SJS, WAC, and WCC baseball

End of the Road

2016-02-22T14:27:00.001-08:00

Calling it Quits

That's right folks. Covering three conferences has proven too much for me to do. It has become more of a grind than a joy and it should be fun. I've been doing this for more than a few years and it's time to move on to other things.

If you like my stuff at all I still will cover Mountain West Conference baseball on mwcconnection.com as I have the past couple of seasons. Since I live near Northern Colorado (of the WAC) I will cover them on the fans' bulletin board but not here.

In any event, it's been nice and I will miss it.

WAC Plays Giant Killer to Big Boy Programs

2016-02-21T10:33:00.001-08:00

The WAC Has Stunning Victories in Opening Weekend

North Dakota's Zach Muckenhirn tosses a gem in Los Angeles - UND Athletics

The WAC has much to be proud of as the Sunday games have yet to be played. Read on

Seattle at Saint Mary’s

A great series pitting two up and coming programs. Saint Mary’s has been down for a number of years and is picked to do well this season. Seattle surprised many last season and could do more of the same. The Gaels have won both games so far. One was pretty much all St. Mary’s as it was 10-5 but the other was a masterpiece and SMC won 1-0. The second game of the doubleheader on Saturday also went to SMC by 5-2. Still, I think Seattle will compete this year.

Northern Colorado at Wichita State

The Bears were taking on a good and storied program in the Wheat Shockers and I’m afraid they got schooled. WSU has won both games by 11-0 and 17-2 so maybe there is hope for the pitching staff Sunday. The hitting needs to do what most of us know it can; score some runs. Otherwise, a not so good weekend.

Sacramento State at Auburn

It’s always nice to pick a fight in a neighbor’s back yard in which few think you can win; and you do. I’m not suggesting anything here, folks, just trying to make a metaphor. Let me rephrase. It’s nice to beat the SEC at anything. Does that work? The Hornets lost the first game 10-5 but won the second 6-5. So there.

UTRGV at Abilene Christian

The first three games have not gone well for Rio Grande Valley. They have lost by scores of 5-2, 7-2, and 3-1. I had worried a bit about these trap games. Abilene is a new D1 program playing at home. They haven’t done well in the past few years so they had a lot to prove and they certainly have done that. UTRGV has some work to do.

Bakersfield State at Northridge

The Antelopes played a local team so they went back and forth between the respective home fields. The ‘Lopes won game one by 8-5 then lost #2 by 7-5 and the rubber match is today.

Ball State, Minnesota, and Utah Valley (Surprise, AZ)

The Wolverines have split the first two of this tournament. They beat Ball State 5-1 but lost to Minnesota 8-2. Oh, have I forgotten something? Yes, indeedy. Utah Valley won the game of the weekend so far by besting Oregon State 12-9. I AM STUNNED! I’ve got to see who might be my poster boy from this game. This is a gold star for the WAC and UVU. Totally unexpected.

Chicago State at Texas A&M-CC

The Cougars won the opening game and I’m sure that put a smile on coach’s face. They won easily 7-1 and it was the pitching that impressed me in this one. TAMU-CC won the second game in close fashion by 8-6 but things could be looking up for Chicago State and I’m glad to see it.

Gonzaga at Grand Canyon

Two good programs go at it and there was a lot of bleeding by pitching staffs in these games. GCU won the first game in convincing fashion by 7-1 then split a Saturday doubleheader losing an ugly one 21-9 and winning 3-0. So far, so good but, 21 runs?

Towson State at NMSU

The Aggies take the first two games easily, 8-5 and 17-3. Are the boys from Las Cruces back?

North Dakota at USC

Holy crap! When do the surprises stop? The NDU no names go to LA and take the first two from the almighty (ok, I’m going a little overboard here) Trojans? Yes, they did by scores of 1-0 and 5-4. Ok, you guys, wipe those smiles off your collective faces. Oh, ye of little faith (that’s me). Zach Muckenhirn threw a complete game shutout to win 1-0 as he gave up only three hits and struck out nine. Think the scouts were watching. You can bet on it. He’s my poster child.

Some great wins, folks. It’s hard to choose between North Dakota and Utah Valley but North Dakota takes the prize as they won twice on the road against USC. Snow belt, my butt. Utah Valley also had a stunner in upsetting a very strong Oregon State in Arizona. Hat’s off also to Sac State for winning a game at Auburn. Chicago won their first game and I’d like them to continue that. Grand Canyon has taken two of three so far against Gonzaga so that’s pretty good also. Northern Colorado and UTRGV provided the only disappointments as they lost games either badly (UNC) or against poor competition (UTRGV). Overall, the WAC has a lot to be proud of as they beat some quality competition. Play Ball!

Opening Weekend for the WAC

2016-02-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

The WAC Begins a New Season

First, I must say something. This post is far too late and I haven’t done much lately. Why do I have the guilts for something I do for fun? I’ll leave it at that.

WAC baseball offered a few surprises last year. Sacramento State was just about everyone's choice to be the champions. They faltered which left things open for others to fill the void. One of the other surprises was the team that filled that void. Grand Canyon came up from a lower division to try their hand and D1 baseball and won big. NCAA rules said they couldn't go to the post season so they had to take pride in what they accomplished. I understand they can't go this year also which seems a bit draconian to me but I have no say. Another surprise was, at least in my estimation, the emergence of Seattle. We'll see if they can build on last year's success. Honestly, I like the WAC. The teams just need to prove themselves in OOC games. The snow belt teams such as Northern Colorado could be better but, show us, Bears.

Northern Colorado at Wichita State

I've visited WSU and that's a program that takes its baseball seriously as does the whole conference. The Wheatshockers finished 26-33 last season which equates to a dismal season for them. Expect to see improvement in the ‘Shockers. The Bears will hit in Wichita but the pitching will be put to the test.

Bakersfield at Northridge

This should be a good series as it pits the WAC Tournament winners (Bakersfield) against one of the Big West's up-and-comers (Northridge). The Matadors were 33-24 overall last season but stumbled in the Big West at 8-16. Bakersfield won the WAC Tournament and showed well in their regional as they beat Ole Miss in an elimination game. How will they do this year? They return the top three hitters which is a good start. Pitching might be a problem. Of the top three in the rotation last season only Steven Gee returns and he’s a good one to start with. He could end up being one of the best in the west and, certainly, in the WAC. They need to find him help.

Chicago State at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

Texas A&M-CC could be pretty good this year. They were last year as they finished up at 31-27 overall. That surprised me as I didn't see that coming. Chicago State is a program that has struggled and the coach is slowly building a program in Chicago. They have a ways to go and it's always the pitching that is the culprit. If they can straighten that out, they may turn the corner. So what do the Cougars have coming back? They have one returning .300 hitter in catcher Cody Freund (.312) but the top two hitters have moved on. The team ERA was over 6.00 last season and all but the leading arm are gone. Jake Perkins (1-5 and 4.20) will probably be the Friday guy but where the rest of the week will come from is a great question. This could be a tough weekend for the Cougs.

Gonzaga at Grand Canyon

Now here's an intriguing match. The WAC champs against a perennial power of the WCC. Gonzaga has done only fair the last few years but they are still a respected program. The Bulldogs were 24-28 last year and could both hit and pitch. Grand Canyon, on the other hand, is a new kid on the block and proved they belonged. Chad De La Guerra is gone and he'll be missed as will David Walker. Paul Panaccione (.376) returns and he's the pick for POY in the WAC and he'll be joined by Garrison Schwartz (.357), Brandon Smith (.348), and Thomas LeRouge (.342) so the offense is pretty loaded. Folks seem to be pretty high on the pitching but I see a lot of starts gone from the rotation. Coley Bruns and Andrew Naderer are both gone and take a collective 28 starts with them. That bothers me a bit but Jake Rapavich (8-2 and 4.74) and Mick Vorhof (5-0 and 3.02) might ease the pain a bit. Will Vorhof close or start could be an issue. Let's face it, though, these are all pretty good problems.

Towson at New Mexico State

When I looked at NMSU's recruits a while back I was a bit taken aback by the numbers. I don't have them in front of me but I got the impression that the coaching staff gave walk-on status to just about everyone with a pulse. In addition, I read later that their class of recruits got some recognition. If all of that is true, maybe things will look up a bit this season.

North Dakota at Southern California

This is one hell of a challenge for ND. The Trojans are rated in the top 20 by most polls and are a member of one of the big boys in the Pac 12. North Dakota will need to bring their A game. SC was 39-21 last season and a Tournament team. Most figure more of the same from them. This could be ugly. ND was 24-27 in 2015 which ain't too bad but they are the definition of a snow belt team. We're talking North Dakota in February, folks. They return only one starter from last year's rotation in Zach Muckenhirn (6-7 and 4.66) and Brett DeGagne (1-3 and 5.79) also returns probably in a larger role than last year's six starts. Jeff Campell, the big stick and closer wrapped in one, is gone and his dual production will be tough to match. Two other producers of the long ball are also gone in Ryan Reese and Dalton Parrott. The offense will be a question mark.

Sacramento State at Auburn

I’ll have to hand it to coach; he doesn’t duck tough assignments. The Hornets have two good pitchers in Sam Long (possible POY in the WAC) and Justin Dillon so they should hold their own but scoring runs might be a problem as most SEC teams have at least decent, if not great, pitching. Listen to this; the Tigers were 36-26 last season and a tournament team. They are picked for last in the Western Division of the SEC. Just no respect down there. I’d love to see the Hornets sting ‘em.

Seattle at St. Mary's

This could be a great series. Seattle was one of the surprises of the WAC in 2015 and St. Mary’s lost very few players and had a good recruiting class. I felt they could do quite well and some have them picked high enough in the WCC that they should challenge San Diego which seems to always be the favorite. A series worth watching. What does Seattle have returning? Three of the top four hitters come back so that’s a strength. Last year’s freshman sensation, Tarik Skubal, comes back and will be the leader in the rotation. Ted Hammond will close and start a weekend game I suspect but it’s anyone’s guess after those two.

UT Rio Grande Valley at Abilene Christian

Abilene Christian struggled at the D1 level last year. They are a member of the Southland Conference and went 18-36 overall and 6-18 in conference. Growing pains will continue for them as they are projected fairly low in the conference standings for 2016 and it's not a powerful conference.

Utah Valley at the Surprise Round Robin Tournament (Ball State, Oregon State, Minnesota)

There is one team that most people would pay to watch in this tournament and that’s Oregon State. Many feel they are one of the top teams in the US and could be the best when all is over in June. A lot of games need to be played before then and here’s where it starts. Oregon State is rated as high as #5 in one poll and is pretty loaded at most positions. Ball State ain’t so bad, either. They were 33-25 last season but only a game over .500 in conference (MAC). They are picked fairly high in their division so they could have another good season but I’ll bet not good enough to make the NCAA Tournament. Minnesota was 21-30 last season and most pick them to repeat another sub .500 year in the Big 10. So, in this Arizona tournament is one great team (OSU), one ok team (BSU), and two struggling programs (Minnesota and UVU). It will be good experience for UVU.

The best of the series? I’d have to say Seattle at St. Mary’s with Gonzaga at Grand Canyon a close second. That’s some good baseball folks. Go. See.

Scoring Runs Will be Issue #1 with Hornets in 2016

2016-02-11T09:30:00.004-08:00

Sacramento State Would Love to Make a Point in 2016

One of the WAC's top pitchers returns in Sam Long - credit Bob Solario/SSU Athletics

What do I mean by that? They faltered last season and were closer to the middle of the WAC pack than they were to the title as most had them pegged to win the title (including me). Coach is going to have them ready to prove that 2015 was nothing more than a speed bump.

The Hornets lose three from the starting lineup and two of them were also the two top hitters. Therefore, the outfield has question marks as does shortstop. I think Chris Lewis will be spending more time in the outfield than at DH. The team brings in a few juco transfers with outfield experience so I'm guessing coach is going to give them a shot at starting there.

They return two experienced starters with Sam Long, being one of the WAC's stars. I actually expect Dillon to have a break out year. But, after those two; who? Not a lot of starting experience left on the team so either an incoming newbie or someone with little experience that has showed a lot in fall ball. I'm going out on a limb here and suspect that Austin Ragsdale will get a shot at starting for the green team. San Jose State fans should remember him, right? The other slot? Coach Christiansen is going to have to help me out with that one. He did, as you can see below.

Bozar's Best Guess:

C - Gunner Pollman - .224 and 2

1B - Vinny Esposito - .251 and 8

2B - Brandon Hunley - .243 and 4

SS - ?

3B - Dan Deely - .262 and 1

OF - Chris Lewis - .275 and 5

OF - Bronson Grubbs - .213 and 0

OF - ?

DH - ?

SP - Sam Long - 6-4 and 2.81

SP - Justin Dillon - 6-6 and 3.67

SP - Austin Ragsdale - 1-1 and 0.00 but only 9 IP

SP - ?

RP - Ryan Smith - 0-0 and 2.33 with 3 saves in 19 IP

Coach’s Shot if it started tomorrow:

C - Gunner Pollman

1B - Vinny Esposito

2B - Brandon Hunley

SS - Trent Goodrich (SR) - juco transfer and one year at Dartmouth

3B - Kody Reynolds (JR) - juco transfer

OF - Chris Lewis

OF - Bronson Grubbs

OF - Andrew McWilliam (SO) - juco transfer and a draft choice in 2015

DH - Matt Smith (FR) - Led nation with 14 home runs in 2015

SP - Sam Long

SP - Justin Dillon

SP - Max Karnos (JR) - juco transfer

SP - Chad Perry - 1-0 and 6.23

RP - Beardsley, Gorgolinski, Olson, and Palsha

A comment on the relief as given me by coach. Beardsley (1-1 and 3.61) had no starts but had 42 IP. Gorgolinski is a juco transfer as are Olson and Johnson. Er, uh, I mean Palsha, not Johnson. Geezers will get the reference to an old time radio comedy team. Right? No? Crap.

The strength of this team will be pitching and there is nothing wrong with that. But, will they score runs? That's the big question as Esposito and Hunley have pop but no .300 hitters are in the lineup. Long and Dillon will take care of Friday and Saturday but this will be a year of unknowns outside of them. Keep an eye on freshman Matt Smith.

Toreros Have Big Number of Recruits for 2016

2016-01-11T15:21:00.002-08:00

San Diego Recruits Heavy on Pitching for 2016

Preseason AA Bryson Brigman might get some help on the mound. credit Brock Scott Photography.

Finding the high school players that will be playing for the Toreros the following year is a tough job for some programs. San Diego is one of those. The school talks about them when the recruiting class gets ranked (as it usually does) but that’s after the fact. So, the following list is short and I got these names from some other website. Sorry, folks, but this is what I get to work with. The 2016 roster also has no frosh or juco transfers listed at this time.

Well, I thought I’d look again as it’s January and there are some new names with some information but not a lot. I’ll see what I can do. Go ahead, look for yourself if you think this is easy.

San Diego lost quite a lot of talent due to graduation and the MLB draft. This happens just about every year to these guys. I have little sympathy as the talent just keeps rollin’ in. Let’s see what they have coming in (I guess) for 2016.

Kevin Collard, OF, Rancho Buena Vista HS, Vista, CA

He hit a ton as a sophomore (.417 in full time duty). Found little else in the way of stats but a lot of mention about draft possibilities. He’s a big left-handed bat so he sounds like a good get that didn’t get drafted. Now, did he show up?

Jeff Houghtby, SS, Valhalla HS, El Cajon, CA

Hit .355 as a senior. He made his All-League team. Dang, that’s it.

Matt Whitney, SS/3B, Camarillo HS, Oxnard, CA

Matt hit .338 and 1 his senior year.

Brhet Bewley, INF, Chaparral HS, Winchester, CA

Found nothing.

Michael Cartwright III, LHP, Granite Hills HS, El Cajon, CA

Found little other than he made an All-Academic team.

Connor Doyle, OF, San Ramon Valley HS, Danville, CA

Hit .433 his senior year which is more than acceptable.

Paul Kunst, UTL, Marin Catholic HS, Novato, CA

He hit only .278 as a senior but he did have a good junior year at .408.

Paul Richan, RHP, Hart HS, Newhall, CA

He was 5-2 and 1.65 last year in 63 IP with an equal number of strikeouts. Not bad. He pitched in the Area Code Games in his junior year and that’s prestigious.

Jonathan Sandberg, 1B/OF, Eastlake HS, Chula Vista, CA

Made his All-League team and that’s it.

Jay Schuyler, 1B/OF, Dana Hills HS, Laguna Niguel, CA

He hit .327 and 4 as a senior so he’s got size (6’1”) as well as pop. I had to dig just to find out where he went to high school.

Nick Sprengel, LHP, El Dorado HS, Placentia, CA

He was Pitcher of the Year for the Orange Country Register. He was 10-2 and 1.71 and struck out 102 in 74 IP. He was drafted but decided on college to the Toreros’ benefit. He could be a good one.

Sean Barry, RHP, Santa Barbara CC, Simi Valley, CA

He was an excellent 10-3 and 1.29 with 107 strikeouts in 111 IP. A real workhorse. I hope that doesn’t work against him. I’d figure him to get a look at starting.

Matthew Kirk, C, St. Bernard's Catholic HS, Eureka, CA

Coming in as a freshman but graduated in 2013 and I found little else.

Christopher Lawler, RHP, Mercer Island, WA

He graduated from high school in 2014 and did pretty well but I found little from last year.

Ramon Garcia, INF, Chula Vista, CA

nothing

Daniel Gardner, OF, Fresno CC, San Diego, CA

He hit .352 and 2 last season and comes to SD with two years remaining.

Alejandro Gomez, C, Glendale CC, San Fernando, CA

He hit .279 as a sophomore at Glendale. He was pretty good in high school.

Austin Kamel, LHP, Oxnard CC, Malibu, CA

He originally signed with BYU in 2013. He was 5-3 and 1.48 with 61 strikeouts in 67 IP. You always like to see a K an inning and he meets the standard. What’s really weird is that I wrote him up for BYU in an October 16, 2014 post on this same blog. He’s been around.

Nathan Kuchta, RHP, Cypress CC, San Diego, CA

He was 9-2 and 2.84 with 79 strikeouts in 98 IP.

Samuel Perez, INF, San Diego, CA

Found nothing.

San Diego has a number of juco transfers which is a little surprising. The schools in the WCC tend to stay away from transfers but not so here. The Toreros got a few good ones. Keep an eye on Kevin Collard, Paul Richan, Nick Sprengel, and Sean Barry with Sprengel getting the gold star. Three pitchers and an outfielder. One of these should help.

Removing Some of the Fat from the Blog

2016-01-11T14:02:00.000-08:00

I've been writing this blog for about five or so years. I've been pretty good on staying up to date but my retirement, my wife's retirement, our move to Colorado (in September 2014) have made some changes inevitable. I feel I'm running out of time. My last post for the WCC recruits will be up soon and will be for San Diego. I won't be posting anything on WAC recruits. I'll be working on possible lineups and UNC is already posted. Why the Bears? They get the home town team treatment; this is the team I follow as they are the closest.

So, besides lineups what will I be posting, if time allows before February 19th when the season starts? I'd like to make some comments about schedules but not as in depth as in the past. Then, uh, then, the season starts. As most of you already know I also cover the MWC over on another blog so I'm kept busy. So stay tuned.

UNC Bears Need to Improve Pitching and Middle Infield for 2016

2016-01-10T18:33:00.001-08:00

Northern Colorado Baseball - Possible Lineup for 2016

Cole Maltese could be a leading hitter in WAC - credit Daryl Webb

The Bears made some strides towards improvement in 2015 and the offense led the way. Pitching and defense, especially up the middle, was still a problem and needs to be addressed. The team had some good freshmen but the holes in the lineup may cause growing pains early on. The season opens on the road for quite awhile as it does for most snow belt teams but hopefully a strong lineup and rotation will be set by conference play.

The lineup listed is my best guess. Look outside and you see what the biggest problem for teams in the snow belt have to deal with. I live in Loveland, Colorado and the snow she is a comin’. The season starts in five weeks. Hopefully, Coach Iwasaki knows his players from August and September because he won’t see them on the field until game one. I contacted him with “my” lineup and he didn’t agree nor did he disagree but he did say that he felt most of the needs for the team had been met in the offseason. I’m guessing (again) he meant recruits.

My guess:

C - Payton Tapia (SO) - .274 and 2

1B - Marco Castilla (SO) - .301 and 1

2B - Jacob Ek (SR) - .152 and 12 errors in the middle infield.

SS - ?

3B - Cole Maltese (SO) - .291 and 6 Leading RBI guy returning

OF - Dan Reese (JR) - .295 and 1

OF - Rob Cashel (SR) - .213

OF - ?

DH - Jake Garcia (JR) - .277 can also catch

SP - Nick Tanner (JR) - 2-3 and 4.69

SP - Alex Werbach (JR) - 2-6 and 6.33 Leading arm on team with 76 IP

SP - Spencer Applebach (SR) - 2-5 and 9.42

SP - Matt Loutzenhiser (SR) - 1-3 and 4.99

RP - Allen Cook (JR) - 1-4 and 6.07

Coach has an equal number of transfers and freshmen that will battle for starting positions. I figure both second and short are open and at least one if not two outfield positions are open. Pitching comes back intact but I think none of them should feel too confident about staying in the rotation.

Here are some new guys to watch:

Cody Carroll is a juco transfer who pitched fairly well last season. He was 4-3 and 3.29 in 76 IP with 40 strikeouts. The big deal here is that he had 12 starts to lead his team which played a lot of games. He should get a look to bump one of the ones I’ve listed above.

Aaron Hamilton pitched two consecutive shutouts last season for his jc. He played in SOCAL so that kind of performance does stand out.

Caden Maher looks like a good one from the high school ranks. He was 5-2 and 1.39 in his senior year.

New Coach at Pepperdine Could Have a Tough Time Repeating Big Success in 2016

2015-12-09T15:51:00.001-08:00

Pepperdine Recruit List for 2016 Season Lacks Flash

Junior catcher Aaron Barnett will be one of the leaders for the Waves in 2016 - credit Stephen Wandzura

The waves have a lot going for them and it isn’t just the weather and the view from their park. They were the WCC’s rep in the NCAA baseball tournament last season and won a few games before finally bowing to host Fullerton State. They’ve got to find a better way than to have such a home field advantage during NCAA tournaments. As far as I know no other sport does that. Anyway, kids love to sign with winners. I mean, isn’t that the way life works? Who’d they get coming in for next season?

Easton Lucas, LHP, Grace Brethren HS, Simi Valley, CA

First off, I’d like to start with a bit of trivial information. I think I read somewhere he was named after the company that makes baseball bats; I like it. He was 8-1 and 0.45 in 52 IP. He struck out 83 and walked 16. Good stuff. He had two no-hitters as of April last season. He is also no stranger with a bat; .343 and 2. Nominated for All-State.

Jonathan Pendergast, RHP, Cathedral Catholic HS, San Diego, CA

Found nothing but I swear I’ve read recent things about his stats and awards in 2015.

Edward Yost, LHP, Huntington Beach HS, Huntington Beach, CA

Does this name sound familiar. It should as his grand dad, Eddie Yost, played for the Washington Senators and the Tigers for more than a few years back in the 40’s through 1962. Other than that bit of trivia, nothing, but he has the bloodlines.

Saul Sandoval-Estrada, INF, Oceanside HS, Oceanside, CA

He made one All-Academic team so he’s a good student if nothing else. He also won a Gates Millennium Scholarship which is a full ride to a school of his choice. That’s what I’m talkin’ about. He hit .290 his senior year but he hit .340 in his junior season. He had plenty of AB’s so I don’t know what happened. Maybe he spent too much time with class work. Just kidding.

Benjamin Slattery, RHP, Geneva HS, Geneva, IL

Nothing. I don’t usually find much on midwestern high schoolers.

Jacob Doty, C, Irvington HS, Fremont, CA

He hit .297 and 1 his senior year and that was his best year. I’m assuming he’s really good at his position.

Michael Mahony, OF, Edison HS, Huntington Beach, CA

Nothing.

Matthew Kanfer, OF, Los Angeles CES HS, Playa Del Rey, CA

I’ve got some sparkling 2014 stats (.523 and 3) and he continued that trend in his senior year. He hit .518 and mad Cal-Hi Sports all-state for small schools. He also made MVP for the All-L.A. City Section for Division III schools. I’ll end all of this by saying he was nominated for All-State.

Tyler Smith, SS, St. John Bosco HS, El Segundo, CA

I found a little in the way of stats; he was hitting .384 through 20 games. Not bad.

Nathan Ryngler, C, Calabasas HS, Calabasas, CA

He made Honorable Mention for his All-League team. That was it.

I only found these two players in the press releases from November, 2014. It turns out the coach moved on after last year and that might explain a bit of it. Anyway, two recruits? Pepperdine’s recruiting class did get some recognition from Collegiate Baseball. Nuff said. The rest of the list in this class were late signings (I guess) and both of the original recruits (Lucas and Pendergast) both showed up, which says a lot.

The new coach was at a disadvantage when it came to getting some late signed recruits. He came in late and that’s always tough. He didn’t get a lot that I could see but there are still a few gems. Matt Kanfer and Easton Lucas look like the best of this bunch. Lucas should start somewhere.

Additional Recruit for BYU Deserves a Note

2015-12-07T16:29:00.001-08:00

I get so few comments that I usually respond to them. The insulting ones I don’t. Anyway, a reader of my BYU recruits post pointed out I missed a kid. Sometimes I ignore that but this kid looks to be pretty good and deserves a note.

Kylle Dean is a 6’2” 200 pound outfielder from southern California. He made an AA list as a junior and that’s always notable. Any program would like to get an AA recruited. Unfortunately I couldn’t find any stats for last year. Believe me, he had plenty of awards and i think he participated in an area codes game or two. That’s always worth a gold star. An interesting point is that he de-committed from San Diego. I don’t know the story on that one. Local boy goes a long way away is the only way I can put it. In any event you can add him to the list of kids that I feel might make an impact their first year.

BYU Needs to Rebuild Pitching Rotation for 2016. Will Newbies Help?

2015-12-05T15:05:00.001-08:00

BYU Recruits Should Help Filling Lots of Holes in 2016

The Cougars lost a good portion of the pitching staff so some of the arms below will get a chance to show their stuff. The leading hitter from 2015 is also gone so, if nothing else, there’s opportunity to shine. Let’s check ‘em out.

Zach Brinkerhoff, 5-10, 190, RHP, Canyon View HS, Cedar City, Utah

He made honorary mention All-State this season. I couldn’t find any stats from 2015.

Triston Busse, 6-0, 180, RHP, Gregory-Portland HS, Portland, Texas

He made second team All-South Texas baseball team which ain’t bad since Texas turns out a lot of baseball players. As with Brinkerhoff, above, I could find no stats.

Bryan Call, 5-9, 165, INF, Mater Dei HS, Mission Viejo, California

So, finally I have found stats for a kid and they are not good. He hit .192 in 78 so he sure had his chances. I don’t know what to say here. Then again, maybe I do. The team he played for is always one of the better programs in socal.

Danny Gelalich, 6-3, 180, OF, Bonita HS, La Verne, California

Danny hit .283 his senior season but .303 over three years. See how nice I can be? He was on a watch list for Southern California players by the LA Times so he was noticed.

Noah Hill, 5-9, 180, C/INF, Flower Mound HS, Flower Mound, Texas

Noah made first team All-Conference (as a second baseman) along with ten other teammates. Was this a dominant team. The team was state champs for their size school in 2014 and made it to the quarter finals in ’15. I like kids who play for winners. Why? Because their team usually faces the other teams’ aces every game. That’s trial by fire. I found no stats.

Casey Jacobsen, 6-0, 185, SS, Flower Mound HS, Flower Mound, Texas

Casey was the shortstop for Flower Mound and made All-Conference along with his keystone teammate, Hill. He also made Honorable Mention All-State and, again, no stats found. Texas is weird.

Keaton Kringlen, 5-10, 200, OF, Canyon View HS, Cedar City, Utah

He and teammate Zach Brinkerhoff will work for playing time. Coach must like going for two for one deals. No stats.

Daniel Schneemann, 6-1, 165, SS, Bonita Vista HS, Chula Vista, California

This good-sized shortstop hit .349 as a senior. That was good enough to get him voted in first steam All-San Diego Section in 2015. Those lists always stick with me as a lot of good ball is played in that area as it is in Sacramento and others.

Clay Sisler, 6-3, 185, OF, RHP, Valley Center HS, Valley Center, California

Does the last name ring a bell? It should to the old geezers in the crowd. It rang my bell. I forget how far down the genetic ladder Clay is but Hall of Famer George Sisler was a relative. Hmm, no stats found. I get no respect, I tell ya.

Easton Walker, 5-9, 155, 2B/RHP, Pleasant Grove HS, Pleasant Grove, Utah

Easton was Utah’s Mister Baseball for 2015. I assume that’s like POY. He has two brothers who also played at the D1 level so he’s got the bloodlines. He hit .418 and scored 44 runs batting leadoff in 2015. That’s a lot of runs. On the mound he was 8-1 and 3.10 so he’ll get looks in both positions. He also was spotted on Baseball America’s national top prospects list just before the draft. He wasn’t drafted but certainly got the awards and recognition.

The Cougars have a few good ones here but will it be enough to help the new coaching staff? That remains to be seen. Names that stand out are Easton Walker, Daniel Schneeman, and Casey Jacobsen. My vote for “watch out for this kid” award is Triston Busse. The Cougs need big help in pitching from the newbies.

LMU Lions Have a Better than Respectable Recruiting Class for 2016

2015-12-05T14:16:00.002-08:00

Lions Needs are Mostly About Pitching

Austin Miller should get some help from these recruits Credit - LMU Athletics

The Lions lost two good starting pitchers, a good one out of the pen, and four infielders so they have a lot to replace. The early signing period recruits numbered only four but as you can see, they added a few others. Two starting pitchers in a conference that usually has good pitching. Hmm, could be a problem. Six pitchers on this list should help.

Cody Paiva, RHP, Kamehameha School, Pearl City, HI

MaxPreps had an article where they listed the top player, not players, in each state. Cody was that guy in Hawaii. Players from Hawaii bug me in that I know I’ll have problems finding any information/stats on their senior season or any season, for that matter. In other words, this is all I found.

Brandon Shearer, INF, Agoura HS, Agoura Hills, CA

He was on a few watch lists but that’s all I’ve got.

Steven Chavez, RHP/INF, St. Bernard HS, Playa Del Rey, CA

Steven was recruited both as a position player as well as a pitcher . I found stats for both so that’s what I’ll give. He hit .370 with 4 his senior year so he has some pop. At 6’3” he could get even stronger. He had only 8 IP so not a good sample size. The hitting got him a position on his All-League team.

Rob Diaz, C, El Dorado HS, Fullerton, CA

Rob hit .348 as a senior and made first team All-League. This makes me think a bit. Don’t you think that a kid jumping up in competition to D1 baseball must be all-league? I know there are late bloomers that didn’t show much in high school but, a school is paying a lot of money to get a kid to play ball at your school. Skim the cream. Anyway, I digress.

Kevin Jordan, INF, Wellington Point State HS, Brisbane, AU

I thought finding stats for Kevin might be a problem. Why? Look where he calls home. How many Aussies do you know that play ball in the US? Actually there are a sprinkle in the pros as they do play the game over there, which pleases me no end. A true World Series some day? Oh, did I find any stats? No.

Niko Decolati, INF, Cimarron-Memorial HS, Las Vegas, NV

Niko hit .411 with 10 home runs as a senior and was named the Nevada Southern Section POY for 2015 in addition to first team All-State. Power at this level always catches my eye. I think I’ve seen enough here.

Evan Kaplan, RHP, La Costa Canyon HS, Carlsbad, CA

Evan had an incomplete year as a senior and I couldn’t find why. He was on watch lists prior to the season so he was on the radar screen.

Mark Finkelnburg, LHP, Westville HS, Portland, OR

Found nothing.

Steven Skolarz, RHP, Lincoln Way West HS, New Lenox, IL

Found little in the way of stats but this pitcher did make his All-Area team for 2015.

Seaver Whalen, INF, Lower Columbia CC, Vancouver, WA

Seaver was the conference’s MVP for 2015. He did that while hitting .421 and 5 on a team that went 41-10. He was the team’s shortstop. He also made the ABCA Rawlings AA team. Yes, he received awards for great play.

Spencer Erdman, INF, Santa Barbara CC, San Jose, CA

Spencer hit .344 for his team as a sophomore in 2015. He made second team All-Conference.

James Hill III, C, Santa Barbara CC, Seaside, CA

James hit a respectable .338 and 2 and he with Erdman (above) made a pretty dominating duo for SBCC. He was co-POY for the conference and it appears he was a pretty good catcher as he threw out 12 of 16 attempting to steal. That’s a better than good average.

Blake Redman, RHP, Oxnard CC, Camarillo, CA

Blake was 13-1 and 2.08 in 112 IP. That’s a lot of innings for a kid not too far removed from high school ball. For this kind of work he deserved getting state pitcher of the year for juco players – and he did. In those innings he struck out 66, which isn’t much, but he walked only 16, which is excellent. He sounds like a good one.

LMU usually has a good recruiting class. This fits with that tradition. Cody Paiva, Niko Decolati, Seaver Whalen, James Hill, and Blake Redman all deserve to be watched. Redman, Hill, Whalen should all be impact players as they come in as experienced transfers. I also like Paiva. Hawaii does generate great players.

Will USF Dons Get Much Help from Recruits in 2016?

2015-10-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

USF Recruits Coming Into a Mostly Intact Lineup

Will leading hitter Dom Miroglio get help from recruits? - credit Stephanie Trapp

That means the chances will be slim that making an impact as a freshman will happen. It doesn’t mean it won’t. Oh, hell, I’ll quit. They announced seven recruits but one signed with the pros and one changed his mind and went to USC.

Miles Gordon, OF, St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic HS, Oakville, Ontario, Canada

A good one but drafted by the Reds and signed.

Jacob Alcorn, RHP, Millikan HS, Lakewood, CA

Jacob was 6-2 and 1.07 in 52 IP. He had 53 strikeouts during those innings. A strikeout an inning seems to be a standard nowadays, doesn’t it? I wonder what Jamie Moyer would have to say about that? This is all I could find.

Marrick Crouse, RHP, Dana Hills HS, Dana Point, CA

He was 8-4 and 1.63 in 58 IP in 2015. He had 75 punchouts in those innings. This is one of those unusual cases where I find a kid that apparently has committed to two schools (USC) AND gets drafted. I are confused. I may have to wait until the Dons’ roster comes out. So I checked the USC roster and they don’t have theirs up yet either. But, a news article dated in September has him as showing up on campus ready for fall ball. That, on top of a photo of him with a USF shirt on and signing a LOI back in November, 2014. I wonder what happened. Those things are pretty binding. We’ll never know. Today is October 14th and I just checked the 2016 USF roster. He is not present. So he’s at USC and I ain’t bothering to check.

Riley Helland, INF, Oaks Christian HS, Camarillo, CA

I found incomplete and undistinguished stats for Riley and I won’t hold that against him. I could find little else.

Joey Steele, RHP, IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL), San Marino, CA

According to what I could find Joey graduated in 2014 but went to IMG to either polish his game or work on academics. I don’t know which. In any event, I couldn’t find much on him. He was 2-2 and 2.13 in 22 IP in 2014. That’s the most recent I could find.

James Kannenberg, RHP, Cuesta CC, Littleton, CO

He was a late signing and announced in late June. You can see a little writeup on him on the current roster. He was pretty fair his sophomore season at Cuesta. He made all-conference as a relief pitcher.

Matthew Warkentin, LHP/1B/OF, Leamington District Secondary School, Leamington, Ontario, Canada

He hit .375 with 3 home runs in 2015 and played on a Diamondbacks scout team. That’s usually pretty high praise.

Alcorn looks to be the best prospect of this bunch but a Canadian playing on a scout team also says a lot. Yeah, I’m talking about Warkentin who was recruited to be both a position player and a pitcher - a lefty no less.

Gonzaga Announced Recruiting Class Has Only Two

2015-10-14T11:02:00.001-07:00

Gonzaga Recruiting Class Almost Non-existent

Brandon Bailey should welcome the addition of another starter - credit Mike Wooton Gonzaga Athletics

This doesn’t mean it’s horrible just that those announced made up a very small group. Compared to some I’ve seen (such as NMSU) this is an extreme at one end of the spectrum. NMSU had 35 recruits I think and, boy, I refuse to talk about all of them. My fingers will fall off.

Jordan Rathbone, C/OF, Gonzaga Prep HS, Spokane, WA

Jordan hit .389 in 6 games. That isn’t much for a kid that made all-league. I’m guessing all of his stats didn’t make the list where I check. He hit .433 in full time play in 2014 so he can hit. He also made second team all-state for his size school.

Jusin Vernia, RHP, Tacoma CC, Renton, WA

Justin was 5-0 and 1.94 in his sophomore season with Tacoma CC. He pitched 41 innings and logged just under a strikeout an inning. This is all I could find even though I think these stats warrant an all-league nomination. I might add he led his team in IP which says a lot. In two years with TCC he was 16-0 which is dang good.

The Bulldogs lost a junior and senior to the MLB draft and one that was drafted didn’t sign (at least when I last checked). Besides these two losses the team lost three more seniors. That’s five players needing replacements. I smell some redshirts for next season. Justin Vernia will probably get a good shot at making the starting rotation as he hasn’t lost in two years.

Santa Clara's Small Class of Recruits Boasts Quality

2015-10-12T10:12:00.002-07:00

Broncos Have Two Recruits that could Help Immediately

Stevie Berman, Broncos' best hitter, has help on the way - credit Don Jedlovec

The Broncos lost a great shortstop, a closer, and a part-time starting pitcher and that's about it. Hence, the small class of recruits. The upside is that recruits potentially (again, potentially) could be better than those that have moved on. The future is hard to see but will reveal itself soon.

Travis Howard, RHP, Marana HS, Marana, AZ

Travis was recruited as a pitcher but the kid can hit, too. He was 7-3 and 2.10 with 104 strikeouts in 60 IP (!) and he hit .514 (.514!) with 7 home runs. That’s impressive no matter what side you’re playing. He made the American Family All-State team for Arizona. No kidding, really? The bigs liked him so much he was drafted in the 39^th round. He didn’t sign and I suspect he’s on campus now. I’ll check with coach as the 2016 roster has not been posted. No need to delve deeper into his awards; he’s good.

Austin Cram, 1B, Bishop Gorman HS, Las Vegas, NV

Austin’s a good sized kid at 6’2” and 225 which is always nice for a first baseman. It takes a foot or so off throws on close plays. He hit .357 and 1 for perennial powerhouse Bishop Gorman. When a player is surrounded by so much talent as on teams like this, I often wonder how a kid would do on an average team That’s always a test. In a pre-season evaluation he was ranked as the number two player in Nevada high school baseball.

John Cresto, INF, Cathedral Catholic HS, San Diego, CA

John hit .341 his senior year. Another fair sized kid at 6’3” and 210. He was drafted as a third baseman so that explains the size. Yes, he was drafted in the 18th round. All this got him second team All-USA California.

So, the three listed above are good ones; very good ones. The two following are two the coaches told me about that I didn’t know exist.

Freddie Erlandson, RHP, Brophy Prep HS, Phoenix, AZ

Freddie had limited appearances in 2015 as he pitched in 13 innings. He was 0-0 and 2.05 and 16 strikeouts in those innings. Hard to say much with that little to work with. Off hand, I suspect he has a pretty good arm. He certainly has the size; for a tight end. He’s 6’6” and 245. If he grows any more he’ll remind me of Dick Radatz of the Red Sox of more than a few years ago. Remember him, geezers? If he can throw and intimidate the batters the way Radatz did, Santa Clara has itself a closer.

Austin Reyes, INF, Matre Dei HS, Santa Ana, CA

Austin hit .292 his senior year but didn’t have much of a history until then. Looks like a late bloomer. He also pitched a bit and started a few big games but was 0-2 and 2.82 in only 16 IP. Again, a kid with not a whole lot of history to work with but he played for a pretty good baseball program which gets notice.

According to the coaches all of the recruits that were expected showed up. I’m guessing that means all of the above. Both Travis Howard and John Cresto have to be considered as future stars. Both drafted but decided on college ball. Good. The kid I’d like to see is Erlandson so keep an eye on him.

St. Mary's Adds Quality to an Already Veteran Squad

2015-10-04T09:18:00.001-07:00

St. Mary’s Could be a Real Sleeper in 2016

If the Gaels' recruits produce like Zach Kirtley did last year, watch out - credit SMC Athletics

The Gaels didn’t do very well last year but they retain most of their good players and the list of recruits is decent. They lost only one player that made an impact and that was Collin Ferguson. One player. This team was 28-27 and most return? Yeah, they could be good but the WCC is a tough baseball conference. In any event, they should improve. Let’s look at these recruits.

Jonathan Buckley, RHP

Jonathan had a decent year in his only season of varsity ball in 2015. He was 5-4 and 3.87 in 50 IP so he saw plenty of action in that one year. He has good size at 6’4” and 195 so he fits the mold

Matt Green, OF, St. John Bosco HS, Long Beach, CA

He hit .389 and 4 in 2015 with a better than decent high school team. This is all I could find but he made all-conference his junior year and he did even better this past season. Oh well, you Google him and see what you get.

Tim Holdgrafer, RHP, La Jolla HS, San Diego, CA

Here’s a good one. Tim was selected POY in the San Diego area by one newspaper. In addition he made Cal-Hi Sports All-State team for medium schoolsHe was recruited as a pitcher (9-3 and 1.31) but he could hit, too. He hit .465 with 4 and the power is hard to ignore. He should get a chance going both ways.

Conner Loeprich, RHP, Buchanan HS, Clovis, CA

Clovis turns out plenty of baseball talent and Conner is another. He made the all-area team and was an outstanding pitcher. He went 9-0 and 1.22 ERA in 2015. He made second team All-State according to Cal-Hi Sports. Looks like another good arm heading to Moraga.

Tyler Lonestar, RHP, De La Salle HS, Danville, CA

Tyler pitched only 17 innings so I’m not going to pass judgement on so few IP. I’m guessing injury as he was on a number of watch lists.

Conor Thane, SS, Saint Francis HS, San Carlos, CA

Conor hit .313 his senior year for the Lancers. As I’ve said so many times, this is a good team in a very good conference. He made second team all-conference in that conference. Not bad.

Chandler Weiscz, C, La Jolla Country Day HS, Poway, CA

Amazingly, he is one of the three baseball playing triplets. The other two are also D1 talent and going to Fullerton and Arizona. The folks must be proud. He didn’t hit much in his three years on the varsity and his best year was in 2015 when he hit .242. He’s got a long way to go but I read his defense is good.

Charles Zaloumis, UTIL, Monte Vista HS, Danville, CA

He hit a respectable .366 his senior year. That got him on the first team all-league as well as first team All-East Bay team. Want more? How about third team all-state by Cal Hi Sports. Seems like a keeper to me.

These are a few good players coming to play for a veteran team that didn’t lose much. Do I see redshirt in the future for a few of these guys? Maybe. The most promising seem to be Holdgrafer, Loeprich, and Zaloumis. Keep an eye on Holdgrafer mainly to see where he ends up in the lineup.

A Whole Lot of New for the Portland Pilots for 2016

2015-10-04T09:06:00.001-07:00

Pilots With Small Class of Recruits with Quality

Pilots need players like DavisTominaga to return to 2014 form to win - credit Portland University Athletics

The Pilots had a horrid year and then lose a good portion of the seniors who helped make that happen. What’s a person to think? Senior leadership and only 12 wins? This is going to be hard for Portland to get better quickly. It’s more of a work in process and you can see the list of recruits is small but a few should start. Even more important to the Pilots is that they have a new coach this year in Geoff Loomis. I have no idea how many of the below actually showed up on campus as they may have decided on some place else when the old coach moved on. And, the 2016 has not been posted. Read on, McDuff.

Beau Brundage, INF, Mill Creek HS, Buford, GA - drafted and did not sign

From the piney woods of Georgia to the piney woods of Oregon. Quite a change. I saw that he made second team All-County as a shortstop and pitcher. He hit .390 as a senior. I also read a lot of complaints of his draft position. Most were negative as he’s the son of a minor league coach for the Phillies. I disagree. He comes from a family that knows baseball and the bloodlines are there. The question really is, will he show up on campus with the change in coach?

Michael Forgione, INF, Lower Columbia CC, Chehalis, WA - undrafted

Michael made second team all-region for his JC. He hit .295 in full time duty. Yep, that’s what I could dig up.

Cody Hawken, OF, Union HS, Vancouver, WA - drafted and did not sign

I’ll start with him being selected Washington state’s POY for 2015. He’s got good size at 6’3” and 205 so he should get a good look at starting in the outfield. He could be the best recruit in this class. He is to my eyes.

Cameron Richman, RHP, DeSales HS, Walla Walla, WA - undrafted

This kid might be the gold star of the group. He went 34-1 and 0.91 in his first three years of high school ball. In his junior year he struck out 133 in 86 IP. That’s pretty close to two an inning. Amazingly, I could find nothing for the past season. I’m wondering if he was hurt. For whatever reason, no stats or performance reports for 2015.

Two good prospects on this small list. Hawken and Richmand could both start for the depleted Pilots and that’s if they show up. Richman is the biggest question mark as I could find no current stats. But, I like Hawken the better of the two.

Bakersfield Will Struggle to Defend WAC Title in 2016

2015-10-02T16:01:00.002-07:00

WAC Champ Bakersfield Loses Plenty Besides Coach Kernen

David Metzgar returns to help lead a potent attack credit - CSUB Athletics

Before I even start I need to apologize to all. Somehow I forgot to post this recently so I'm doing it now. Thanks to an attentive reader.

The Runners surprised more than a few by winning the WAC tournament, going to a regional, and then coming in third by way of beating Ole Miss but losing two to UCLA. So, beating an SEC team in a regional is a good thing, right? It’s a good thing if you’re Coach Kernen as he retired at the end of the 2015 season. He had been seriously considering retiring for a while now quitting while on top was a cherry on top of the sundae. Congrats to him. That means the program will be under new guidance as Bob Macaluso was named the head coach on August 31. He was an assistant under Kernen so there is a smooth transition, I suspect, and things should go fairly well this coming year.

The Roadrunners finished a respectable third in the WAC last year but, more importantly, finished on a strong note. The team loses eight seniors and a junior. That’s a pretty big number so this was a veteran team that was strong at the finish. That’s the way it should be; veterans leading to the end. Jordie Hein hit .280 as a starting outfielder. Kris Cayton hit .300 in 80 AB’s. They lose two catchers in Ross Hough and Logan Trowbridge. Between the two of them they had 200 AB’s so that equals one starting catcher. Hard to replace those two. Soloman Williams started mostly as a first baseman, I believe. Another big loss will be Mylz Jones the sole draftee from the team who signed. Big loss? Yeah, shortstop and catcher are the two big holes. Outfielder Garrett Pierce did well in sport starts and off the bench. That’s a lot of starting positions lost. Of the pitchers Hayden Carter, James Barragan, and Nick Rogowski started 44 of 62 games the team played. Those guys are gone. That’s a lot of innings. Nick Dermenjian was also a senior but used spottily out of the pen. Still, another healthy arm to be replaced. So, that’s four starting position players and the weekend rotation. Ouch.

There’s some sunshine here, too. The top three hitters return in David Metzgar, Max Carter, and Joey Sanchez. Best to start with your best. Who will catch and play shortstop are the two top question marks. Steven Gee will be a returning starting pitcher (11 starts and 77 IP) but at least two others will have to be found as well as a closer as Carter also closed (8 saves).

Recruits

Tyler Carvelho, P - undrafted

Dustin Frailey, OF - undrafted

Andrew Hansen, SS - undrafted

Isaiah Moten, RHP - undrafted

Jake Ortega, C/SS - undrafted

Sergio Robles, OF – undrafted

I notice that coach recruited a few shortstops and a catcher which will be a concern this year. The lack of experience at those positions, that is.

Pacific Recruits a Fairly Small Class for 2016

2015-10-02T15:44:00.003-07:00

Pacific Recruits Sports a Few Good Ones

Now on to the recruits for the WCC and then the WAC. As in past years I will talk about kids that were announced back in November of 2014. So don't get all riled up if you notice I didn't work over all the recruits.

Tough luck pitcher Will Lydon returns for a shot at a better record credit - Keith Sanpei

Pacific has not done too well in the past few years. At one point they were 1-16 and things didn’t get much better. The coach for the past few seasons has been Ed Sprague and he has departed. The new coach is Mike Neu and he looks enough like his players (at least to my old eye) that he could easily announce himself as a pinch hitter in future games. I wish him luck.

Ryan Beyer, LHP, Glendora HS, Glendora, CA

Ryan was 5-2 and 2.95 in 42 IP. He struck out 48 in those innings (good) and walked 38 (bad). His control and command must improve. That’s about all I could find.

Josh Bissonette, SS

Not on 2016 roster.

Keenan Brigman, UTIL, Valley Christian HS, San Jose, CA

He hit .373 in pretty much full-time play for Valley Christian. That’s a pretty good average for a team in a league that is considered by many one of the best in the country. The teams are good from top to bottom and the top teams always get ranked somewhere. So, I think this kid can hit. He made second team all league (Monterey Herald) which is no mean feat for this conference. Almost all of these kids go D1 or get drafted.

Shelby Lackey, INF, Linden HS, Linden, CA

Shelby hit .393 his senior year which is an improvement over a very good junior year. That helped him make second team all area (CA central valley) by at least one writer.

Chris Papapietro, CF, Serra HS, San Carlos, CA

Chris hit .348 and 3 his senior year at Serra which is in the same tough conference as Valley Christian (see above). He made first team all league as seen in the on-line version of the Monterey Herald. He and Brigman made the 45 Bay Area Players to Watch List before the season started. That’s pretty prestigious when you think of how many high school baseball teams there are in the San Francisco area.

Ricky Reynoso, LHP, Bonita Vista HS, San Diego, CA

Ricky had a darn good year in 2015. He was 10-2 with a 0.78 ERA in 81 IP. He struck out 88 and walked 18 in those innings. Now that’s a good ratio. He gave up 50 hits so his WHIP was well below 1.00. Let’s put it this way; he’s a stranger to the stretch. He made the San Diego Union-Tribune’s second team all area team. He was considered a good player in a baseball hotbed for talent. Not bad.

Paul Rizo, RHP

Not on 2016 roster

Three good players to my way of thinking. Ricky Reynoso, Chris Papapietro, and Keenan Brigman should all help but I really like Reynoso. A lefty. What can I say?

Seattle Has Holes to Fill in 2016 to Compete for Title Again.

2015-09-14T15:53:00.005-07:00

Seattle Surprises in 2015 but 2016 is a New Season

Tarik Skubal returns as the staff's ace in 2016 - credit Seattle University Athletics

The RedHawks had a pretty good season in 2015 and more than a few players stepped it up to make that happen. The team loses a fair amount of seniors and two excellent juniors to the draft. The seniors are Garrett Anderson (LHP), Kyle Doyle (LHP), Eric Koenig (INF), Grant Newton (UTIL), and Brian Olson (C/1B). The two juniors were Landon Cray (OF) and Will Dennis (LHP).

Cray was the leading hitter on the team and obviously started. Newton and Olson were also starters and will be missed. Koenig had 32 Abs so he was valuable off the bench. Dennis will be missed as he was the top starter in the rotation with 14 starts but he was the only rotation guy lost which is good. Both Doyle and Anderson had substantial innings out of the pen but only one start between the two of them.

What comes back? Tarik Skubal is the top arm in the weekend rotation that returns and he’s a good one. Skubal was a freshman AA so he could be something special in the WAC in 2016. Skyler Genger had the sexy stat that scouts look for; punch outs. He had 120 strikeouts in 100 IP in 2015. However, he is no longer with the program and that’s a painful loss. Griff Andreychuk and Sheldon Stober are two .300 hitters that return and that is also good. Overall, this team looks pretty healthy and if they can find a few players to fill the holes, they could make some noise in 2016.

Recruits?

Max Modeste (OF) – undrafted

Jeffrey Morgan (OF) – undrafted

Zach Wolf (P/3B) – undrafted

The Redhawks had a successful year and a number of good players return. That explains, in part, why the list of recruits is small. Some walkons are usually invited in fall just before school starts so those guys are probably on campus hoping they get a shot at a spot on the team. Wish those guys luck.

Gand Canyon Returns Most Hitters from a Potent Lineup

2015-09-14T15:35:00.000-07:00

Grand Canyon Surprised in 2015; Will They do it Again?

Garrison Schwartz is one of three returning big sticks Credit - GCU Athletics

I know the Antelopes were pretty successful at a lower division but who knew this would happen? They won the WAC regular season championship but were ineligible for post season play. Wow! Is that great or what? I mean winning the conference title, of course, and we’ll always wonder if the team could have had some success in a regional. The pitching was ok, at best, so I think that would have proved troublesome. But, still.

The ‘Lopes lose some seniors, two of which were very good. Coley Bruns, Humberto Aranda, Jorge Perez, Chad De La Guerra, Jon Kealoha, Brandon Bonilla, Charles Wagner, and David Walker are all gone. De La Guerra and Walker were good enough to be drafted as was junior Andrew Naderer. Naderer didn’t sign which makes coaches stand up and yell and buy rounds for the house. Right, coach? Huh? Huh? Walker and De La Guerra were both starters and Aranda was also. Aranda was the catcher and you know how I feel about the guys in the squat. Wagner didn’t start but had over 30 ABs off the bench.

Coming back will be top hitters Paul Panaccione (Irish I’m guessing), Garrison Schwartz, and Brandon Smith. That’s a bunch of hits returning. Pitching needs to improve a bit. Of the weekend rotation only Andrew Naderer returns and he had the most starts at 15. Closer Mick Vorhof (5 saves) also returns. Two starters need to come from somewhere. Notice all the pitchers recruited in the list below.

Recruits?

Josh Andrews, LHP - undrafted

Jake Wong, RHP - undrafted

Jeremy Norris, RHP - undrafted

Justin Revels, RHP - undrafted

Gabe Benavides, LHP - undrafted

Zach McLeod, RHP - undrafted

Skyler Wengert, INF/OF - undrafted

Preston Pavlica, OF - undrafted

Zach Malis, INF - undrafted

Jared McDonald, C - undrafted

Tyler Wyatt, INF/RHP - undrafted

Austin Bull, INF - undrafted

Marc Mumper, INF - drafted and unsigned

Fairly large crop of rooks and a draft choice to boot. The team hit a beefed up .308 and looks to be able to hit again. If the pitching can get better than the 4.57 of last year, they could repeat and this time go to a regional.

Wolverines Pitching Should Improve in 2016

2015-08-24T12:39:00.001-07:00

Utah Valley Looks to Improve Overall Record

Kyle Valgardson will probably close out games again in 2016 - credit Linsey Craig UVU Athletics

The Wolverines had a down year overall but fared fairly well in the WAC. To get real recognition, it’s winning the OOC portion of your schedule that will get you there. Will they be able to do that next season? Um, maybe. The program loses five seniors which ain’t too bad. However, there are a couple of good ones in that group. Kade Andrus was the leading hitter and also led the team in home runs. That’s a quality player to lose. Palmer Page hit over .300 in spot starts so he’s a good one that probably would have started if he had any eligibility left. Braden Poole, Chad Michaud, and Boyd Bell had limited time or fared poorly on a pitching staff that needs to improve.

What all of the above says is that the pitching staff comes back in good shape but has to improve if the program is expected to win more games. A team ERA of 6.21 was about two runs a game more than they scored. There’s the math. What does this team have returning? Eight position players with significant playing time return which is a healthy start. Craig Brinkerhoff is the best of the regulars returning and Andy Perkins hit well in limited time but should get a look at starting. The weekend rotation returns intact and the best ERA on the staff (3.32) belongs to closer Kyle Valgardson (6 saves). I look at it this way; a mediocre team returns most. What will they get from that? It could stay that way, which would make many unhappy, but college ball usually says another year under the belt means improvement the following year. We’ll see.

Recruits: Those recruits announced not listed here are either coming up on their senior year in high school or heading on their LDS mission.

Justin Erlandson - undrafted

Matt Fish - undrafted

Evan Fresquez - undrafted

Jason Jourdan - undrafted

Jeff Arens - undrafted

Luke Martin - undrafted

Sac State Loses Much of Their Excellent Pitching for 2016

2015-08-22T21:13:00.003-07:00

Sacramento State Has to Pick up the Pieces of 2016

Sam Long could be one of the best in the WAC - credit Bob Tolorio

The Hornets came into the season the clear favorite to win the WAC and maybe make some serious noise in the post season. I had ‘em picked for WAC champs along with everyone else. That certainly didn’t happen. They didn’t win the regular season title let alone the conference tournament. They stayed home with everyone else.

This team was loaded with pitching but the lack of hitting really put a damper on the season. The team ERA was a stellar 2.97 but the hitting was a forgettable .267. To say this team was loaded with pitching is a bit of an understatement. Senior losses include Scotty Burcham, Kyle Moses, Ty Nichols, Brennan Leitao, and Jake Stassi. Also lost in the draft was junior closer Sutter McLoughlin. Those losses will hurt. Burcham was the second leading hitter at .329 and 4 and Moses was a regular in the outfiield. Nichols was 6-0 and 1.23 with 9 starts, Leitao was 7-4 and 2.20 with 15 starts, and Stassi was 2-5 and 5.13 with 10 starts. There goes the weekend rotation.

So there’s a lot of blood on the floor and no leads. What do we do now, inspector? Other than Burcham and Moses, the lineup comes back intact and Coach Christiansen always seems to produce a couple surprises in the starting lineup. I’m confident he’ll do it again. Pitching took a hit but Justin Dillon and Sam Long come back to shore up the rotation, at least a bit. Long (led the team in strikeouts with 63) and Dillon accounted for 23 starts so Friday and Saturday look good. Keep an eye on Austin Ragsdale next year. I think he might be the Sunday guy. The new closer might be Ryan Smith (18 appearances with 3 saves).

I alway like to take a look at Coach’s recruits. He ALWAYS comes up with local gems from the Sacramento area.

Trent Goodrich, INF - undrafted

Kurt Johnson, LHP - undrafted

Max Karnos, RHP - undrafted

Makay Nelson, RHP - drafted and signed

Tanner Olson, RHP - undrafted

James Outman, C - undrafted

Cade Parker, INF/OF - undrafted

Matt Smith, OF - undrafted

Notice how coach recruited a lot of pitchers? He knows he lost a lot there and has to rebuild. I’ll talk more about quality at a later time but Matt Smith might be a diamond in the rough.

North Dakota Needs Replacements for Graduated Veterans for 2016

2015-08-22T20:27:00.001-07:00

North Dakota Loses Veteran Players from a Sub .500 Team

Zach Muckenhirn is probable Friday night guy for 2016 - credit NDU Athletics

North Dakota had a sub .500 year at 24-27 but did well in conference at 16-11 which had them in the middle of the pack. The hitting last year was more than adequate at .280 but pitching needs work (5.74). I always give snow belt teams a bit of a pass as they don’t get much practice time and then head south to open at Vanderbilt or some other likely horror story. By the time they get rolling, it’s too late and they have to do well in a conference tournament to go anywhere. Does all of that mean there’s a lack of talent on these teams? I should say not. Northern Colorado had Jensen Park and he’s doing well in the minors and NDU had Jeff Campbell who was near the top in career home runs. He hit 11 in 2015 alone. Kid could hit with pop. I saw him play and he was a keeper. In addition he had 11 saves as a closer. Ok, that’s good but I’m sure he was drafted and signed by the Braves as a hitter. He was a senior and other seniors gone are leading hitter Tyler Follis (.404 and drafted), top starting pitcher Andrew Thome (5-6 and 3.80 and drafted), Ryan Reese (.290 in 155 AB’s), rotation pitcher Alex Twenge (3-6 and 4.73), Dalton Parrott (.287 and 4), Sam Alt (.200 in 120 AB’s), and Reid Jungling (10.55 in 29 IP). Other seniors with limited action were Ben Clark, Trent Egan, Chris Knoll, and Tyler Ruemmele. That’s a bunch of veterans now missing. Two starting pitchers and a fair arm out of the pen and five position players. Coach has some work to do. Don’t they always?

Returning players of note will be Brett Harrison (.305 and 1) and Cooper Maas (.271). Zach Muckenhirn will be considered the ace of the weekend rotation (6-7 and 4.46 in 14 starts and 83 IP). The pitching staff will require some stepping up from other returning pitchers but there are holes in the starting lineup also. It could be a tough year for North Dakota.

Recruits:

Tyler Berg, OF - undrafted

Jack Collins, LHP - undrafted

Joe Fredrickson, INF - undrafted

Grant Larson, INF - undrafted

Hayden May, C - undrafted

Connor Moroder, INF - undrafted

Only one pitcher in this group. Huh, coach must know something about the pitching staff for this coming year.

Chicago State Loses a Ton of Players from 2015

2015-08-21T10:48:00.001-07:00

Chicago State Loses Bulk of Team to Graduation

And I do mean bulk. I did a double-take on the 2015 roster and couldn’t believe my eyes. The roster had 18 seniors which means a tad over 50% of the team is now gone. I’m guessing Coach Joslyn is spending most of his time on the road recruiting. He’ll need it if he wants to field a team in 2016.

I’m not going over every senior’s stats but I will list the important ones. Matt Schmidt and Mattingly Romanin (a MLB draftee), the two top hitters, are gone. Last year’s freshman sensation, Cody Freund, returns after hitting a very good .312. Sanford Hunt and Andy Gertonson also return. Those three names are the only returning players that I can see who started. The rest of the starters and a good portion of the bench are gone. Ouch! Pitching? Well, the best of the starters returns in Jake Perkins and that’s a good thing. The other two starters are gone. One other starter, Dillon Engle, returns but he had a season he’d just as soon forget (1-1 and 7.88 with six starts). He should be in the rotation but he needs to pick up his game. The closer was Nick Kostalek (three saves) and he’s gone.

Returning players that showed anything positive for this poorly performing team were few. I’ve mentioned Cody Freund as well as Sanford Hunt and Andy Gertonson. Same with the pitching. Perkins is the only starter of note that returns and he’s pretty good. The rest of the spots in the rotation are open.

I’ve said in the past that if you have a veteran team and still can’t win, that is indeed a bad team. This team personified that as over half the team was seniors. If any player out there feels he’s good enough to make a difference at a D1 school, give Coach Joslyn a call. He has openings. This is also what happens when you have to recruit an overabundance of juco players. They leave soon.

Way back in November coach released the names of his recruits for next year. I’ll deal with quality in a future article (as I do every year). I’m sure coach stays awake at nights wishin’ and a hopin’ that these guys make the transition to D1 well. The opportunity is there. In fact, expect some invited walk-ons or late signees also.

Quinn Ahern, RHP - undrafted

Joseph Baier, UTIL - undrafted

Malik Carpenter, 1B - undrafted

Jeremy Cole, UTIL - undrafted

Cody Grosse, SS - undrafted

Vincent Hubli, INF - undrafted

Griffin McGuire, RHP/3B - undrafted

Jamary McKinney, RHP/1B - undrafted

Tanner Umentum, RHP - undrafted

Joshua Willis, LHP - undrafted

David White, C - undrafted

Justin Wyant, RHP - undrafted

The recruits are from all positions and they are certainly needed. Since none was drafted, just make sure you have all their paperwork in order so they show up on the field soon. . . . . . . very soon.

NMSU Has to get Pitching House in Order for 2016

2015-08-20T16:08:00.002-07:00

New Mexico State Loses Most of Pitching Staff for 2016

Daniel Johnson returns as one of top NMSU hitters - credit Gina Palombit

I remember the days when Aggies hitters terrorized the WAC. That’s all in the past as the last few years have not been kind to the Aggies. They were 11-38 last season and fared equally poorly at home and on the road. Why am I pointing this out? This is a team that won only eleven games and lose 12 players to graduation. A veteran team that doesn’t win is not a good thing as it leaves the returning players with little more than a shovel to dig themselves out of this mess. New coach Brian Green had to suffer through this year and hopes to make changes in this upcoming season. He came on board in July of 2014 so he had little time to implement his program let alone get some players. We’ll see how he does this year.

The team hit fairly well but the pitching was horrid (7.35) and I don’t think even the pitchers would argue with me on that. Top hitter Quinnton Mack has graduated. One other player with significant AB’s also graduated in Michael Paulson. Kyle Graff (.337 in spot duty) is gone and those three are it so the offense comes back in pretty good shape. The top four starting pitchers all graduate but, other than Riley Barr (4-7 and 4.37), they didn’t do very well. It was going to be back to the drawing board for the rotation anyway. Closers Billy Conard and Robert Kraft are also gone. Wow! That’s a lot of innings that must be found elsewhere.

Three of the top four hitters return; Cameron Haskins, Joseph Koerper, and Daniel Johnson. That’s a good start. The offense is going to have to score a lot of runs as the pitching staff has been depleted. I could name names but all the returning arms have a lot to prove but incoming talent should help.

Coach Green told me there would be an announcement soon about recruits and he was true to his word. The following are coming on board:

Dan Hetzel, OF

Greg Polylisen, OF

Austin Botello, OF

Jaron Balman, OF/1B

Tommy Bell, OF/1B

Branden Grieger, INF

LJ Hatch, INF/RHP

Alex Reyes, INF/RHP

Brent Sakurai, INF

Roman Trujillo, INF

Trey Stine, INF/OF

Zak Felix, INF

Joe Galindo, UT/RHP

Brandon Burke, INF/UT

Mason Fishback, C

Chad Riebenspies, C

Jason Bush, C

Tristen Carranza, C/UT

Brett Worthen, RHP

Matt McHugh, RHP

Steven Butts, LHP

Kyle Bradish, RHP

Marcel Renteria, RHP

Chris Butcher, RHP

Andy Frakes, RHP

Ruger Rodriguez, RHP

Tyler Erwin, LHP

Dalton Shalberg, RHP

Anthony “Tony” Yacovetta, RHP

Chris Kucko, RHP

Michaedl Gammon, RHP

Matt Munden, RHP

Jon Law, RHP (what a great name!)

Fabian Reyes, RHP

David Bareia, LHP

What a HUGE list. I don’t know if some of these signees are for next year but, I don’t think so. Invited walk-ons galore. Go to the Aggies web site and see what you think. There is definitely some quality here and I’ll talk about that later. This is a good mix of high school and juco recrutiing as immediate help is needed. I didn’t think he’d call in the First Cav though. Yes, folks, help is on the way.