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Images From VT-GT Regular Season Finale…

Once again, Collegebaseball360.com photo journalist Dave Wolpert has some great photos for us. Dave was at the Virginia Tech-Georgia Tech series over the weekend in Blacksburg, Va, and he has some great shots of players like Buck Farmer, Andrew Rash, Kyle Wren, Matt Skole and others.

Dave will also be at this week’s ACC Baseball Tournament and we’ll have shots of the action from Durham soon!

Virginia Tech outfielder Andrew Rash

Georgia Tech pitcher Buck Farmer is 10-2 with a 2.89 ERA this season.

 

ACC Home Run leader Andrew Rash congratulates shortstop Tim Smalling on scoring after hitting triple.

Yellow Jackets catcher Zane Evans throws runner out at first base.

Right now, you can save 10% on everything – even sale items –  in stock at Dugouthats.com when you enter the coupon code CB360.

Save on 2011 College World Series apparel as well as authentic college baseball caps from teams like LSU, Texas, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, UCLA, South Carolina, Miami and more at Dugouthats.com!

 

 

Georgia Tech's Kyle Wren

 

GT second baseman Matt Hyde

Matt Skole scores a run.

Kyle Wren

 

 

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The TCU – Cal State Fullerton and Vanderbilt – Stanford series were two of the top match-ups of the second week of the 2011 college baseball season. This week’s Notebook includes those series as well as other notables from around the nation.

Taylor Jungman has thrown two complete game shutouts to open the season.

junior did it again Friday with a 2-0, 4-hit win at Hawaii. All nine hits Jungmann has given-up this year have been singles. He has 18 strikeouts and just one walk.

15…Innings it took on Saturday for Hawaii to scratch-out a 5-4 win over the Longhorns. David Peterson scored the winning run on a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the 15th. Pitchers from the two teams combined for 25 strikeouts, seven walks, four hit batters, and six wild pitches in the 4 1/2 hour maraton. Hawaii’s Pi’ikea Kitamura and Texas’ Paul Montalbano were each o-for-7 at the plate.

3…Big wins for Cal at the Baseball at the Beach Tournament in Myrtle Beach, SC. In the second weekend of their swan song season, the Golden Bears outscored Coastal Carolina, North Carolina State and Kansas State by a combined 29-1 to improve to 5-1. The bulk of the runs came in their 17-0 win over Coastal Carolina. Chanticleer ace Anthony Meo yielded 9 ER on 10 hits in just 5.0 IP in the drubbing.

7…RBIs to go along with 2 HR by Golden Bears CF Chad Bunting in the win over Coastal Carolina. Bunting was 7-for-12 (.583) for the weekend in Myrtle Beach.

5…Straight wins to open the season by Michigan State before dropping an 8-0 decision at Clemson Sunday. The 5-0 start for Jake Boss, Jr.’s squad is the best by MSU since 1964. Senior centerfielder Brandon Eckerle leads the Spartans with a .696 (16-for-23) average.

6…Straight losses to open the season by Michigan after being swept in three games by Rutgers in Port St. Lucie, FL. All six Wolverine losses are to Big East Teams (they were 0-3 at the Big East/Big Ten Challenge). Rutgers starter Tyler Gebler tossed a complete game to earn the win in the series-opener.

10…Combined runs allowed (7 earned) by UCLA aces Trevor Bauer and Gerrit Cole in Saturday and Sunday’s shocking 5-3 and 8-3 losses to San Jose State. After the losses, the Bruins fell to 4-2 after opening last year with 22 straight wins.

Matt Zahel saved both of Toledo's wins at Louisville.

2…Wins to start their series at Louisville by Toledo. The Rockets won by scores of 3-1 and 4-2 Friday and Saturday as the Cardinals lost their first two home games of a season for the first time in 20 years. Toledo closer Matt Zahel saved both wins with a total of 2.0 perfect innings with three strikeouts. Toledo had lost twice to Canisius and once to Creighton in the season’s opening weekend. Louisville won Sunday’s finale 4-2.

0…Hits allowed by Georgia Tech starter Jed Bradley in 7.0 IP in Saturday’s 5-0 win over St. John’s. Bradley fanned 10 with three walks to earn his first win of 2011. Bradley has 20 Ks and has allowed just four hits and one run in 12 1/3 innings this season.

.800…Batting average of Yellow Jacket 3B/1B/C Matt Skole in the 3-game series. Skole was 8-for-10 with a HR and 7 RBIs on the weekend.

0…Runs scored by St. John’s in their first two games of the series with the Yellow Jackets before finally erupting for a 13-3 win in Sunday’s series finale. The Red Storm has scored a total of 35 runs in their three games at the season-opening Big East/Big Ten Challenge.

10…Runs scored in the first inning by Georgia Tech in Friday’s 13-0 series-opening win. Red Storm starter Sean Hagan exited after allowing all 10 ER on 9 hits in just 2/3 IP.

2…Of 3 games won by Cal State Fullerton at TCU to hand the Horned Frogs their first series loss in nearly two years. After dropping Friday’s opener, the Titans won by finals of 8-4 and 2-1 Saturday and Sunday, respectively. TCU ace Matt Purke (17-0 in his career) did not pitch in the series due to a blister on his finger. TCU last lost a series in March 2009 when they lost two of three to San Diego State.

1…Career Division One win by Delaware pitcher Eric Young. It came in Friday’s 7-3 upset at Arizona State. Young, a transfer from Riverside CC, gave-up two runs in 5.0 IP in his first career start in the series-opener against the Sun Devils. Blue Hens DH Jimmy Yezzo helped Young by going 2-for-4 with 3 RBIs.

Danny Hultzen

15…Strikeouts with no walks in 7.0 IP by Virginia’s Danny Hultzen in Friday’s 10-1 win over East Carolina. Hultzen yielded a single to open the game and then retired 19 straight Pirates. He struckout the side three times.

19…Combined strikeouts by Texas A&M’s John Stilson and Gonzaga’s Ryan Carpenter in Friday’s 1-0 win in 11 innings by the Aggies. Stilson, who was one of the top closers in the country last year, fanned 9 in 9.0 shutout innings in his second start of 2011, while Carpenter rang-up 10 Ks in 7 1/3 IP.

2…Wins over Top-30 teams (CB360 composite poll) by Stanford’s Jordan Pries. The junior helped the Cardinal beat #26 Cal in his first start on Tuesday and then earned another victory at #3 Vanderbilt on Sunday for Stanford’s only win in the 3-game series in Nashville. Pries totaled 11.0 IP with 8 Ks and 6 BB. He didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings of the 5-2 win over Vandy (7-1), although the first seven pitches he threw were balls. Stanford (3-3) will rely on Pries even more this year after the announcement that teammate Brett Mooneyham will miss the season after requiring surgery to repair a finger he cut in January.

7 2/3…Scoreless innings pitched by Radford relievers Jason Patton, Brad Wimmers and Abram Williams in Friday’s 13-inning 8-6 win over Auburn. Highlander LF Matt Hillsinger led-off the to of the 13th with a home run to help Radford to the upset.

14…Runs allowed in 11.0 IP by Alabama starting pitchers Adam Morgan, Nathan Kilcrease and Tucker Hawley in losses at the Jaguar Classic, hosted by South Alabama. The Crimson Tide staff surrendered a total of 43 hits in setbacks to Southeastern Louisiana, South Alabama and Central Florida.

26…Game hitting streak, to tie a school record, by Central Florida’s Beau Taylor that ended in Saturday’s loss to Southeastern Louisiana . Taylor made-up for in by going 2-for-4 with a home run and 4 RBIs in Sunday’s 12-4 win over Alabama.

3…RBIs and a home run by Appalachian State’s Jeremy Dowdy in Friday’s 7-4 upset of Miami in Coral Gables. The Hurricanes still took two of three games in the series.

Lawrence Pardo

29…Years since Appalachian State had beaten a ranked opponent prior to that win at #19 Miami. Freshman (and Miami native) Lawrence Pardo earned his first win in his second career start in his return to his home town. Prado gave-up three unearned runs on four hits in 6.0 IP.

2…Wins in the first two weeks of the season by Connecticut. The Huskies entered the season with the program’s first top 10 ranking, but have stumbled to a 2-4 start. Their lone wins are over winless Michigan and Texas A&M Corpus Christi. Friday and Saturday starters Elliott Glynn and Matt Barnes, respectively, have suffered all four defeats.

1.2…Runs-a-game scored by UConn in its four losses, while averaging 11 runs in its two wins, but just 1.2 runs in its four losses. Coaches we spoke to at the Big East/Big Ten Challenge last weekend said the losses of Pierre LePage (.327-29 SB) and Mike Olt (.381-23 HR-76 RBIs) from last year’s line-up will be tough to overcome.

10…Strikeouts by Oregon State’s Sam Gaviglio in Friday’s complete game, two-hit 2-0 over UConn. The junior has 15 Ks with one BB and has allowed just two unearned runs in 15 2/3 IP this season.

2…RPI-boosting wins last week by Texas A&M Corpus Christi, which beat Texas 8-7 on Tuesday and then topped Oregon State by the same score on Saturday. Islanders catcher Jumpy Garcia was 2-for-5 with 4 RBIs in the win over the Longhorns.

16…Innings it took Elon to defeat South Florida 7-5 Sunday in Tampa to tie the longest game in USF history. The game featured 14 pitchers, but amazingly took just under 3 1/2 hours to play. 21 of the game’s 24 hits were singles, the other three went for doubles.

16…Strikeouts in 7 2/3 IP by Memphis pitcher Dan Langfield in Friday’s win over Kennesaw State. The sophomore gave-up a pair of first inning singles, struckout the side in the second innings and then retired 16 of the next 19 batters he faces.

240…Points raised on Mike McGee’s batting average (.440) after the Florida State outfielder went 9-for-15 with two HR, 9 runs and 11 RBIs. McGee made his first pitching appearance of the season in the top of the 8th inning  and then homered in the bottom of the inning Sunday against Hofstra. It marks the eighth time McGee has homered and pitched in the same game.

27…Consecutive batters retired, spanning two starts, by Florida’s Brian Johnson. The lefty set down 10 straight batters to end his first start of 2011 against South Florida and then retired the first 17 men he faced in last Thursday’s win over Boston College. He is 2-0 with 12 shutout innings to open his sophomore campaign.

We have looked at the up the middle guys (catchers, shortstops and second basemen) in our first looks at some of the top players in college baseball. Now we’ll look at some of the top corner men, starting with the hot corner.

1. Anthony Rendon – Rice

Rendon’s first two college seasons have looked like this: 2009 – .388 Avg., 20 HR, 14 doubles, 72 RBIs, .702 slugging percentage, 1.163 OPS, named National Freshman of the Year and Conference USA Freshman and Player of the Year. 2010 – .394 Avg., 26 HR, 12 doubles, 85 RBIs, .801 slg. %, 1.331 OPS, 14 SB, named C-USA Player of the Year and C-USA Male Athlete of the Year for all C-USA sports, and National College Baseball Player of the Year. Rendon has also walked 96 times with just 45 strikeouts in his first two years. He’s a player you just know a guy like Theo Epstein (and obviously others) would love to get his hands on. Did I mention the fact that the City of Houston proclaimed June 29, 2010 as “Anthony Rendon Day“? The only thing Rendon is yet to accomplish in his already legendary college career is a trip to the College World Series.

2. Matt Skole – Georgia Tech

After two seasons, Skole is already one of the top power hitters in Georgia Tech history. He enters the upcoming campaign with 37 long balls, which ranks 11th in the Yellow Jacket record books. He also placed third at the inaugural TD Ameritrade Home Run Derby last summer. Skole earned first team All-ACC honors last year when he batted .335 with 20 HR, 15 doubles, 63 RBIs, and a 1.119 OPS. Like Rendon, he is disciplined at the plate. Skole had 45 walks with just 34 strikeouts last year, which was a drastic turn from his freshman season when he fanned 69 times with just 27 BB. Skole still hit .302 with 17 HR and 58 RBIs that year to earn Freshman All-American status. He will be called upon to produce early this season as one of two returning position playing starters in the GT line-up.

3. Austin Maddox – Florida

Maddox was a do-it-all guy who started all over the place in his freshman season last year. He made 29 starts at third base, 19 as Florida’s DH, 14 at first base, and even one start at catcher. The SEC Freshman of the Year typifies the wealth of young talent back from the Gator’s 2010 College World Series team. Maddox led Florida with 17 home runs , 72 RBIs and .587 slugging percentage, while his .333 batting average was second to Matt den Dekker’s .352. He also drove-in fellow freshman Nolan Fontana with the winning run in the 10th inning of game two of the Super Regional win over Miami. In addition to consensus Freshman All-American honors, Maddox also received third team NCBWA All-American status. That made him the first Florida freshman since 1996 to be so honored.

4. Jacob Tanis – Mercer

The school may be small, but Tanis has played big in his first two seasons at Mercer. He earned Freshman All-American honors by hitting 11 home runs with 35 RBIs and a 1.090 OPS in 2009. The 6’1 Tanis stepped his game up last year when he batted .388 with 22 HR, 25 doubles and 88 RBIs, while setting new school records with 102 hits and 197 total bases. His 88 RBIS tied for second in the nation, while his OPS hit a whopping 1.183. Tanis’ efforts helped Mercer to the Atlantic Sun Championship and a berth in the NCAA Atlanta Regional. He also earned third team All-American honors.

5. Harold Martinez – Miami

Martinez had a breakout sophomore season last year when he belted 21 home runs (up from nine in 2009). He batted .295 with a team-best 69 RBIs for a Hurricane team that fell to Florida in the Super Regionals. He missed the last game of that Super Regional in Gainesville due to injury and spent the summer rehabbing after surgery on his leg. Martinez had fouled several balls off the leg over the course of the season and had to have a lump removed as a result. With the loss of first round MLB Draft pick Yasmani Grandal, Martinez will have even more responsibilities in the line-up in 2011.

6. John Hinson – Clemson

Hinson is a guy who had question marks coming into the 2010 season. He played a little as a freshman in 2008, batting .264 with one home run and 11 RBIs. He missed all of 2009 with a back injury, so just what he would bring to the table in ’10 was a great unknown. Hinson played in all but two of Clemson’s 69 games last year though, batting .351 with 17 HR and 75 RBIs. All of those numbers were the second-best on his team for the College World Series participants. He also led Clemson with 25 stolen bases, while sporting a 1.008 OPS.

7. Matt Leeds – College of Charleston

Like Clemson’s Hinson, Leeds missed what would have been his sophomore season in 2009. Like Hinson, Leeds came back with a vengeance in 2010. He was named the Southern Conference Player of the Year after batting .326 with 21 home runs, 23 doubles and 88 RBIs. His RBI total tied with Mercer’s Tanis for second nationally. Leeds had an 1.123 OPS, and was hit by pitch 22 times. His efforts earned third team All-American status and helped the Cougars reach the Myrtle Beach NCAA Regional. Leeds was named to the All-Regional Team and then went on to participate in the TD Ameritrade Home Run Derby at Rosenblatt Stadium last summer.

8. Garrett Buechele – Oklahoma

Now a junior, Buechele was OU’s triple crown winner as a redshirt sophomore in 2010. The 6’0 slugger batted .359 with 17 home runs and 65 RBIs for the College World Series bound Sooners. He was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year in 2009 after sitting out the 2008 season. The son of former Major Leaguer Steve Buechele slugged a team-best .630 with a .438 OBP. He walked just 20 times, but was hit by pitch 19 times. Buechele has been good in the field as well. In his 128 starts at OU he has committed just 12 errors.

9. Jason Esposito – Vanderbilt

Esposito broke through as a sophomore last year, raising his batting average from .287 to .359. He also belted 12 home runs with team-highs 64 RBIs and 31 stolen bases, while leading the SEC with 25 doubles. Esposito batted .476 (10-for-21) with five RBIs at the Louisville Regional to help Vandy reach the Tallahassee Super Regional, where he batted .364 with two home runs and five more RBIs. The 6’2 sensation had big moments during the regular season as well. He had a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 17th inning to beat Louisville and also set a school record by reaching base safely 15 straight times in an SEC series against Mississippi State.

10. Scott Woodward – Coastal Carolina

There are infielders who play outfield, but Woodward is the rare combination of a corner infielder who also plays centerfield. He enters his senior season at CC with a school record .502 on-base percentage and ranks second in the record books in three other offensive categories. Woodward hit .324 with five home runs, four triples, seven doubles, 35 RBIs, and 75 runs scored. He also stole 55 bases to finish behind only teammate Rico Noel’s 56 for the DI national lead. The 6’2 Markle, IN native swiped 32 of those bags and hit .457 in Big South Conference games. Woodward was drafted last year in the 15th round by the Oakland A’s, but opted to return for his senior campaign.

11. Tony Renda – Cal

Renda earned Freshman All-American honors last year after batting a team-best .373 with three home runs and 37 RBIs. At 5’9, Renda started all 54 Cal games and also led his team with 81 hits, 55 runs, 21 doubles, and four triples, to help Dave Esquer’s Golden Bears to the NCAA Tournament. The Cal lead-off man batted .555 (5-for-9) with three runs and two RBIs in Cal’s two games at the Norman NCAA Regional. Renda was drafted in the 42nd round by the Los Angeles Dodgers coming out of high school.

Others To Watch…

Joe Corfman – Toledo

Brian Hernandez – UC Irvine

Micah Johnson – Indiana

Sherman Johnson – Florida State

Richie Pedroza – Cal State Fullerton

Rob Segedin – Tulane

Chris Taladay – Central Florida

Joe Terdoslavich – Long Beach State

Corey Thompson – East Carolina

Jantzen Witte – TCU

* Note: There are several corner men who played both first and third base in 2010. If you don’t see one of them on this list you may still see them on our list of top first basemen.

Related

Top 11 Non-Conference Schedules In 2011

Top 11 Catchers To Watch In 2011

Top 11 Shortstops To Watch In 2011

Top 11 Second basemen To Watch In 2011

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VollmuthThe Southern Mississippi shortstop had a whirlwind first year as a college baseball player.  First he helped the Golden Eagles to their first College World Series, and then he was named a Cape Cod League All-Star over the summer as a member of the Falmouth Commodores.

Vollmuth talks with Sean Stires about his CWS and Cape Cod experiences as well as his former and new head coaches, Corky Palmer and Scott Berry, respectively.   He also talks about USM’s plan to keep things going in 2010.

6’4 – 200 – So. – Biloxi, MS     Head Coach: Scott Berry