12/20/04 1:00 p.m.CT

Aggies Ranked #10 by Collegiate Baseball... 

Five Big 12 Teams were ranked in the top 40 with #1 Texas, # 10 Texas A&M, #23 Oklahoma State, #25 Baylor and #31 Nebraska representing the Big 12 conference teams in the poll.  Rice comes in at #15 and the Tennessee Volunteers, the Aggies' first opponent in the Astos Classic is #40.  Rice was the pick to win it all in 2004 by the publication and the Aggies started the year at #32 last season.  This is the highest preseason ranking by Collegiate Baseball since starting the 1999 season at #17.  

Jason Meyer was named Second Team All-American by the magazine as well.. The pre-season pick as National Player of The Year was 3B Alex Gordon of Nebraska. Last season Gordon hit .365 with 18 homers, 18 doubles and knocked in 75 runs as the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder was named Big 12 Conference Player of The Year. He spent the past summer playing for Team USA as he hit .388 with four homers and 12 RBIs. He was the top offensive player in the World University Games as he hit .523 with two homers and knocked in five runs. Gordon may be the first college player taken in the June Draft. Other Big 12 players named to the list were: Texas Tech SS Cameron Blair, Texas pitchers Sam LeCure and J. Brent Cox, Texas catcher Taylor Teagarden, Texas OF Drew Stubbs, and Baylor 2B Michael Griffin.

The complete All-American list is at: http://www.baseball-news.com/allamericans/currentallamericans.htm

Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's NCAA Div. I Pre-Season Ranking
(As of Dec. 22, 2004)
Rank School ('04 Final Record) Points Final '04 Rank
1. Texas (58-15) 497 2
2. Miami, Fla. (50-13) 496 5
3. Cal. St. Fullerton (47-22) 495 1
4. Tulane (42-21) 493 15
5. Louisiana St. (46-19) 486 8
6. Stanford (46-14) 484 9
7. North Carolina (43-21) 480 27
8. South Carolina (53-17) 477 3
9. Georgia (45-23) 475 4
10. Texas A&M (42-22) 472 16

11. Arizona St. (41-18) 468 23
12. Arizona (36-27-1) 466 6
13. Georgia Tech. (44-21) 462 11
14. Long Beach St. (40-21) 459 12
15. Rice (46-14) 458 10
16. Mississippi (39-21) 456 24
17. Washington (39-20-1) 453 21
18. Florida St. (45-23) 451 14
19. Mississippi St. (35-24) 447 NR
20. Notre Dame (51-12) 445 19

21. Clemson (39-26) 442 26
22. Florida (43-22) 441 18
23. Oklahoma St. (38-24) 437 NR
24. Central Florida (48-17) 433 25
25. Baylor (29-31) 430 NR
26. Wichita St. (49-16) 425 28
27. Virginia (44-15) 423 20
28. Winthrop (37-23) 420 NR
29. Pepperdine (30-32) 416 NR
30. Florida Atlantic (47-17) 413 30

31. Nebraska (36-23) 409 NR
32. East Carolina (51-13) 407 13
33. Arkansas (45-24) 403 7
34. Coastal Carolina (40-23) 399 NR
35. Michigan (34-26) 395 NR
36. U.C. Irvine (34-21-1) 394 NR
37. Texas Christian (39-26) 390 NR
38. Vanderbilt (45-19) 387 17
39. Stetson (36-23) 383 NR
40. Tennessee (38-24) 382 NR

12/20/04 2:30 p.m.CT

Great Gift Idea for the Aggie Baseball fan...

USA Baseball, Upper Deck Compile 25th Anniversary Card Set Following two successful fundraising card set releases, Upper Deck and USA Baseball announced they have teamed to compile a 204-card 25th Anniversary USA Baseball Box Set featuring 180 of the organization's most distinguished alumni.

Celebrating USA Baseball's quarter-century existence as the national governing body for amateur baseball, the set will provide collectors with the opportunity to collect authentic signature and game-used jersey cards in addition to the regular issue cards. The signatures, which are inserted at a three-per-boxed set ratio, were signed in black, blue, and red ink. Collectors will find generally the red signatures are the most difficult to find, followed by the blue and then black signatures.

Highlighting the list of autograph signers are former Texas A&M All-American's and Team USA stars Casey Fossum and Jason Tyner.

More information can be found at http://www.usabaseballfundraiser.com/cardset/

2005 MINUTE MAID COLLEGE CLASSIC

 2005 MINUTE MAID COLLEGE CLASSIC presented by the Houston Chronicle ~in conjunction with~ ASTROS FANFEST

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Friday, February 11 Oklahoma State vs. Rice, noon Baylor vs. Houston, 3:30 p.m. Tennessee vs. Texas A&M, 7 p.m. GATES OPEN 11 a.m.

Saturday, February 12 Houston vs. Oklahoma State, noon Baylor vs. Tennessee, 3:30 p.m. Rice vs. Texas A&M, 7 p.m. GATES OPEN 10 a.m. Fanfest runs from 10-6

Sunday, February 13 Oklahoma State vs. Tennessee, 11 a.m. Baylor vs. Rice, 2:30 p.m. Houston vs. Texas A&M, 6 p.m. GATES OPEN 9 a.m. Fanfest runs from 9-5

INFORMATION: 1-800-ASTROS-2 or (713) 259-8500

TICKETS: 2005 Classic tickets (Saturday and Sunday tickets are also good for admission to Fanfest) go on sale Thursday, Jan. 6 at the Minute Maid Park Box Office. Hours from Jan. 6 until the Classic will be 9-5 weekdays.

TICKETS: Beginning on the 6th, tickets may also be purchased by calling 1-877-9ASTROS, on line at astros.com or at any of the Astros’ regular Houston-area outlets.

PRICING:

ADULT GENERAL ADMISSION (15 & up) Friday $12 Saturday $12 Sunday $12 Adult Classic Advance Package $30

YOUTH GENERAL ADMISSION (4-14) Friday $6 Saturday $6 Sunday $6 Youth Classic Advance Package $15 *Students (with valid school ID) daily $6 Youth 3 and under FREE

*available only at the Minute Maid Park Box Office

12/10/04 2:30 p.m.CT 

Tickets, Tickets, Tickets...

Even with all the excitement about the Cotton Bowl, the ticket office is sending out renewals for Aggie Baseball very soon.  They should be out by early next week so keep looking for them at the mailbox. Here is the link to the 12th Man's Baseball Ticket site.

http://www.12thmanfoundation.com/tickets/baseball.htm

12/8/04 3:00 p.m.CT 

Fall Baseball Roundup 2004...

The fall practice for the Aggie baseball team is always about finding the players that will fill holes left by the draft and graduation and finding out which players are ready to step up as the Aggies not only look to duplicate their run to super regional play in 2004, but also on making the next step and ending up in Omaha at the College World Series.

The Aggies may not have the power of teams in the past but in the new era of college baseball, you can get there if you can score runs, play defense and pitch well on the weekends. A&M should have all three areas covered since they are only replacing two players in the field, and the strength of the team will be up the middle. The old adage in baseball is strength up the middle will win you ballgames, and the Aggies' shortstop, center fielder, second baseman and catchers all had great fall seasons.

Craig Stinson, the Aggies returning catcher, nearly made Team USA this summer, and even though he did not tear the cover off the ball during his time in the Cape Cod League, he is still one of the top junior catchers in the country. He had to catch too many ballgames for the Aggies down the stretch last year, so the return of former starter Justin Pouk has the coaches excited. They know that having two players to man the position will keep them both fresh and they will not have a drop off with either player behind the plate. Pouk caught every inning of the Fall World Series and showed he is ready to play. Lee Harughty had a solid summer campaign and followed that up with an improved fall. He should be able to spell either Stinson or Pouk but he still needs to improve to make the travel roster.

Returning shortstop Cliff Pennington has continued to improve, and after his summer All-American performance at the Cape Cod league, many expect him to be drafted very high by professional baseball next season. He is a natural four-tool player, above average in speed, range, arm and hitting ability. Even in the day of the power hitting shortstop, Pennington is as good as any in college baseball, and he might have the strongest arm of any position player in the college game.

Even though he spent much of his time at shortstop this fall, Parker Dalton won the second base job vacated by the graduation of Eric Schindewolf. Dalton followed an all-star summer in the Texas Collegiate League with nearly as impressive a fall. Coach Johnson was quick to anoint him as the team's second best player this fall behind only CF John Infante. Dalton's defense has never been in question, showing soft hands and a strong arm since his high school days, but if you think he can't hit the ball you are in for a surprise.

Strength up the middle should not overshadow other fine players that return for the Aggies, and 3B Austin Boggs and 1B Coby Mavroulis are two of the main reasons why the Aggie defense will be among the best in the country. Boggs is a natural third baseman, and even though his bat overshadowed his fielding last year, he made play after play at the hot corner. Mavroulis did not have an error until May while fielding tough plays off the bat and sometimes off Pennington's arm. Healthy for the first time since arriving in Aggieland, Mavroulis is a natural hitter and he could be a big source of power after a solid fall season.

Backups will be a key this season after several outstanding fall practices. Ryan Hill and Jess Buenger were two key players this fall in the middle of the infield. Hill worked at shortstop, his position for two seasons at St. Mary's College in San Antonio, and second base and pushed Dalton for the starting job. Buenger, with a tremendous performance at the plate in game five of the Fall World Series, showed the ability to hit from both sides of the plate and his continued improvement at second base has the position full of talent for the future. Will Carpenter moved to third base this fall and even though he is behind Boggs, he is a talented player that will have a chance to start for the Aggies in the future. Blake Stouffer missed valuable time after a broken leg, but the backup shortstop did practice well before the injury. With Boggs and Pennington locked in on the right side of the diamond, and with Dalton and Hill available to play any of the other positions, it might be a redshirt season for any or all of these three players. Redshirting would not indicate they were unable to play as freshman, just that the talent, depth, and experience above them is tremendous.

Hill could also play first base or outfield, he is a talented player with pop in his bat so the Aggie coaches will find a way to put him out on the diamond. Pouk is another player who might see time at first base since the Aggie coaches will likely shy away from him being the designated hitter when Stinson is catching. Any injury would force the Aggies to lose the DH if Pouk had to go behind the play to replace Stinson during a ballgame.

Infante had a tremendous fall and has the Aggies strong up the middle. He continues to mature as a hitter and his ability to drive the ball to the opposite field gave him a much-needed jolt offensively. He can cover the ground in center better than any Aggie outfielder, and his confidence at the plate seemed to rub off in the field as well. Infante's progression is a big key for the spring as the Aggie coaches look for offense as well as defense from the outfield.

After starting in a deep slump at the plate, outfielder Travis Bartek hit over .300 for the last two months of the season and is another solid player in the outfield. Bartek struggled some again this fall, but when the lights were on last spring he turned out to be a player, so there is little concern about his ability.

The big question of who will replace the offensive output and defensive ability of All-American right fielder Cory Patton will have to wait until the spring. Returning lettermen, like Andrew Baldwin, transfers, like Ryan Hill, and freshmen, like Chris Jones, Chance Corgan, Keith Stein and Brandon Glover, all had chances to shine in the fall, and the coaches will have tough choices on finding their right fielder for next season. Each player had more good moments than bad during the fall and this position is likely unsettled until the spring. Baldwin might have the edge but with Hill needing a spot in the order and Mavroulis' ability to play in the outfield, it could change at any time.

The Aggie offense will run and run and run some more this spring. College coaches know that with arrival of the slide step, most pitchers can get the ball to the plate in a hurry, so if you are going to steal, you need to be good at it. Pennington stole bases during the summer and in the fall as well and his speed on the basepath is going to be a big distraction for opposing pitchers. Other players need to run smart but the lineup will feature more runners than plodders and the Aggies will force teams to make plays to get them out.

On the mound, replacing Zach Jackson will be a tall order, but Jason Meyer gives the Aggies a front line starter. Meyer took the summer off, but he worked hard on his conditioning and two years removed from "Tommy John" surgery should have him even better than last season. He is one of the top two returning pitchers in the Big 12 this season and the Aggies #1 pitcher right out of the box. Robert Ray and Kyle Marlatt both started for the Aggies last spring, and after finding success in the Cape Cod league, both can dominate during Big 12 play this spring. Ray needs to work on his consistency but when he is on, no one in the Big 12 has better ammunition. The Aggie coaches thought he improved during the fall despite a rocky performance in the FWS. Ray has the stuff to dominate the Big 12, and just as many players have shined during their junior seasons before the MLB draft, expect Ray to do the same. Marlatt may run hot and cold as well, but when he is on the Aggie coaches know he can get the job done.

The other returning pitchers have a chance to make this a special Aggie team, the coaches expect them to step up and pitch like upperclassmen in the spring. Dan Donaldson and Doug Frame have shown the ability to get hitters out and one or both of them could step up and be a starter next year. Frame's performance in the FWS was very encouraging since it was a great job without his best ammunition. Donaldson needs to get ahead of hitters to highlight his offspeed arsenal and as junior he needs to step up like Ray and Marlatt.

On the right side, Austin Creps, Blake Rampy and Kyle Nicholson have the same chance to shine as Donaldson and Frame. Each needs to be more consistent because when they are on, they are very tough. They need to pick their performances up from last year when youth led to inconsistency. They have all had success against big-time college hitters but they need to do it all the time next spring and shoot up the pitching ladder.

Kevin Whelan, with the return of Pouk behind the plate, is now a full time pitcher and was un-hittable during the fall for the Aggies. He looked as good as any closer the Aggies have had under Mark Johnson and with additional depth in the bullpen, this team just needs to get a lead in their hands after the sixth inning and they can count on the bullpen to shut teams down. College baseball doesn't have the scouting that you see at the next level and with most teams seeing Whelan only once or twice during the season, he should have even more success against those players than he had against his Aggie teammates, who watched him pitch every day and have a much better idea of his pitch assortment.

Clayton Turner's arrival from Northwest State added to the staff's depth. He pitches with the confidence of a ten game winner last year. He has the bulldog mentality that you want to see rub off on the younger players. He can challenge for a weekend starting role as well as pitching against many of his old conference foes in mid-week action. Hart Herring sidewinder motion is much more effective, like Whelan, against teams that will see him for the first time this spring. He is very effective against right-hand batters and should provide important depth in the bullpen. Chance Corgan and Chris Jones might be better pitchers than position players right now but two-way players are more and more valuable in college baseball because of the conference roster limits. They both had success pitching and hitting this fall and with the addition of football's Jordan Chambless, the Aggies could have three freshman that can play multiple positions while being very good pitchers.

With Boggs, Mavroulis and Pennington leading the offense and Meyer, Ray and Whelan staring on the mound, the Aggie coaches have more answers than questions after the fall. It might be small ball in the spring, but this team has a chance to be special and the players and coaches will need to be with a very tough, tournament-heavy schedule to prepare for Big 12 play and the NCAA playoffs. As with all teams across the country, returning players that grow in their roles can have a tremendous impact and the benefit of pitching so many freshman last year for the Aggies should pay big dividends this spring with expected improvement.

11/29/04 3:00 p.m.CT 

Interesting Note...

In the current issue of Baseball America.  

"To put this year's top 100 commitments in perspective in terms of what to expect in the draft, 56 of 100 players on the list last year ended up attending school, including 22 of the top 50.  Georgia Tech signed seven of last year's top 100, with six of them ending up in Atlanta."

RHP/OF Chris Jones, the only Aggie signee on the list, ended up in Aggieland. Three of the six players that Texas signed last year ended up in Austin and the state of Texas seemed to be a tougher sign than the rest of the nation last year with only five of the 14 players on the top 100 list going pro.

11/25/04 11:00 a.m.CT 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!

Recruiting Rankings...

Student Sports baseball has ranked the top 25 recruiting classes in the country and Texas A&M came in at #12.  The Aggies were the second highest rated program in Texas behind the 'Horns and both Kansas and Houston were on the list from the Big 12 Region.  You can find the complete story at the link below.

http://ssbaseball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=355537

 1. Arizona State 2. Texas 3. UCLA 4. Stanford 5. Miami 6. LSU 7. San Diego State 8. California 9. Vanderbilt 10. Cal-State Fullerton 11. Arizona 12. Texas A&M 13. Clemson 14. Arkansas 15. Long Beach State 16. Nevada 17. Kansas 18. South Carolina 19. Houston 20. Georgia 21. Notre Dame 22. Ole Miss 23. Hawaii 24. Tulane 25. UC Santa Barbara

Meyer honored again...

Freshman All-American and Big 12 Freshman Pitcher of the year Jason Meyer was one of 58 baseball student-athletes on the 2005 Wallace Watch released Tuesday by the College Baseball Foundation in Lubbock, TX. The Brooks Wallace Award is presented annually to the national college baseball player of the year. Kurt Suzuki of Cal State Fullerton was the winner of the 2004 Brooks Wallace Award.  Also nominated from the Big 12 were Texas Tech's SS Cameron Blair, Nebraska's 3B Alex Gordon, Texas' RHP Sam LeCure, OU's DH Eric Thorton, and OSU's OF Ty Wright.

The Wallace Watch will be trimmed to 12 semi-finalists by Tuesday, May 24, 2005. Then the selection committee will narrow the list to three finalists following the NCAA Super Regionals at a press conference in Omaha on Thursday, June 16, 2005. The finalists, their head coaches, and their parents will be invited to Lubbock, TX, for a golf tournament, a welcome dinner and the award banquet. 

11/24/04 11:00 a.m.CT 

Aaron Thompson, the #1 Player in the State of Texas, Signs with the Aggies

A Little More on Aaron Thompson...

Here is one scouts view on the talented left-hander from Houston Second Baptist.  It goes with the same post I did last week, that the talented pitcher's destination could be Aggieland just as much as the professional ranks.  

http://teamonebaseball.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=48&mid=42499800&sid=&tid=42361295&style=1

"I agree with you, I think it's a little down for high school lefties. The 2002 (Scott Kazmir, Adam Loewen) and 2003 drafts (John Danks, James Houser, Andrew Miller who didn't sign) in particular had much more depth and early-round talent. Last year's draft wasn't any better, though, in my opinion. It had one first-rounder (Scott Elbert) and one sandwich pick (Gio Gonzalez). Chuck Lofgren was a 4th-rounder who got 2nd-round money. This year's crop is comparable to last year's, at least. What this draft definitely won't have is as many college lefties going early as they did in 2004. Someone like a Mark Pawelek has a lot of upside and he might turn into a very early pick by next June. Aaron Thompson and Tim Murphy I've both seen; they have early-round potential, but something would have to really come on to make them 1st-rounders."  Anup Sinah from Team One Baseball

Keep in mind that every high school player drafted in the first three round still went into professional baseball and only four U.S. high school players taken before Aggie recruit Jordan Chambless in the 12th round did not sign a pro contract.  The majority of top prospects that told professional baseball that they were going to college were drafted after the 11th round.

11/19/04 1:00 p.m.CT

Two Aggies named All-American

Texas A&M sophomore pitcher Jason Meyer and transfer pitcher Clayton Turner were named a third-team preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Meyer began the season as the Aggies short reliever, earning three saves, before moving to the starting rotation in the beginning of league play. Turner was named All-Southland Conference and was drafted by the Oakland Athletics following his junior season.

Meyer a left-hander from Abilene, Texas, earned first-team All-Big 12 and Freshman All-American honors after posting an 8-2 record with an ERA of 2.89 in 106 innings of work. He struck out 111 batters, while allowing just 41 walks and 88 hits for the Aggies in 2004. Turner was 10-3 with a 3.50 ERA for Northwestern State, LA. last year as a junior. He worked 100.1 innings, giving up 87 hits while striking out 103 and walking 42.

The duo was among the seven players from the Big 12 to receive recognition from the NCBWA.

2004 Fall Recruiting Analysis

For the third straight year the Aggies have not only attracted talent but also filled future needs in their fall signing period. Coming off three sub-par seasons, many outsiders and those looking for change in the Aggie program and beat the pots about the Aggie coaches and their recruiting acumen. The didn't know what they were talking about then and eight All-American performances and two top 15 finishes later, the Aggies are back and moving up the ranks as they try to reach Omaha.

The Aggie coaches moved back into the top of the Big12 and the ranking with a tried and true formula of high school talent supplemented by major and junior college transfer. There is no doubt that the success that the Aggies have had under Mark Johnson and they way he treats his athletes are a major selling point to kids that are looking to go to the next level. A&M attracts players (Zach Jackson, Chris French, Shawn Schumacher and Clayton Turner) with the integrity and honesty that if the Aggie coaches say you have a spot on the roster, you are not just hearing lip service. Getting players to transfer for more exposure, to play a natural position or to get away from a bad situation is vital and few coaches around the country have as sterling a reputation as the Aggies in not only shooting straight but improving your stock and giving you a chance to win. The Aggie coaches know that the high school talent in Texas is a skilled as any in the nation and they butter their bread on attracting players that not only want to attend Texas A&M but have the skill to play at the highest level. The Aggie coaches know that their signees will be evaluated for the upcoming MLB draft and they will likely lose a player to the money that professional baseball throws at top prospects. They also know that the changing dynamic of college players going higher in the draft is sending more higher profile high school players to college ball than years past.

This year's class has a star at the top with LHP Aaron Thompson rated among the top left-handed pitchers in the nation. Now many will tell you that he is hands down a pro player and will never step foot on campus but same was said about Drew Stubbs two years ago and he is patrolling the outfield in Austin right now. Thompson fits the same profile, ties to the university, fan of the program and an academic track record that shows how important school is to his future. Thompson will face the same kind of scrutiny that last years LHP phenom Troy Patton did and if Thompson tells professional baseball that he plans to attend Texas A&M then he could fall through the draft just like Patton did, now Patton ended up an Astro but you never know what might happen. Joe Savery is another example of a player who's talent said high pick but his desire to attend Rice dropped him to the 15th round, Savery was the player of the year in the state and rated by Baseball America is a second to fifth round talent but he was one of seven players (four others signed pro contracts) who so were rated that ended up in college out of Texas last year. Savery was also an accomplished hitter and his ability to be a two-way player is something that Thompson can show in Aggieland and not in professional baseball, where they pigeon hole you on one side of the ball and that's it. Thompson's destination is not clear right now and anyone who says he is a lock for college or for pro baseball doesn't have a clue.

Aaron Thompson hits one deep...

But on to the class in total, junior college players are expected to have an immediate impact and Josh Stinson, Jacob Vasquez and Mike Dunn have the potential to be in the starting lineup shortly after arriving in Aggieland. Stinson knows the Big 12, starting as true freshman for Oklahoma and improving as the season progressed. He was rated as the #1 high school catcher in Texas two years ago and playing this year at San Jacinto, he will handle as talented a group of JUCO pitchers as any backstop in the country. With Justin Pouk's eligibility expiring and Craig Stinson's draft prospects climbing, Josh Stinson will likely be the starter next year with Richard O'Brien and Vasquez also seeing time behind the plate. Vasquez, by all accounts, can flat out hit the baseball. Yesterday when I posted information on his signing I left out that he was the top freshman hitter in the Orange Empire league and might have contended for player of the years honors if not for his teammate hitting .500 on the season. Vasquez ability to play catcher and first base make him attractive to the program as well since Coby Mavroulis could also be leaving after his junior season. Mike Dunn, not to put any pressure on the young player, is a talented pitcher as well as outfielder. The Aggies saw two years ago how Scott Beerer changed the fortunes of the pitching staff as well as the outfield with the ability to hit and pitch. Dunn plays in a wooden bat JUCO league so his hitting numbers might not jump out but watch what happens when former teammates Tyler Coon and Calvin Beamon are on the field in Austin. Dunn was the team's leading hitter last year and since Coon has departed, he will see more time on the mound in 2005. All three of these Aggie signees will balance out the Aggie lineup since they hit from the left side. Another lefty, David Newmann, will help the Aggies on the mound. He was primarily a reliever for the Gators last season but a tremendous start in the JUCO World Series has him primed for a big year on the mound. The San Jacinto program is always loaded but he will be one to watch when he pitches to Stinson all spring in a preview of their time in Aggieland. Richard O'Brien is the only transfer not to pitch or hit from the left side but the shouldn't overshadow a talented young player who split time behind the plate on a Connors State team that was the talk of junior college baseball scene last year as the were #1 most of the season. He will be the primary catcher this spring so his numbers will be even better next season at Connors.

The high school prospects that were brought in with Thompson are found either on the mound on in the outfield. The Aggies attracted a great group of infielders last year and their progress during fall practice showed the coaches that the player that will fill Cliff Pennington's position, likely the only infielder to depart, is already in the Aggie uniform. Outfield is a different story though as John Infante, Andrew Baldwin and Tavis Bartek could be moving on after next year. Now Chance Corgan, Todd Sebek, Keith Stein, Brandon Glover and Chris Jones all showed outfield skills during their freshman fall. Corgan and Jones might both end up on the mound as they progress and the Aggies do not want to have depth problems that could cripple a team in the future, so outfield was an emphasis of the class this fall. Kyle Colligan is underrated, playing in as tough a district as any in the state against the other Fort Bend schools. He is pitched around every game in high school since he has little talent around him but he still was first team all-district. During the summer, when the talent behind him, forced pitchers to come into the strikezone he took it up a level. Jon Kutscherousky is in the same position as Colligan playing at Lake Travis but he shows the power and hitting ability to play in the Big 12 when he does see pitches. He was another player who's summer stats are greater than his high school numbers because he does see better pitches even though the pitcher delivering them is also a higher quality. Anthony Vazquez is a lot like Mike Davis, a left hand pitcher as well as an accomplished outfield. Along with Beorne's Longhorn signee Brad Suttle, these two juniors dominated the San Antonio region as two-way players. Vazquez showed the same kind of results that two major college pitchers, brothers Matt (Stanford) and Jeff (Notre Dame) Manship, showed the previous three seasons for Reagan High. Reagan battles the best team from Corpus every year for a trip to state and many expect another showdown between Vazquez and Reagan against Moody and Louis Flores to advance to state. He will be given a chance to find success either on the mound or in the outfield, like the Corgan and Jones from this year's class. Steven Farris has always looked the part of a thrower, big and strong and able to blow the ball past hitters but this summer the pitching elements finally came together for the young pitcher. He made the Area Code games when many doubted if he would even be a starting pitcher for his high school next spring. I am sure the Aggie coaches hope he did not blossom too soon as the big right-hander could pitch quickly in college if he continues to mature and refine his craft. Every big time program in the country chased Kyle Thebeau commitment. He was second team all-district but his ability outshines his numbers with Stanford, Texas, LSU and Texas A&M are your primary suitors. He still went 4-3 with a 2.06 ERA while striking out 76 in 51 innings pitched. He allowed only 13 walks but in a season where Moody was unbeatable, Caroll took losses against the eventual state champion and missed the playoff for the second straight year. This summer was different for Thebeau as he teamed with Vazquez and Suttle and the South Texas Sliders were one of the top summer teams in the country, losing to Thompson, Colligan and their Houston Kyle Chapman teammates in the finals of the prestigious World Wooden Bat Championship.

This class is another great mix of junior college players and high school talent. Tie to the program, trips to Olsen and the Aggies improving post season results each of the past two years have these players excited about not only playing in Aggieland but being the best the Big 12 has to offer. A&M did miss on prospects but when decisions are made between LSU, Rice, Texas and Texas A&M, factors of playing time, depth chart, scholarship percentage make baseball recruiting as tough as any in college athletics. A&M has players that these other powers wanted in this recruiting class, just as they have player the Aggie coaches offered but as a whole the Aggie Fall Class of 2005 is another talented group that is full of character, not personalities.

11/18/04 11:00 a.m.CT 

Aggies Sign 11 Recruits

Texas A&M baseball signed 11 players in the November early signing period, head coach Mark Johnson announced Thursday. "We are very pleased and excited with this recruiting class," Johnson said. "We recruited for some very specific needs, and we feel this class will meet those needs. We anticipate that a number of these players will be contributors in their initial year at Texas A&M." Of the 11 signees, six are current high school seniors and five will be playing their sophomore year in the junior college ranks this spring. 

Three of the six high school signees are listed on Jason Becker's Texas Baseball News Texas Top 25, including the No. 1 player in the state, left-handed pitcher Aaron Thompson.

2004 Aggie Baseball Signees

OF Kyle Colligan 6-1, 180, R-R, Fr-HS Houston, TX (Fort Bend Dulles)

Kyle picked A&M over Notre Dame, Duke and Louisiana-Lafayette. First team all-district in the same loop at Elkins and Clements is quite an accomplishment. He really picked up his game this summer with the Kyle Chapman All-Stars. He batted leadoff in the World Wooden Bat Championships and went 9-for-21 with 8 run scored and six RBI. No. 24 prospect in Jason Becker¹s Texas Baseball News Texas Top 25. Selected to play in the Texas Scouts Association All-Star game and the Area Code Games.

LHP/OF Mike Dunn 6-1, 185, L-L , Jr-TR Farmington, NM (Cimarron-Memorial High/Community College of Southern Nevada)

He hit .306 last season and received first-team All-Region 18 honors. Led the league with 17 doubles and stole a league high 14 bases. 2003 draft Preview: Large, athletic frame. Excellent strength potential. Very athletic outfielder. Long, easy strides. Glides to ball. Hard contact. Mature, athletic HS outfielder with potential to hit at ML level. Also LHP. Taken in the 33rd round by New York Yankees in 2004 and 14th round by Houston Astros in 2003 Dunn, a pitcher/outfielder who moved to Las Vegas with his family from Farmington, N.M., before his senior year at Cimarron-Memorial High, chose Texas A&M, where longtime friend Kyle Nicholson pitches. Played summer baseball with Elkhart Dusters of the Jayhawk League Earned All-Conference and All-State awards after his senior year in high school. Named the Nevada Player of the Year in 2003.

RHP Steven Farris Houston 6-5, 190, R-R, Fr-HS Houston, TX (Langham Creek)

Turned the corner this summer and his pitching approach is catching up to his physical tools. High eighties fastball is complemented by developing pitches. Recorded a 6-4 record with 66 strikeouts and 26 walks as a junior at Langham Creek High School. Played summer ball for the Langham Creek Red team in the Kyle Chapman League and had a record of 6-1. Earned a spot on the Kyle Chapman All-Star Team Selected to represent the Texas Rangers¹ team in the 2004 Area Code games, held this past July.

OF Jonathan Kutscherousky 6-1, 200, R-R, Fr-HS Austin, TX (Lake Travis)

Kutscherousky features a big time bat with outstanding power potential and a very strong arm from the outfield. Choose A&M over Baylor and TCU. Perfect Games says… Jonathan Kutscherousky is a 2005 OF/P from Austin, TX. Very strong athletic body, Excellent runner, with MLB RF arm strength, Outstanding tools, Big bat, Big power potential, Big time prospect, Very good student. Jonathan Kutscherousky -- Kutscherousky is a strongly built and physically mature junior outfielder from Texas. He not only is strong, but his speed/arm strength tool combination is very good as well and plays at all levels. Kutscherousky took a very good batting practice for us, showing above average loft power potential with good extension and bat speed. He turned on some balls and really crushed them. He's got to be scary with a metal bat in his hands and the pro scouts are going to notice his bat speed and approach, too. We did note that Kutscherousky's game approach was a little more tentative, as if he were overanxious or trying to avoid a strikeout. We'll hope this was a short aberration. Kutscherousky's also a strong student as well. Big time bat with outstanding power potential. Named all-district after his sophomore and junior seasons at Lake Travis High School. Played summer ball for the Austin Grays where he hit .385 with five homeruns, four triples, 14 doubles and stole 12 bases.

LHP David Newmann 6-0, 180, L-L, Jr-TR Houston, TX (Clear Creek/San Jacinto)

The 6-0, 180-pound sophomore was overpowering for the Gators last season, and his complete game win over the eventual national champions Dixie State at the JUCO World Series forced another championship game and earned him all-tournament honors. He allowed only one hit and run while striking out eight and walking nine in the 9-1 victory. Newmann went 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA with a save, while striking out 18 in 12 innings while making three appearances at the World Series. He went 6-3 with a 2.58 ERA and three saves last season as a freshman at San Jacinto Junior College. The Cleveland Indians drafted Newmann this year in the 25th round. He spent most of his freshman year as a reliever but he should be a starter on a very talented San Jacinto pitching staff this year. He was injured his junior season in high school, but he went 9-2 and was one of the Houston-area's strikeout leaders his senior season at Clear Creek after replacing Baylor's Mark McCormick as the Wildcat's ace. Newmann pitched this summer for the Liberal Beejays and went 2-2 with a 3.59 ERA with 34 K's in 27 innings. Was named All-County by the Galveston Daily News after his senior season.

C Richard O'Brien 5-11, 199, R-R, Jr-TR Little Rock, AR (Catholic/Connors State)

Played for the Central Illinois Collegiate League champion Buff City Bombers, a top wood bat summer league. He batted .250-3-12 during the summer while starting 25 times behind the plate. He was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 47th round in each of the last two drafts. Was the starting catcher for Conners State College, which was ranked No.1 in the country in NJCAA Division I all but one week of the 2004 season. Hit .307 with four homers and 24 RBI as a freshman at Conners. Started all four years at Catholic High School, earning all-state honors twice and all-conference honors three times. Hit .400 (108-for-270) with 24 homeruns inn his high school career. Was 6-0 with a 0.45 ERA during his senior year.

Josh Stinson 6-1, 200, L-R, Jr-TR Beaumont, Texas (Port Neches-Groves/Oklahoma/San Jacinto JC)

The transfer catcher started at Oklahoma last year but left for San Jacinto JC after the season. He will fill a huge need for the Aggies since they will lose Justin Pouk and Craig Stinson (no relation) after this season. Stinson was on campus and watching the Aggies the same day as my last update and his commitment should allow the coaches to focus on finding a high school senior to be his backup next year. Stinson hit .248-3-17 while starting 37 games as a true freshman but he really came on in conference play where he hit .314-3-9. Hyaniss Mets: Josh batted .248 in 52 games, including 37 starts, in his freshman season for the Sooners. He hit three home runs, drove in 17 runs, and scored 18 runs while making only one error in 357 chances. Josh played his high school ball at Port Neches-Groves (TX) High, where he was twice an all-district catcher and an All-State honoree after his junior year. In that season he batted .451 with eight homers 47 RBI. He was also named the Most Valuable Player in his district. OU Bio: Highly-touted freshman prospect ... Will have the opportunity for considerable playing time in his first year ... Understands the catching position well ... Possesses some power at the plate. High School: Lettered three years for head coach Jay Stone ... Played behind the plate throughout his prep career ... Hit at a .337 clip in his final two seasons ... Launched eight home runs and recorded 63 RBI, while striking out only 26 times, during that span ... Batted .213 and drove in 16 runs in 2003 ... Earned all-district accolades for the second consecutive year ... Garnered All-State and all-district Most Valuable Player honors as a junior ... Batted .451, scored 31 runs and collected 47 RBI ... Recorded an .835 slugging percentage and a .591 on-base percentage ... Produced 17 extra-base hits including eight home runs, seven doubles and two triples ... Excellent defensive player who posted a .927 fielding percentage ... Led team to a 22-8 record. Personal: Josh David Stinson was born Nov. 17, 1984, in Nederland, Texas ... Parents are James and Libbie Stinson ... Has four older sisters (Michelle, Kristina, Kara and Korinne) ... Father played football at Lamar University ... Sister, Kristina, swam for the University of Texas ... Enrolled in university studies.

RHP/OF Kyle Thebeau 6-0, 180, R-R, Fr-HS Corpus Christi, TX (Carroll)

Thebeau is a former teammate of Aggie SS Cliff Pennington, picked A&M over Rice, Stanford, LSU and Texas. He has long been a star during the summer season and his South Texas Slider's lost the World Wooden Bat Championship to Colligan's Karl Chapman team. In the tournament he was 1-0 with a save as well as going 5-for-18 with a championship game performance that was above average. In the final, he went 2 for 3 with a double and a two run homerun of UH Commit Louis Flores. He is rated among the top 15 players in the state by Jason Becker from www.texasbaseballnews.com and subscribers can read a great interview with Thebeau on that site. Before his junior year he pitched on the Team USA Youth National Teams. This comes from Baseball America: Justin Bristow (Richmond, Va.), Sean O'Sullivan (El Cajon, Calif.) and Lammar Guy (Sanford, Fla.) each homered and Kyle Thebeau (Corpus Christi, Texas) and Ike Davis (Scottsdale) combined on a one-hitter to lead the US Youth National Team to a 16-0 victory over South Africa. The blowout pushed Team USA's record to 4-0 in the IBAF XI "AA" World Youth Championships in Kaohsiung, Taiwan Named the Bay-Area Newcomer of the Year after his freshman season in 2002. Second-team All-District selection in 2004. Selected to attend the Under-18 USA Junior National Team Trials last summer.

LHP Aaron Thompson 6-3, 190, L-L, Fr-HS Houston, TX (Second Baptist)

Thompson is the top lefty in Texas going into this season. TeamOne baseball has him rated as the top lefthander in the country and Baseball America has him listed as the #30 prospect in the nation. He led the Houston Heat team to a summer championship at Perfect Game/World Wood Bat Association Summer Championship. Choose A&M over Texas, LSU and TCU. 2004 Stats: Pitching ---- W/L 9-1 ERA 0.52 146 K's in 80 innings Hitting ---- AB 132 / HITS 46 / AVG. .348 / HR 7 / RBI 47 / SLG. .621

Baseball America had this to say about Thompson: http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/leagues/HS_amateur/040712wwba.html Lefthander Aaron Thompson, a rising senior from Second Baptist High in Houston, picked up a pair of wins on his way to tourney most valuable pitcher honors. Thompson, 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, touched 92 mph in two outings, tossing nine innings without allowing an earned run. He has a smooth, effortless delivery with good extension, allowing for good, late break on a slider and two-seam fastball. 

He led Second Baptist High School to the 2004 5A TAPPS State Championship. Earned spots in the Area Code Games and the Texas Scouts Association All-Star Game. His stepfather¹s father, Charlie Milstead, was the No. 1 recruited quarterback in the state, and played at A&M from 1957-59 before going on to a professional career with the Houston Oilers.

LHP/OF Anthony Vaquez 6-0, 170, L-L, Fr-HS San Antonio, TX (Reagan High)

photo courtesy of http://eteamz.active.com/SA5ABASEBALL/index.cfm?

One of the top two juniors in San Antonio this season, he was All-Greater San Antonio as well as All-District 26-5A as both a pitcher and outfielder. On the mound he was 14-1 with 0.94 ERA, 111 strikeouts while batting .413 with 32 RBIs. Named Class 5A All-State team as selected by the directors of the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association. Only loss was 4-1 in the Region 4 championship series to eventual state champion Corpus Christi Moody and UH signee Louis Flores. Member of the South Texas Sliders this past summer, where he was named to the Connie Mack South Regional All-Tournament Team.

C/1B Jacob Vasquez 6-0, 225, L-R, Jr-TR Diamond Bar, CA (High/Santa Ana JC)

Freshman catcher/first baseman Jacob Vasquez was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 1197th overall pick in the 40th round. The first team all-OEC selection played in all of Santa Ana's 38 games and led the team in RBI (58) and walks (19); and was second in batting average (.396), hits (59), doubles (13), home runs (8), slugging percentage (.644) and on-base percentage (.483); third in at bats (149); and fourth in runs scored (43). Vasquez was also named to the California Community College Baseball Coaches Association (CCCBCA) 2004 All-America Team as a designated hitter. His numbers are more impressive when you consider that sophomore OF Trevor Mortensen, the OEC Player of the Year, was his teammate and overshadowed his offensive numbers. Mortenson was drafter three rounds behind Vasquez and is expected to start for defending national champions Cal-State Fullerton this year. High School: Lettered in baseball as a junior and senior at Diamond Bar H.S…Earned First Team all-Sierra League honors both years…Was a Scholar-Athlete recipient…Majoring in education

10/18/04 8:45 a.m.CT 

Slugfest Caps Fall World Series 

The final game of the 2004 Fall World Series turned out like many Big 12 Sunday ballgames, lost of hitting and not nearly enough pitching.  With the series already decided, the Sunday game was more for pride than any thing else.

The Pelicans, watching the flags fly straight out at centerfield, jumped on top in the first inning.  Cliff Pennington stroked a one-out double to right-center, and stole third before John Infante walked to put runners at the corners against freshman Erik Paulson.  Pennington came home on a wild pitch and Infante moved to third before Coby Mavroulis launched his second homerun of the series over the right field wall. 

The Virus struck back in the top of the third with a two-out rally.  Todd Sebek singled to center and came all the way around to score on a double to right-center by Kyle Nicholson.  He moved to third on the throw home and scored when a ball tossed back to the mound got away from the pitcher, Brian Steinoucher.  The Virus went back on top in the next inning, Parker Dalton led off the inning with a single to right before Austin Boggs homered to right to make the score 4-3 for the visitors. 

That lead would be short lived, as the Pelicans would take out their frustrations on Virus reliever Austin Creps.  He allowed seven runs, six earned, and six hits in two innings.  An error by Dalton on a tailor made double play ball up the middle opened the door for five runs after the misplay.  Infante took advantage with a RBI double down the right field line and Mavroulis drove home two with a single into right to make the score 8-4.  The Pelicans scored two more in the fifth, Chris Jones singled before a Bartek walk and Will Carpenter moved both up with a sacrifice bunt.  Lance Harvell's ground ball to second scored Jones and Bartek later scored on a wild pitch.  Infante continued to pound the ball, homering to left of Evan Gerald to start the sixth.  Mavroulis singled to left and went all the way to third on another single to left by Pouk.  Jones then drove home Mavroulis with a sacrifice fly to center to make the score 12-4.

Cliff Pennington came into pitch for the Pelicans in the top of the seventh but Parker Dalton found a hole for his fourth hit of the day.  Boggs drew a full-count walk to put runners at first and second before both moved up on a wild pitch by Pennington.  After two outs, Keith Stein singled to left, scoring Dalton. In a throw that just beat him to the plate, Boggs was cut down at the plate on a fine throw by Bartek.    The Virus infected Pennington again in the eighth, Nicholson's second hit of the game, a one-out double to the wall into deep left-center got the ball rolling and he moved to third on a single up the middle by Corgan.  Lee Harughty grounded out to second to score 12 to 7. 

The Pelicans responded in the bottom of the eighth.  Pouk started the inning with single up the middle before Jones and Carpenter walked to load the bases.  Pitcher turned right fielder Kyle Marlatt, entering the game when Pennington went to the mound, singled Pouk home with a hard hit ball to center.  Jess Buenger picked up his fourth hit of the game, a solid double to the gap, that scored Jones and Carpenter and Pennington ended the scoring with a sacrifice fly to center that scored Marlatt for the 16-7 final. 

Coby Mavroulis did pitch the ninth inning for the Pelicans and he retired the side in order, striking out Andy Howes to end the ballgame.

Hitter of the game:

When you have 23 runs score, there are plenty of candidates.  Parker Dalton went 4-of-5 with three runs scored, a great stat line for a lead off hitter, but his counterpart Jess Buenger was just as impressive with his 4-of-6 performance with three RBI.  That being said, the hitter of the game is going to go to Coby Mavroulis, 3-of-5 with two run scored and four RBI.  His two run homerun in the first set the tone for the Pelicans and they carried that hot start through eight solid innings at the plate.

Pitcher of the game:

Tyler Soeder was awarded the win after pitching 1.2 scoreless innings, quite a feat on a windy afternoon when seven other pitchers allowed 27 runs and 27 hits in the other 15.1 innings.  Honorable mention goes to Coby Mavroulis, working one inning with one strikeout while facing the heart of the Virus lineup.

Game Five Box Score

10/15/04 10:30 p.m.CT

Virus Split to Take Title

 The Virus rallied once again for another late inning victory and took the night cap of a double header for a 3-2 series clinching victory.  Game five will be for pride as the virus have already won the fall world series with their three wins.

Game Three:

The Virus jumped out on top but they were unable to keep the Pelicans from scooping up a victory with a mid-inning rally.  The Virus scored two runs in the first inning, freshman Keith Stein and Todd Sebek both singled to start the game and Stein scored on a third straight hit, off the bat of Austin Boggs.  Craig Stinson grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to score Sebek but starting pitcher Clayton Turner would settle down and keep his team in the game.  He would work out of a two-out jam in the third before his team rallied in the fourth. 

His counterpart, Chance Corgan, had silenced the Pelican bats for the first three innings, allowing only a double in the first and back-to-back singles in the second before cruising through the third.  John Infante jumped on the first pitch of the fourth for a single into centerfield and Coby Mavroulis tied the game at two with a majestic homerun to right that easily crossed the fence.  Justin Pouk made it back-to-back jacks with his homerun to left to give the Pelicans the lead.  Andrew Baldwin then drew a full count walk before Corgan was relieved by Blake Rampy.  Chris Jones nearly cleared the bases with a run scoring triple to center and he came home on a grounder by Jess Buenger to make the score 5-2. 

Back to back walks caused Turner some problems in the top of the fifth but after working out of that jam, he wasn’t really challenged before giving way to Tyler Seoder in the seventh.  Soeder allowed a one-out single by Stein before ending the game on a double play by Sebek.  The Pelicans scored an insurance run earlier in the sixth after a Will Carpenter double and an error by Ryan Hill with two outs for an unearned run.  The final was 6-2 with Turner getting the win after throwing six innings with the two runs while walking four and allowing five hits and striking out two.  Hart Hering and Evan Gerald also pitched for the Virus.

Game Four:

Another pitchers duel but neither starter would figure in the decision.  An unearned run was the only score allowed by Dan Donaldson during his stint on the mound.  A bases loaded infield single had scored Andy Howes in the second for a 1-0 lead.  Howes had reached on an error by Pennington in front of a double by Corgan and Kyle Nicholson walked to load the bases.  Lee Harughty grounder was stopped in the outfield grass by Pennington but he had no chance retire a runner on the play.

Jon Micheal Cline threw three 3.1 innings allowing two runs in the fourth inning before being relieved by Austin Creps.  Cline allowed John Infante a single to start the frame before a fielder’s choice grounder by Mavroulis erased Infante.  Mavroulis moved the third on a double by Pouk to left-center field.  Baldwin drove home both runners with a single to right to score two.  Creps struck out Jones and Buenger to end the fourth and after a hard hit line drive to right by Carpenter, he struck out Pennington and Bartek to finish the fifth.  He allowed two hits in the sixth but work out of trouble with a fielder’s choice grounder by Jones to end the inning. 

Justin Sokol had relieved Donaldson and fielded a groundout to end the fourth with men at the corners and he worked the fifth inning 1-2-3.  Sokol hit Hill to lead off the sixth and after a hard liner to left by Stein, Andy Howes socked a two-run homer near the old scoreboard in left-centerfield.  It made the score 3-2 and brought Aggie closer Kevin Whelan to the mound in the seventh.  He struck out Buenger and Carpenter before Pennington singled to left.  He stole second but was stranded when Whelan struck out Bartek looking to end the game.  Creps picked up the win and Sokol took the loss while Whelan earned his second save.

Batter of the night:

Justin Pouk is back and the Aggie offense sure missed him last season.  He went 3-for-6 with a homerun and a double in the two games while scoring twice.   Pouk’s ability to get on base is a key for the Aggies but his ability to hit for extra bases is a key as well.  He can play catcher, third and first, giving the coaches a talented, experienced player for next season.

Pitcher of the night:

Kevin Whelan showed why he is a likely high round pick in both of his saves but striking out the side tonight was a big key for the Virus.  He is pitching with command and now that he has an off-speed pitch, his mid-nineties fastball looks even faster to the batters.  It is amazing to watch him dominate teammates that have seen him pitch all fall, that bodes well for the spring where opponents have little scouting and will likely see him for the first time since, he did not pitch much during his sophomore season.

Game Three Box Score

Game Four Box Score

10/15/04 10:30 a.m.CT

Fall World Series Games One and Two Recap (LINK: Game 1 and Game 2 Photos)

The Virus won both games of the Thursday doubleheader to take the lead in the series 2-0.

The Virus scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh on a Cliff Pennington throwing error to rally from two down for a 6-5 victory. Blake Rampy picked up the win and Chris Jones was saddled with the hard luck loss.

The seventh inning started with a walk to Chance Corgan before a bloop single to right by Tyler Hohman. Parker Dalton laced a first pitch single to centerfield to score Corgan but John Infante's throwing error allowed both runners to move up a base. That error would prove costly as following a strikeout, Pennington was forced to throw off-balance across the infield instead of retiring Dalton at second base.

It spoiled a solid pitching performance from the Pelican's Jason Meyer, he threw 5.1 innings of two hit baseball but his five walks caused him problems. He allowed three earned runs. Clayton Turner threw two thirds of an inning in relief of Meyer. Pennington and Infante and each had two hits for the Pelicans. Infante scored three times and one of those runs came on an opposite field homerun leading off the third.

The Pelicans scored single runs in the first and second innings as well. Pouk drove home Infante with a two out single to right field and Pennington drove home Jones, the designated hitter, in the second. Jones had stolen second and moved to third on a groundball for first before a tremendous catch in centerfield by Corgan kept Jones from coming home. That catch put the pressure on the Aggie junior shortstop and Pennington delivered a shot up the middle to plate Jones.

Meyer got himself into trouble in the fourth, walking Austin Boggs and compounding the problem with two wild pitches to move him to third. He scored on a passed ball to make it 3-1. Stinson then drew a one out walk and he went to third on a double to right by Andy Howes. Todd Sebek drove home Stinson with a sacrifice fly to right and Keith Stein drove home Howes with a single up the middle to knot the score at three. The Pelicans regained the lead with two runs in the fifth. Infante and Mavroulis drew one out walks off Robert Ray and reliever Hart Hering hit Justin Pouk to load the bases. Andrew Baldwin single to left to score Infante and Mavroulis before Hering coaxed a double play ground ball off the bat of Jones to end the inning.

Game two saw the Virus rally again, this time in the third and once again a Pennington error opened the door for the Virus. Craig Stinson drove home Parker Dalton and Ryan Hill with a single to right field to cap the scoring. Dalton had single to right with one out in the inning and Marlatt retired Boggs with a fly ball to left before Hill's grounder to Pennington. Pouk threw out Stinson trying to steal to end the inning.

Pennington had given the Pelicans a 1-0 lead in the top of the first in game two when he singled, stole second and third before coming home on a single by Travis Bartek. Doug Frame allowed another single to Infante to put runners at the corners before striking out Mavroulis and getting a lineout double play of the bat of Justin Pouk to retire Infante and end inning. Frame allowed another single to start the second by Andrew Baldwin but that was it as the Pelicans were held without a hit the final six innings. Kevin Whelan pitched the seventh and picked up the save. Marlatt was the hard luck loser, the two unearned runs did him in. He allowed only five hits while striking out three and walking two in his six innings pitched. Brian Steinocher struck out one in the seventh to close out the Pelican's pitching line.

Whelan once again dominated and looks to be as tough a closer as there will be in the Big 12 this spring. He struck out Mavroulis and Baldwin, working his two-seam fastball as well the four-seam pitch. He also retired Pouk on a foul-out to first, a staple of the hard throwing right hander this fall as batters are unable to get around on his fastball.

Doug Frame might not have had the speed that he showed last spring but he was more importantly a pitcher in game two. He worked his off-speed pitch for strikes and two of his three strikeouts were looking. Marlatt was nearly as effective but his defense did not make the plays behind him to pull in the victory.

Pitcher of the Night: It would be hard to go against Frame, allowing only one run and no hits after the second pitch of the second inning. It was easily his most impressive performance that I have seen. As he returns to full strength between now and the spring, he could have shown the ammunition to be a starting pitcher for the Ags next year.

Doug Frame Pitched an Excellent Ballgame

Hitter of the Night: John Infante went 3-for-6 with three runs scored and his opposite field shot was the only homerun of the night into a breeze that started strong into the hitter's faces before dropping to nearly nothing as the night went on. It was the third opposite field homerun I have seen from the junior this fall and it shows that he will take the ball the opposite way instead of trying to pull the ball out of the park, a sure sign of maturity from the junior.

John Infante celebrates after hitting his homerun

Box Scores

Fall World Series Game One      Fall World Series Game Two

10/14/04 9:30 a.m.CT

Fall World Series Tonight....

Game 1 and 2 of the Fall World Series start tonight and we will have wall to wall coverage here online.  We will have box scores from each and every game as well as a quick recap.  We will also bring you pictures of all the new players, wearing their Aggie uniforms for the first time ever!!  Check back for those updates and links to the new features as the FWS is played tonight through Sunday.

Here are my projected lineups for each team. 

Virus C- Craig Stinson 1B- Andy Howes 2B-Ryan Hill SS-Parker Dalton 3B-Austin Boggs LF-Todd Sebek CF-Chance Corgan RF Keith Stein DH-Tyler Hohman When Corgan pitches I think we will see Ryan Hill in Right and Stein in center with Hohman moving to second. 

Pelicans C- Justin Pouk 1B- Coby Mavroulis 2B-Jess Beunger SS-Cliff Pennington 3B-Will Carpenter LF-Travis Bartek CF-John Infante RF-Andrew Baldwin DH-Chris Jones

http://sports.tamu.edu/index_full.php?pageID=1170&SID=MBA has the complete roster for both teams.

10/6/04 9:30 a.m.CT

At Practice again...

I was finally able to see another group of pitcher perform and I was certainly happy that I did. I watched an assortment of veterans, transfers and freshman take the mound with varied success but encouragement for the most part.  Eric Paulson, Austin Creps, Chance Corgan, Justin Sokol, Tyler Soeder, Kevin Whelan, Blake Rampy and Coby Mavroulis all hit the hill and made it tough at times for the Aggie bats to get it going.  I know the first reaction is to asking about a first baseman/outfielder on the mound but we will get to him in just a second or two. 

Paulson worked three innings and allowed three runs, a big double by Andrew Baldwin started a two run frame in the second and Keith Stein delivered a homerun in the third against his freshman teammate.  Stein has been solid in his batting each and every time I have ventured to Olsen and he has a bright future.  Paulson does as well; he only walked on batter and made the away team put the ball in play.  Creps did the same thing for home squad and allowed only one run.  The run came in the first inning and illustrated what will be a key for the Aggie offense in the spring.  SS Cliff Pennington reached on a single, disrupted Creps while at first base and helped cause a wild pitch.  He then stole third and scored on what would have likely been a double play ball to short off the bat of freshman Chris Jones.  Pennington did the same thing this summer at the Cape and that ability will cause plenty of headaches for opponents this next season.  Creps did settle down and pitched much better after the first inning.  He set his opponents down 1-2-3 in the second and after allowing two singles to start the third he worked out of the jam, getting a caught stealing by catcher Justin Pouk to Tyler Hohman at third for the first out, a strikeout Todd Sebek before exacting a little revenge by retiring Pennington on a ground ball to second. 

Corgan and Sokol went at each other for the next three innings.  Transfer Ryan Hill, playing right field for the away team, reached on a single to greet Corgan but the freshman showed why he has such a bright future in Aggieland.  He pitched well and got a foul out and a double play grounder to erase Hill to end the third inning, and then he retired the next six batters in order with two called strikeouts.  Corgan, with only 25 players on a weekend roster, has already shown the ability to play multiple positions and he will likely make a big contribution in the spring if he continues to impress like he has so far.  Sokol did not fare as well but he still battled and showed good ammunition in his three innings.  Jones and Craig Stinson greeted him with singles to start the fourth inning before Travis Bartek plated Jones with sacrifice fly.  Sokol retired four more in a row after that but ran into trouble with two outs in the fifth.  Todd Sebek and Pennington each reached on singles and a walk by Jones loaded the bases for Stinson.  He hit a ball on the ground and Hohman made a tremendous play to glove the ball, but he was unable to beat Pennington to the bag so the bases remained loaded.  Sokol battled back and retired Bartek on a pop up to second to end that frame.  Mavroulis made a tremendous catch in foul territory to retire his counterpart Andy Howes starting the sixth and Sokol coaxed ground balls from two of the next three batters to end his outing.

Soeder had the roughest performance on the day, and since I am watching the Aggies play the Aggies, it is alright for someone to get hit around a bit.  Paker Dalton would have reached but he hit the ball into the glove of Pennington and his tremendous throw from deep in the hole (or left field if you want to call it that) nipped him in a bang-bang play at first.  Hill had the first of four straight hard hit balls, in his case a double, for the away team, and he scored on a hard hit single by Pouk.  Sebek’s accurate throw to second retired the sliding Pouk at second but Baldwin legged out another double and scored on Mavroulis’ single to really produce at the plate.  After getting a fly ball to end the inning, Soeder’s second trip to the mound was only a little better.  A one out error by Pennington put a runner at first but Soeder promptly picked them off, it was a good move and it had better timing as a single and another error put two runners on before he retired the side.  It didn’t help that Whelan dominated while facing him either.  Perception was the Soeder really struggled because you saw the Aggies closer blowing gas in the other half innings.  Whelan worked between 90-94 on his fastball and his breaking pitch was between 80-85 in both innings.  Stein grounded out to second and Dalton had one of the two well struck balls I had seen off Whelan this fall when he flew out to center.  He struck out Jones looking to end the seventh and he struck out Stinson, Bartek and Howes in the eighth and the radar guns showed the ability as much as the strikeouts did. 

Rampy reminded me of what Rampy did last year.  When under control his pitches are as tough as any but if he gets a little off in his form he struggles with walks.  Singles with one out in the ninth inning by Pouk and Baldwin were followed by a Will Carpenter strikeout and a walk to Hohman to fill the bases.  John Infante drew a bases loaded walk to drive in a run before Rampy rebounded with a strike out to end the inning. He was better in the tenth, a leadoff walk was erased on a fielder’s choice ground ball and a fly-out to center and a line drive to short ended his appearance.  Now to Coby Mavroulis the pitcher.  First off he is a pitcher when he is on the mound, not just a thrower. He had a leadoff walk against him but he retired three straight, including a strikeout, to end his first inning.  As telling as his zero on the scoreboard that inning was the reaction by Austin Boggs when he had to foul pitch after pitch off to keep his at bat alive.  Mavroulis worked mostly in the mid eighties but he did throw a bit harder at times.  Just like Corgan, having players with the ability to help at another position, even if just in a pinch, gives your college baseball teams a decided advantage when the roster sizes are reduced on the weekend and in the playoffs.  Now Pennington did him in again, starting his second inning with a double, stealing third and coming home on another ground ball to short by Jones. Mavroulis struck out Stinson (shaking his head as he went back to the dugout) and he retired Bartek on a grounder back to the mound and it looked to me if the Aggies have another left hander that could help on the mound this spring.

Here are the Aggies that can play multiple positions and give the team help in a variety of ways this spring:  Justin Pouk-catcher and first base, Coby Mavroulis-first base; outfield and pitcher; Kyle Nicholson-infield and pitcher; Ryan Hill-infield and outfield; Chris Jones-pitcher, outfield and first base; Chance Corgan-pitcher and outfield; Jordan Chambless-pitcher and outfield; and Cliff Pennington-infield and pitcher.  Could one of these players be an all-star utility man like former star Scott Beerer?  Time will tell…

A bit of recruiting housekeeping, I haven’t mentioned that the Aggies have had a commitment from San Jacinto LHP David Newmann for a few weeks now. The 6-0, 180-pound sophomore was overpowering for the Gators last season, and his complete game win over the eventual national champions Dixie State at the JUCO World Series forced another championship game and earned him all-tournament honors. He allowed only one hit and run while striking out eight and walking nine in the 9-1 victory. Newmann went 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA with a save, while striking out 18 in 12 innings while making three appearances at the World Series. The Cleveland Indians drafted Newmann this year in the 25^th round.  He spent most of his freshman year as a reliever but he should be a starter on a very talented San Jacinto pitching staff this year. He was injured his junior season in high school, but he went 9-2 and was one of the Houston-area's strikeout leaders his senior season at Clear Creek after replacing Baylor’s Mark McCormick as the Wildcat’s ace. Newmann pitched this summer for the Liberal Beejays and went 2-2 with a 3.59 ERA with 34 K’s in 27 innings.

10/1/04 3:30 p.m.CT

A Little Recruiting Rant...

Not that it matters that much but Collegiate Baseball released their rankings yesterday.  The Aggies were among the five Big 12 teams listed among the top 16 recruiting classes.  The only problem is looking deeper at the numbers and they had the Aggies with 12 recruits in the enrolling class.  Well the Aggies actually had 17 recruits come to campus and only feeds a perception that has grown the past couple of years that not only have the Aggies not recruited as well as Texas but now Rice, Baylor and Houston have passed the Aggies by as well.  These rankings factor into that discussion and when Rice is rated one spot in front of the Aggies but they have everyone in their class included in the rankings and the Aggie’s only have two thirds evaluated, it chaps my hide.  Two years ago at the height of the criticism of Mark Johnson and his coaching staff, they went out and recruited four All-Americans (including freshman All-Americans), but you would never have known it looking at the recruiting rankings.  Cliff Pennington, Cory Patton, Scott Beerer, Jason Meyer and after their performances this summer, both Kevin Whelan and Robert Ray will be pre-season All-Americans as well.  Last year Austin Boggs and Zach Jackson added to the All-American hardware but the negative ninnies out there will never give these coaches the pat on the back they deserve after scouring the country months at a time to evaluate not only a player that will turn into an All-American but also a player that will show up on campus. 

This is not the first year that Collegiate Baseball snubbed the Aggies in the ranking, last year they had that class not among the nation’s top 30 but they were behind five teams in the Big 12. Texas topped the list of conference teams as they were ranked No. 5 and OSU was ranked No. 7. Other conference teams ranked were Oklahoma (No. 9), Baylor (No. 19) and Nebraska (No. 30). Now in 2002 the rankings were just as bad.  Defending national champion Texas came in at No. 6 and Baylor at No. 13. Oklahoma State was ranked No. 22 and Nebraska was just below the Pokes at No. 23 to close out the conference schools in the poll.  Two years later and Texas has had five All-Americans from the two classes (Transfer  J. P. Howell and freshman Taylor Teagarden, Kyle McCullough, Drew Stubbs and Carson Kainer), Nebraska two (freshman Alex Gordon and Tim Schoeninger), Baylor two (Freshman Abe Woody and Ryan LaMotta), Texas Tech two (JUCO Transfers Josh Brady and Cameron Blair) and OSU one (JUCO transfer Spencer Grogan).  So even though they were nowhere in the rankings, the Aggie eclipsed everyone in the league in producing All Americans on the field.  Before the Orangebloods get in an uproar, it is no slight on them that several top players redshirted last season and they could be named freshman All-American this year (like a Jason Meyer) and boost the ‘Horn numbers.  Rice has pitchers that could burst onto the scene this year since many were stuck behind the big four the past two years but I don’t think anyone from Houston will explode onto the scene.  There isn’t any team in the Big12 region, outside of Austin, that wouldn’t have killed to put these talented players on the field.

You can look at the rankings yourself at http://www.baseball-news.com/recruiting/recruiting_results.htm