-Rookie Team last year.

Two-Way Harris:  Sophomore RHP/OF Brett Harris (6-4, 4.95 ERA) led the Monarchs in wins last year, while racking-up five of the staff’s seven complete games.  Harris also hit .303 with 31 RBIs.

Action In The Pen:  Senior Chris Boggs (5-2, 3.20 ERA) had the staff’s best ERA and earned the second most wins in 2009.  He heads a group of three returners who each saved a game last year.  Boggs made six starts with 10 relief outings.

Towson

2009 Record:  (28-25, 12-12)

Mascot:  Tigers

Head Coach:  Mike Gottlieb

Location:  Towson, MD

Vitals:  .321 BA, 97 HR, .966 Fld%…7.67 ERA, 1 CG, 7 SV, 384 K, 250 BB

No Cream Puffs:  The Tigers play the most challenging schedule in school history this year, with six games against 2009 College World Series teams on the schedule.  Towson plays a four-game series at Arizona State Feb. 26-28 and finishes the month of March with two games at Virginia.

Key Returns:  Towson returns four of its top six batters from a team that set a school record with a .321 batting average last year.  Kevin Collins (.335, 14 HR, 56 RBIs, 11 SB) and Chris Wyshock (.310, 14 HR, 51 RBIs) lead the list of returnees.

Sizable Losses:  Gone are Gary Helmick (.430, 17 HR, 51 RBIs), Aaron Gabrielson (.307, 10 HR, 40 RBIs) and Jason Stifler (.266, 12 HR, 44 RBIs).

Nat’s Back:  Shortstop Nick Natoli returns after missing last season with a knee injury.  The junior was named CAA Defensive Player of the Year in 2008.  He also hit .349 that year, while earning 2nd team All-CAA honors.

On The Mound:  Towson’s top two starters, Drew Permison (3-2, 6.24 ERA) and Tyler Austin (3-1, 7.32 ERA), return.  Permison tossed the team’s only complete game last year.  They lose closer Josh Squatrito (5-2, 5.59 ERA, 7 SVs).

UNC Wilmington

2009 Record:  (31-23, 10-8)

Mascot:  Seahawks

Head Coach:  Mark Scalf

Location:  Wilmington, NC

Vitals:  .292 BA, 39 HR, .385 OBP, .966 Fld%…5.36 ERA, 0 CG, 15 SV, 379 K, 230 BB, .276 opp. BA

Returning In Droves:  The Seahawks return all eight starting position players from a year ago.  While they hit just 39 home runs in 2009 the players they return combined to hit 37 of those long balls.  Catcher Cody Stanley (.332, 12 HR, 56 RBIs, 1.033 OPS) and DH Robbie Monday (.277, 12 HR, 38 RBIs)  bring back the bulk of Wilmington’s power, and while Grayson Evans (.314) hit just 3 HR, he had almost as many doubles (21) as he had strikeouts (25).

Plus Pitching:  Several significant pitchers from last year’s team are back as well.  Daniel Cropper (5-2, 5.46 ERA) and Seth Frankoff (3-5, 5.76 ERA) were the team’s innings pitched leaders with 59 1/3 and 65 2/3, respectively.  Top relievers Bryan Booth (2-1, 3.31 ERA),  Tyler McSwain (2-1, 3.80 ERA) and and Steven Davis (5-2, 5.01 ERA) are back to carry the load in the bullpen.  They combined for 93 appearances and 13 of the team’s 15 saves.

Interesting Match-Up:  UNC Wilmington hosts a 3-game series with Rhode Island March 19-21.  The Rams just missed the NCAA Tournament last year.

VCU

2009 Record:  (20-26, 8-16)

Mascot:  Rams

Head Coach:  Paul Keyes

Location:  Richmond, VA

Vitals:  .299 BA, 23 HR, .380 OBP, .958 Fld%…6.40 ERA, 4 CG, 7 SV, 268 K, 164 BB, .302 opp. BA

Running Rams:  While VCU’s 23 home runs ranked second to last in the 11 team CAA last year, their 77 stolen bases were fourth best in the conference.  Senior outfielders Andrew Dimino (.323, 40 runs, .428 OBP), who led the CAA with 25 swipes, and Matt Leskiw (.343, 13 SB, .440 OBP) both return this year.

Solid Nucleus:  Dimino and Leskiw are among five of six VCU regulars who hit .301 or better in 2009, including  Joe Van Meter who led the team in batting average (.347) and doubles (13).  The Rams lose team home run leader Justin Wright (.327, 8 HR, 42 RBIs, .570 slg%).

William & Mary

2009 Record:  (24-25, 9-15)

Mascot:  Tribe

Head Coach:  Frank Leoni

Location:  Williamsburg, VA

Vitals:  .292 BA, 37 HR, .395 OBP, .950 Fld%…5.79 ERA, 1 CG, 6 SV, 347 K, 251 BB, .292 opp. BA

CWS Challenge:  William & Mary plays a combined five games vs. three 2009 College World Series teams.  They play three games at defending national champion LSU Feb. 26-28, one game at North Carolina on March 9 followed by a game at Virginia on March 16.

Gaping Hole:  The team’s top three hitters from a season ago, Tyler Stampone (.382, 5 HR, 40 RBIs), Rob Nickle (.351, 14 HR, 60 RBIs) and Jeff Jones (.347, 4 HR, 31 RBIs), are all gone.  the trio accounted for 43% of William & Mary’s RBIs and 62% of the team home run total last year.  Jones also stole a team-high 23 bases.  No other player had double digit swipes.

Returning Pitching:  Sophomore RHP Matt Davenport (6-2, 4.71 ERA) didn’t just lead the pitching staff in wins last year, he was also the only Tribe pitcher to sport a winning record.  Junior Logan Billbrough (3-3, 4.20 ERA, 3 SV)  returns as well.  His 24 appearances in 2009 were a team-high.

2010 CAA Predictions

CAA Champion: James Madison

Player of the Year: Trevor Knight – James Madison

Pitcher of the Year: Ryan Moore – Georgia State

ACC Baseball 2010 Preseason Poll

League Coaches Pick Virginia To Repeat As Champion

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Defending Atlantic Coast Conference champion Virginia, which made its first ever College World Series appearance last June, has been picked as the 2010 preseason favorite in a vote of the league’s 12 head baseball coaches.

The Cavaliers, who return a strong cast that includes All-America outfielder Jarrett Parker, 2009 ACC Freshman of the Year Danny Hultzen and 2009 ACC Championship MVP Dan Grovatt, were projected as the ACC’s 2010 champion on eight head coaches’ ballots. Three coaches chose Florida State, and North Carolina received one vote.

Eleven of the league’s head coaches picked Virginia as the favorite to win the Coastal Division, with defending division champion North Carolina receiving one vote. Florida State was a favored to claim a fourth straight Atlantic Division championship on 10 ballots, while two coaches favored Clemson.

Georgia Tech placed second in the overall Coastal Division preseason coaches’ voting, followed by North Carolina, Miami, Virginia Tech and Duke.

Clemson was picked to finish second in the Atlantic Division, followed by Boston College, NC State, Wake Forest and Maryland.

Teams were awarded six points for each first-place vote, five points for each second-place vote, etc.

Virginia, which won a school-record 49 games in 2009, was joined in the College World Series by North Carolina, which made its ACC-record fourth straight trip to Omaha. Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech and Miami also made the 2009 NCAA field, with Clemson and Florida State joining North Carolina and Virginia in the final 16.

ACC teams open their 2010 seasons Feb. 19 and conclude regular-season play May 22. The 2010 ACC Baseball Championship will be held May 26-30 at NewBridge Bank Park in Greensboro, N.C.

Complete results of the 2010 ACC Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll are listed below. First-place votes are in parenthesis:

ATLANTIC DIVISION

Team                                                   Points              2009 Record

Florida State (10)                                  70                    45-18. 19-9 ACC

Clemson (2)                                         62                    44-22, 19-11 ACC

Boston College                                     42                    34-26, 13-15 ACC

NC State                                               38                    25-31, 10-20 ACC

Wake Forest                                         21                    22-30, 6-24 ACC

Maryland                                              19                    27-27, 10-20 ACC

COASTAL DIVISION

Team                                                   Points              2009 Record

Virginia (11)                                         71                    49-15-1, 16-11-1 ACC

Georgia Tech                                        57                    38-19-1. 17-10-1 ACC

North Carolina (1)                                 44                    48-18, 19-10 ACC

Miami                                                   42                    38-22, 18-12 ACC

Virginia Tech                                        20                    32-21, 12-17 ACC

Duke                                                    18                    35-24, 15-15 ACC

Overall champion: Virginia (8)

Others receiving votes: Florida State (3), North Carolina (1)

Conference USA 2010 Preseason Baseball Team

Rice & ECU Lead The Way With Four Players Each

Conference USA announced its 2010 preseason baseball awards, as chosen by the league’s nine head coaches. Rice sophomore third baseman Anthony Rendon was chosen as the preseason Player of the Year, while Southern Miss junior righthander Todd McInnis was named the preseason Pitcher of the Year. Both players won those awards last season.

Rendon was a second team All-American last season, a national semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and earned National Freshman of the Year honors from Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball. He became the first player in Conference USA history to be named both the Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the same season. Rendon led C-USA in batting average (.388), slugging percentage (.702)

and home runs with a Rice freshman record of 20 round-trippers. Rendon was also tops on the team and among the league’s best in RBI (72). In addition to scoring 60 runs and knocking 14 doubles, he drew 31 walks for a .406 on-base average. He was named C-USA Tournament Most Valuable Player after leading the Owls to the championship title.

McInnis became the first Southern Miss player to be named Conference USA Pitcher of the Year. He finished 9-4 with a 3.73 ERA (sixth in C-USA) and 90 strikeouts to just 34 walks. McInnis ranked among the league leaders in several categories in conference play, including wins (tied for third with four), innings pitched (fifth with 46.2) and strikeouts (fifth with 43).

Rendon is joined by three Owls teammates on the preseason All-Conference USA team. Junior SS Rick Hague is on the squad for the second straight season as he comes off a successful summer with team USA, tying for the team lead in batting. During the 2009 collegiate season he started all 61 games, leading the team in doubles with 17, hitting nine home runs and driving in 57 runs. Junior OF Chad Mozingo and junior LHP Taylor Wall are the other Rice players on the preseason team. Mozingo batted .319 with 16 doubles, eight homers and 50 RBI,

while Wall was 7-6 with a 3.72 ERA and a team-high 77 strikeouts.

McInnis is joined on the preseason All-C-USA squad by Golden Eagles relief pitcher Collin Cargill. A preseason All-American, made 28 appearances in 2009, posting a 4-3 record with a 3.55 ERA and a league-leading 13 saves. Five of Cargill’s saves came in postseason play, including both wins at Georgia Tech in regional play and both victories at Florida in the Super Regionals.

East Carolina matched Rice for the most selections with four. Headlining the Pirates selections are a pair of preseason All-Americans in senior DH Kyle Roller and junior OF Trent Whitehead. Roller, a 2009 first-team All-America selection by the America Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and Ping!Baseball, batted .366 (86-for-256) with 16 home runs and 75 RBI. He ranked among the national leaders in hit by pitches (fourth), RBI (23rd), total bases (79th), home runs (80th) and hits (98th) after earning first-team All-Conference USA and NCAA Greenville Regional All-Tournament honors. A second-team All C-USA and C-USA All-Tournament Team selection, Trent Whitehead set the school’s single-season hit record with 105 base knocks which ranked fourth nationally. The left-handed lead-off hitter started 63 games in the outfield where he batted .376 (105-for-279) with seven home runs, 47 RBI, 24 doubles and scored 78 runs. Whitehead also took home NCAA Greenville Regional Most Outstanding Player honors. Junior righthander Seth Maness and Junior OF Devin Harris round out ECU’s selections. Maness, who has not lost a regular season game the past two years, was 9-3 with a 4.71 ERA last season, while striking out 83 and walking just 18. Harris hit .344 in 2009, hitting 14 home runs and driving in 48 runs, while stealing 13 bases.

Four schools had one player named to the team, as Houston junior SS Blake Kelso, Marshall junior 1B Victor Gomez, Tulane sophomore C Jeremy Schaffer and UAB senior SS Jonathan Merritt each earned spots. Kelso led UH in batting at .336, while hitting a team-best 16 doubles. Gomez batted .332 with 13 doubles, along with team-bests of 18 home runs and 62 RBI. Schaffer, who starred for Team USA this past summer, hit .311 with 14 homers and 56 RBI in earning All-Freshman honors. Merritt is a four-year starter who batted .317 with 18 doubles and 20 stolen bases last season.

Conference USA’s 15th baseball season gets underway on February 19. The conference tournament is scheduled for May 26-30 in Houston, with UH serving as the host for the new six-team, pool-play format.. C-USA’s nine baseball schools have produced 62 NCAA appearances and nine College World Series teams over the past 14 seasons.

2010 PRESEASON BASEBALL AWARDS
(as selected by C-USA’s head coaches)

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Anthony Rendon, Rice (Sophomore, Third Baseman)

PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Todd McInnis, Southern Miss (Junior, Righthander)

ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
P Seth Maness Jr. East Carolina
P Todd McInnis Jr. Southern Miss
P Taylor Wall So. Rice
RP Collin Cargill Jr.. Southern Miss
C Jeremy Schaffer So. Tulane
IF Victor Gomez Jr. Marshall
IF Rick Hague Jr. Rice
IF Blake Kelso Jr. Houston
IF Jonathan Merritt Sr. UAB
IF Anthony Rendon So. Rice
OF Devin Harris Jr. East Carolina
OF Chad Mozingo Jr. Rice
OF Trent Whitehead Jr. East Carolina
DH/UT Kyle Roller Sr. East Carolina

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