By Willie Nicklaus

This is a first in a series of reports I will file leading into the 2009 college baseball season. I decided to start with some of the top power producers who had great 2008 seasons that didn’t get much press except from their local media and schools.

My selections for this report, and upcoming reports, include players who are far from one dimensional. These particular bombers all were in the top 20 of their respective conferences in batting average. So let’s get started with Home Run Frequency. For measure, here are a few HR frequencies from 2008 of players everyone who is a fan of college baseball heard of: Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2009 Top Players, 2010 Top Players, ACC, Arizona State, Auburn, Big East, Big South, Big West, CAA, Cal, Cal State Fullerton, CBB Column, Cincinnati, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, Conference USA, Dartmouth, George Mason, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Georgia Tech, Ivy League, Kent State, Louisiana-Monroe, Louisville, Loyola-Marymount, LSU, MAC, Marshall, Middle Tennessee, Missouri State, Missouri Valley, MLB Draft, New Mexico St., Ohio, Pac 10, SEC, Southern Conference, Southland Conference, Sun Belt, Tennessee, Texas State, Washington, West Coast Conference, Winthrop

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE

Twenty-five games at recently completed Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium highlight Appalachian State University’s 2009 baseball schedule, head coach Chris Pollard announced on Wednesday.
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Tags: 2009 Schedules, Appalachian State, Southern Conference

The Samford Bulldog Athletic department has announced that the baseball team will be making a trip to Cuba from October 17th-21st. This will be the Bulldogs first forgeign trip for any kind and the second trip to Cuba as the football team competed in 1927 against Havana National University. The baseball team will leave Birmingham on October 17th for Havana then they will play up to four games against various All-Star teams in Havana while taking a day sightseeing around the capital city. The games will not count against the 56 game NCAA limit. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Samford, Southern Conference

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE

Wofford College announced the 2009 baseball schedule today, which is highlighted by a home games against Virginia Tech and South Carolina. Road trips to Clemson, Georgia, Duke and North Carolina State are also included during the season which will be the second for Todd Interdonato as head coach of the Terriers.

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Tags: 2009 Schedules, Southern Conference, Wofford

The CBB has come across seven more College baseball schedules for the 2009 season from across the Internet. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2009 Schedules, Appalachian State, Atlantic 10, Duquesne, Hawaii-Hilo, Independents, MAC, Oakland, Ohio Valley Conference, Presbyterian College, Rider, Southern Conference, Summit League, UT-Martin

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE

Furman Baseball Adds Right-handed Pitcher

Furman baseball coach Ron Smith announced today the signing of pitcher Mike Waller to a national letter of intent. FULL STORY

This is the UCF Baseball Coaching Staff - Part Two with Jeff Palumbo

8/4/2008 - It’s August. At this point of the year, several Major League Baseball clubs are already out of the race. In the American League East, the last 10 years have been dominated by the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox as they have finished first and second in nine of those seasons. So boy it must be tough for Baltimore native and UCF assistant baseball coach Jeff Palumbo. FULL STORY

Baseball Names Conner Director of Baseball Operations

Marshall University head baseball coach Jeff Waggoner recently named Chad Conner the Director of Baseball Operations for the 2009 season

Tags: Central Florida, Conference USA, Furman, Marshall, Southern Conference

A couple of former MLB players were recently named new assistant coaches. Rusty Greer who made a name for himself with the Texas Rangers was recently added to the coaching staff of NAIA school Texas Wesleyan. He served as the manager of the Colleyville Lone Stars of the Texas Collegiate League in 2007 and this summer is coaching the Dallas Baseball Academy which is a 17 year old team. The full release is available here.

Britt Reames who pitched in the Major Leagues most recently in 2006 has been named the new pitching coach of Furman University. He is a 1996 graduate of The Citadel and will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on November 1st. The full article is available here.

Tags: Coaching Changes, Former MLB players, Furman, NAIA, Southern Conference, Texas Wesleyan

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

(Charleston) - Former College of Charleston standout and South Carolina assistant coach Monte Lee has been named the Cougars’ head baseball coach, Charleston’s director of athletics Joe Hull announced Thursday at an 11:00 a.m. press conference at Randolph Hall on the school’s campus. Lee replaces John Pawlowski who was named head coach at Auburn on June 20, 2008.

Lee, 31, joins the Cougars after spending the past six seasons as an assistant at South Carolina under head coach Ray Tanner. He served as the Gamecocks’ recruiting coordinator last season. Lee also worked with the outfielders and hitters during his tenure.

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Tags: Coaching Changes, College of Charleston, Southern Conference

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
Following a national search, High Point University athletic director Craig KeilitzCraig Cozart as the head baseball coach for the Panther program on Friday. announced the hiring of

“This is a truly exciting time for the future of the High Point University baseball program,” said Keilitz. “I am thrilled to be bringing Craig Cozart to the University, this community, the athletic department and most importantly our baseball program. He is a highly motivated and very energetic coach. Craig has a tremendous work ethic and has an even higher moral character. During his coaching career, he has proven to be an outstanding recruiter and has also demonstrated a strong ability to develop players. I truly believe that things happen for a reason, and I could not be more excited about the direction of our baseball program under Coach Cozart.”

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Tags: Coaching Changes, High Point, Southern Conference

PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Right-hander Andrew Carraway (Virginia) pitched the Hyannis Mets to two victories to capture Coca-Cola Pitcher of the Week honors in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the seven-day period ending June 21. Carraway worked the first 51/3 innings to beat Falmouth, 1-0, on Monday, and followed with a five-inning stint and a 4-1 decision over Wareham on Saturday. He did not allow a run in either start and he gave up just seven hits in the 101/3 innings he pitched. Against Falmouth, he struck out seven and did not walk a batter. He whiffed seven more batters against Wareham while issuing a single base on balls. The 6-2, 200-pound junior was picking up right where he left off with the Cavaliers this spring. In 15 appearances spanning 751/3 innings, he struck out 87 and walked only 12. As a sophomore in 2007, he compiled a 5-0 record and led the Cavs in innings pitched by a reliever with 42. Carraway spent the summer of 2007 pitching for the Newport Gulls of the New England Collegiate Baseball League, where he was 3-1 with a 2.19 ERA.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Versatile Nick Liles (Western Carolina) opened his first season in the Cape Cod Baseball League in a manner most players can only dream about. The 6-2, 175-pound infielder/outfielder split his time between right field and third base and ended the week with a league-leading .444 batting average. His outstanding performance resulted in his selection as Coca-Cola Player of the Week for the seven-day period ending June 21. Liles hit safely in every Yarmouth-Dennis game until going 0-for-2 Saturday night at Falmouth (although he was on base twice with walks in that game). He had four multiple-hit games last week, including a 3-for-6 effort against Harwich and a 2-for-4 performance at Wareham in which he also scored twice, drove in three runs and stole three bases as the Red Sox posted a come-from-behind 11-7 victory over the Gatemen. Liles starts the second full week of Cape League play as the league leader in batting average (tied at .444), hits (tied at 10), RBI (7) and stolen bases (6). Last summer, Liles hit .317 for the Florence (S.C.) RedWolves of the Coastal Plains League.

Tags: ACC, Cape Cod League, Southern Conference, UVA, Western Carolina

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn Athletics Director Jay Jacobs announced Friday that John Pawlowski has been named head baseball coach. Pawlowski spent the previous nine seasons as the head coach at the College of Charleston, where he led the program to three NCAA postseason berths, one Super Regional appearance and four Southern Conference titles.

“This is a tremendous opportunity and I’m looking forward to helping bring the Auburn baseball program back to national prominence,” Pawlowski said. “There is a rich history and tradition here at Auburn and I plan on working tirelessly to make this a national contender.”
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Tags: Auburn, Coaching Changes, College of Charleston, SEC, Southern Conference

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

UNC-Wilmington 15 Elon 11

CARY, N.C. - Trailing 11-4 in the ninth, UNC Wilmington exploded for 11 runs as the Seahawks eliminated rival and third-seed Elon with a 15-11 win on Sunday at the NCAA Cary Regional at the USA Baseball Complex.

The Seahawks ran their record to 44-16-1 and reached the regional championship game for the third time in four NCAA tournament appearances. UNCW will face top-seeded UNC Chapel Hill at 520 p.m. The Phoenix, meanwhile, concluded their season with a 44-18 mark. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Cary Regional, 2008 NCAA Tourney, ACC, CAA, Elon, Southern Conference, UNC, UNC-Wilmington

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

Elon 6 Mount St. Mary’s 3

CARY, N.C. - Ken Ferrer allowed just three runs over a career-best 7.2 innings pitched and Mike Melillo hit a two-run home run to lead the 29th-ranked and third-seeded Elon Phoenix to a 6-3 victory over the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers in an elimination game of the Cary Regional of the 2008 NCAA Baseball Tournament. The Phoenix upped its record to 44-17 while the Mountaineers ended their season at 21-34.

The win was the second-ever NCAA Division I Tournament win in school history. Elon defeated Mississippi State 5-4 in the 2006 Clemson Regional. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Cary Regional, 2008 NCAA Tourney, ACC, CAA, Elon, Mount St. Mary's, NEC, Southern Conference, UNC, UNC-Wilmington

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

UNC-Wilmington 5 Elon 2

CARY, N.C. – Freshman Alex Hill went 4-for-4 and reached base five times while junior Brad Holt held Elon to six hits as UNC Wilmington topped Elon, 5-2, in the first game of the NCAA Cary Regional on Friday at the USA Baseball Complex.

The Seahawks (43-15-1), who advanced to the winner’s bracket game on Saturday at 5 p.m., picked up their school-record 43rd win and halted a brief 2-game losing skid. Elon, meanwhile, dipped to 43-18 overall and will play Saturday at 1 p.m. against the loser of the North Carolina-Mount St. Mary’s game. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Cary Regional, 2008 NCAA Tourney, ACC, CAA, Elon, Mount St. Mary's, NEC, Southern Conference, UNC, UNC-Wilmington

The Cary Regional is highlighted by the host North Carolina Tar Heels as they will be joined by UNC-Wilmington, Elon, and Mount St. Mary’s. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Cary Regional, 2008 NCAA Tourney, ACC, CAA, Elon, Mount St. Mary's, NEC, Southern Conference, UNC, UNC-Wilmington