FSU Fall Ball Recap

The Florida State Seminoles have finished up Fall practice this week with a two Garnet vs. Gold games.

The Garnet team won Game 1 with a 9-0 shutout of the Gold Team in five innings. Matt Fairel picked up the victory by going three innings while allowing only three hits and two walks. Buster Posey also pitched a shutout inning while allowing one hit. Jack Posey (Buster's brother) led the offense with three RBI's. Jimmy Marshall of the Gold team came in to pitch the third inning but was lit up for six runs (one earned) while walking four batters. The Gold offense was led by Ruairi O'Connor who went 2-2.

Game 1 Recap
Game 1 Box Score

Game 2 was won by the Garnet team with a 7-5 victory to complete the sweep. They were led by Tennessee transfer Tony Delmonico who went 2-3 with two RBI. Mike McGee (Garnet team) chipped in with three hits in the victory. Elih Villanueva pitched three perfect innings with two strikeouts with Mike McGee picking up the victory on the mound by pitching two perfect innings. Trenton Jarvis had the best day on the mound for the Gold team by pitching two scoreless inning while allowing only one hit. Dennis Guinn led the Gold offense with a three run homer in the fourth inning.

Game 2 Recap
Game 2 Box Score

Rivals Fall Baseball Positional Rankings

Rivals has released their positional rankings for the 2008 season. The top ranked catcher in the country is Buster Posey of Florida State. They ranked Jacob Thompson as the top pitcher in the country and will get no argument from me as I had the chance to see him in 2007 dominate Boston College. The full rankings are available by clicking here.

FSU dismisses Halford from team

Stephen Halford, who is a transfer from UNC-Wilmington, has been dismissed from the FSU baseball program after a violation of team rules. Halford was expected to compete for the starting spot at third base in the 2008 season as Jason Stidham is rehabbing from off-season knee surgery. Stidham is expected to get moved to second base when he recovers. Steven Cardullo is expected to get a serious look at third base this fall and could start in 2008 at the spot. A full article from Steve Ellis of The Tallahassee Democrat is available here.

Highly touted recruits have Fla. State baseball ready to reload

The Florida State baseball team has always been one of the best teams in the nation under Mike Martin in regards to recruiting. To the surprise of nobody, Martin's 2008 class is no different.

The Seminoles have the second-best recruiting class in the nation according to Collegiate Baseball and will welcome in 20 newcomers to the team that includes 11 pitchers, of which four are left-handed, four infielders, three outfielders and three catchers.

While 15 of the 'Noles' 20 recruits were playing high school ball last season, five players make their way over to Tallahassee by way of transfer. Headlining the transfer class are infielders Tony Delmonico and Stephen Halford. Expect both Delmonico and Halford to contribute immediately to the team with last season's infielders Tony Thomas, Jr. and Mark Hallberg opting out of school early for the Major League Draft.

Delmonico comes to FSU from the University of Tennessee, where he was arguably the Volunteers' best player last season. As a sophomore, Delmonico led the team in home runs (9), RBIs (49), walks (35) and runs scored (53). Adding a productive player like Delmonico should make the losses of Thomas and Hallberg much more bearable.

Halford, meanwhile, transfers in from UNC-Wilmington. Halford played every game for UNCW at the shortstop position last season as a freshman and was outstanding at the plate, hitting .352 and scoring 52 runs while setting a freshman school record with a 12-game hitting streak

For the full story go Here.


For the FSU Release go HERE

Newcomer previews

Teams have started fall practices over the last few weeks. We have put together a list of schools that have previewed their incoming classes.

UCLA
Notre Dame
FSU
Southeast Missouri State

FSU releases 2008 Schedule

The Florida State Seminoles have released their 2008 schedule. They will play a 56 game schedule in 2008 which opens up on February 22nd when Duquesne University visits for a four game series over three days. They will follow that up with an exhibition game against the Philadelphia Phillies. They will then travel to Auburn to take on the Tigers for two games before coming back to Tallahassee to host the Tigers for two games. The Seminoles will open ACC play on March 7th when Maryland visits Tallahassee. The Seminoles will also host ACC series against Georgia Tech, Virginia, Miami, and NC State. They will head on the road this season to face Virginia Tech, Boston College, Wake Forest, North Carolina, and Clemson. They will not play Duke in 2008 or 2009 due to the rotating ACC schedule. The 2008 ACC Baseball Championship will take place in Jacksonville Florida again. The full schedule is available in HTML and PDF formats.

LSU Takes 2008 CB Recruiting Title

Coach Paul Mainieri and Recruiting Coordinator Terry Rooney took home the title of #1 Recruiting Class of 2008. The Collegiate Baseball title was unsurprising as Coach M (in his first year at Baton Rouge after a successful stint in South Bend) and Coach Rooney had assembled a massive class including 12 Freshman and 7 JuCos, including several All-Americans.

The future is certainly looking bright for LSU, which is seeking to restore its position as one of the top programs in the country.

This was the 25th ranking of recruiting classes by Collegiate Baseball. The full release can be found here.

The list of top classes goes as follows:

Rank Team Recruits

1. Louisiana St. 19

2. Florida St. 20

3. Oregon St. 16

4. Notre Dame 14

5. UCLA 11

6. Cal. St. Fullerton 16

7. North Carolina 12

8. Arizona St. 17

9. San Diego 18

10. Texas 17

11. Washington 16

12. Auburn 14

13. Virginia 16

14. Oklahoma St. 18

15. Vanderbilt 13

16. Georgia 14

17. Rice 12

18. South Carolina 13

19. Missouri 16

20. Miami, Fla. 8

21. Clemson 10

22. Stanford 13

23. Georgia Tech. 11

24. Arizona 9

25. Mississippi 17

FSU recruit fine after a brief scare

Kyle Long who committed this summer to play baseball at Florida State beginning in the 2008-2009 school year received a major scare in a high school football game on September 14th. He laid motionless on the field after being hit in the back of his neck. He was taken off on a stretcher but was back working out within 48 hours after it was only a brief scare. Long is the son of Howie Long who is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Long is expected to compete for a spot in the starting lineup in 2009 and might pitch for the Seminoles. The biggest challenge for Mike Martin Sr. with Long is going to be keeping him off of the football field as Long is a big recruit in football with his 6'7 280 pound frame. The full article on Kyle Long's injury is available here.

Perfect Game names Top 20 Prospects in VL

FROM VALLEY BASEBALL LEAGUE
Baseball website PGcrosschecker.com recently compiled its list of the top 20 players in the Valley Baseball League. The list was compiled by Allan Simpson with input from the league's managers and scouts.

Similar to the recently released Baseball America list, PG Crosschecker identified Winchester's Luke Greinke as the league's top prospect. He was also the league MVP. He was followed by Covington outfielder Jason Kipnis, but then six of the next seven players listed were pitchers.

Simpson noted that league officials felt that the 2007 season saw a jump in overall talent around the league, in particular in the pitching department. The numbers appear to support that assertion. In 2007, league pitchers as a whole had a 3.70 earned run average while hitters had a .247 batting average as a league. In 2006, hitters posted a .258 average while pitchers compiled a 3.88 ERA, and the year before saw a .257 batting average and 3.97 ERA as a league.

While Waynesboro finished first in the regular season and won the Jim Lineweaver Cup as league champions, the Generals placed just three players in the top 20 and none higher than #11. In fact, many of the top prospects come from the lower half of the standings. Simpson noted that was a sign of the league's improved depth.

PGCrosschecker.com Valley League Top 20 Prospects

1. Luke Greinke, UT, Winchester (Auburn)

2. Jason Kipnis, OF, Covington (Arizona State)

3. Zac Blakney, RHP, Fauquier (Montevallo)

4. Shayne Moody, SS, Woodstock (Charlotte)

5. Ashur Tolliver, LHP, Harrisonburg (Arkansas-Little Rock)

6. Donald Jordat, RHP, Luray (Miami-Dade C.C.)

7. Rob Gilliam, RHP, Luray (UNC Greensboro)

8. Tim Sexton, RHP, Staunton (Miami-Dade C.C.)

9. Josh Judy, RHP, Haymarket (Indiana Tech)

10. Tyler Kuhn, SS/2B, Luray (West Virginia)

11. Pat Irvine, C/OF, Waynesboro (Elon)

12. Garrett Parker, RHP, Harrisonburg (Oklahoma City)

13. Bobby Hernandez, RHP, Staunton (Barry)

14. Josh Eidell, RHP, Woodstock (Villanova)

15. Elih Villanueva, RHP, Luray (Florida State)

16. Jeremy Cruz, 1B, Luray (Stetson)

17. Chris Masters, LHP, New Market (Western Carolina)

18. Brandon Sizemore, 2B, Waynesboro (Charleston)

19. Kurt Davidson, C/1B, Waynesboro (Akron)

20. Dustin Umberger, RHP, Luray (Liberty)

Full scouting reports from the summer on each player are available here. A subscription is required to view the insider-level reports.

Auburn releases 2008 schedule

The Auburn Tigers have released their 2008 schedule which opens on Febraury 22nd when East Tennennsee State visits Auburn for a four game set. The Tigers will then face Florida State in a four game series starting on Feb. 28th and 29th before heading to Tallhassee to play two more games against the Seminoles. They will play a full SEC schedule which is highlighted by visits from South Carolina and Mississippi State. They will also have a two tough three game series at Vanderbilt on April 18th-20th and Alabama on April 25th-27th. The full schedule is available here.

Florida releases 2008 Schedule

New Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan and The University of Florida athletic department has released the 2008 baseball schedule on Wednesday. The Gators will open the season on February 22nd when they take on Siena for a three game set. The Gators will make the trip down to the University of Miami the next weekend before coming back home to take on defending Ivy League Champs Brown. The Gators will play Florida State three times this season with a game in each teams respective ballpark and a neutral site game in Jacksonville. In addition to the strong OOC schedule, Florida will play a full 30 games in the SEC which is highlighted by a visit from SEC power Vanderbilt to end the season. The full schedule is available here.

Summer League Recaps

The North Carolina and Florida State Media Relations Department have each released their respective summer league recaps. The biggest award recieved from a Tar Heel player was Drew Poulk who picked up the Rookie of the Year award in the NECBL after hitting .354. The full release from UNC is available here. Buster Posey had the strongest summer with the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox as he led them to their second straight CCBL title. He hit .281 for the summer but was solid behind the plate. The full release from FSU is available here.

Texas brings in 16 for 2008

This is the list and below I added some info on some of them.
Name, Pos.; Hometown (School)
Brandon Belt, LHP/OF; Lufkin, Texas (San Jacinto College)
Bobby Buckner, 2B/SS; Boise, Idaho (Boise)
Garrett Clyde, RHP/IF; Humble, Texas (San Jacinto College)
Runey Davis, OF; Georgetown, Texas (Georgetown)
Kawika Emsley-Pai, C; Bothell, Wash. (Jackson)
Cole Green, RHP; Coppell, Texas (Coppell)
Kevin Keyes, OF; Pflugerville, Texas (Connally)
Lee Johnson, LHP; Round Rock, Texas (Round Rock)
Connor Rowe, OF; Georgetown, Texas (Georgetown)
Chance Ruffin, RHP; Austin, Texas (Lake Travis)
Cameron Rupp, C; Plano, Texas (Prestonwood Christian)
Tant Shepherd, 3B/OF; Flower Mound, Texas (Flower Mound)
Marcus Tackett, RHP/IF; Tulsa, Okla. (Oral Roberts University)
Stayton Thomas, RHP; Corsicana, Texas (Corsicana)
Casey Whitmer, RHP; Kilgore, Texas (Florida State University)
Brandon Workman, RHP; Bowie, Texas (Bowie)


Runey Davis (OF, 6-0, 178)

-Ranked No. 11 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-Clocked at 6.67 in the 60 at the Texas Rangers Area Code Games tryout.

Cole Green (RHP, 6-1, 195)

-Ranked No. 1 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-Second-team THSCA Class 5A All-State selection as a pitcher in 2006
-Selected District 6-5A Most Valuable Player in 2006.

Kevin Keyes (OF, 6-3, 205)

-Ranked No. 7 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-Selected second-team Class 4A All-State
-Texas Rangers Area Code Team member each of the last two years
-Played in 2006 AFLAC All-American Game.

Connor Rowe (OF, 6-0, 170)

-All-District 15-5A selection as an outfielder in 2006
-All-Centex honorable mention as a junior.

Chance Ruffin (RHP, 6-1, 175)

-Went 5-3 with four complete games, one save, 84 strikeouts and a 1.27 ERA in 49.2 innings in district play in 2006
-Earned second-team all-district and Lake Travis HS Big Play Award as a junior
-Garnered all-district honorable mention and LTHS Big Play Award as a sophomore

Tant Shepherd (3B/OF, 6-0, 195)

-Ranked No. 16 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-Class 5A All-State honorable mention as a third baseman in 2006
-First-team All-District 8-5A choice as an infielder in 2006
-Hit .454 with 11 doubles, two triples, two home runs, 28 RBI and 22 stolen bases as a junior
-Texas Rangers Area Code Team member in 2006
-Won 2006 AABC-Mickey Mantle World Series title as a member of the Dallas Tigers
-Hit .437 with 14 doubles, four triples, seven home runs, 47 RBI and 18 stolen bases for the Dallas Tigers in 2006.

Stayton Thomas (RHP, 6-0, 165)

-Ranked No. 18 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-First-team All-District 14-4A selection as a pitcher in 2006
-Class 4A All-State honorable mention in 2006.

Brandon Workman (RHP, 6-4, 215)

-Ranked No. 24 on Inside Prep Baseball Texas Top 25 list
-Named a Louisville Slugger All-America honorable mention as a pitcher in 2006
-A Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association first-team Class 3A All-State choice as a pitcher in 2006
-Second-team Class 3A All-State selection as a designated hitter in 2006
-Tabbed District 6-3A Most Valuable Player as a junior
-Logged an 8-1 record with a 0.94 ERA and 109 strikeouts in 67.1 innings as a junior
-Selected as a first-team District 6-3A pitcher in 2005
-Named a Class 3A All-State honorable mention by the Texas Sports Writers Association
-Posted a 9-4 record with a 1.39 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 80.2 innings as a sophomore.

Bobby Buckner (2B/SS, 6-1, 175)

-Son of former major leaguer Bill Buckner
-Selected to play in 2006 Mariners Cup
-Washington Nationals Northwest Area Code Team participant in 2006
-Rated the No. 3 Class of 2007 prospect at Perfect Game USA Sunshine West Showcase

Cameron Rupp, Prestonwood. Sr., C

-Rupp hit .654 with five home runs and 53 RBIs for Prestonwood, which finished the regular season undefeated but lost to Dallas Christian in the TAPPS 5A state championship.
-Rupp won the home run derby at the High School All-American Baseball Game in Albuquerque, N.M., this month. Rupp then doubled and had an RBI batting cleanup in the West's 12-1 win.

Lee Johnson, pitcher, Round Rock

-Johnson, a 6-foot-6 right-hander who has signed with Texas, saw only marginal action last year as a spot hitter as he recovered from Tommy John surgery. But opponents saw for the first time this season what he can do on a mound: throw a 93-mph fastball.

-Johnson starred this year as the Dragons' closer — went 2-1, notching five saves, posting a 0.32 ERA and striking out 32 in 212/3 innings. He allowed just one earned run during the regular season.

YD wins Cape Cod League Championship Again

The Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox repeated as Cape Cod League Champions in the 2007 season by knocking off the Falmouth Commodores 2-0 to take the Championship in only two games. Both teams received great pitching on Tuesday night as Yarmouth-Dennis starter Trevor Holder (UGA) gave up one hit and struck out ten batters as he picked up the MVP award for the Championship series. The winning run scored on a suicide squeeze by Nick Romero which brought home Buster Posey (FSU) with the first run of the game. The YD Red Sox would bring home another run on a passed ball to set up the final scoreline. Nick Cassavechia (Baylor) worked the ninth inning by working around a double and striking out two batters. CodBall has a recap available here and Right Field Fog also has one available here.

Thanks to Codball for providing the picture.

FSU loses two players

The Tallahassee Democrat is reporting that Danny Rosen and D'Vontrey Richardson will not return in the 2008 season. Rosen has signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Rosen was expected to be the main set up man in the 2008 season for the Seminoles. He pitched in 26 games in 2007 while compiling a 5.52 ERA. Richardson will not return to the baseball field as he plans on focusing on football for the next few years. He was a surprise contributor in 2007 when he batted .351 in 51 games including starting 35. FSU has picked up freshman football player Taiwan Easterling who was drafted in the sixth round in 2007 by the Florida Marlins. The full article is available here.

Doyle leads YD to Game 1 victory over Falmouth

FROM CCBL RELEASE
SOUTH YARMOUTH, Mass.- The Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox were in control of game one of the Cape Cod Baseball League Championship Series from the first batter all the way to the end. After both teams swept their divisional series, the Red Sox kept their momentum going while taking the wind out of Falmouth’s sails winning 8-2.

Game two of the Championship series will be played at Guv. Fuller Field in Falmouth at 7 PM August 13 as the Red Sox will be looking to win their third title in four years. Tonight’s crowd of 4.335 is expected to matched tomorrow in what could be the last game of the 2007 season.

Falmouth starter Shooter Hunt (Tulane) was chased from the game after pitching just 2 1/3 innings giving up four runs on four hits. Hunt started the game by relinquishing a homer to the first batter he faced, Grant Green (Southern California) who also blasted a solo shot in the fifth inning off of reliever Preston Claiborne (Tulane).

The second year starter for Falmouth, who also allowed Buster Posey (Florida State) to score on a sacrifice fly by Gordon Beckham (Georgia) in the first, left the game in the third after giving up a single to Jason Castro (Stanford) and a walk to leftfielder Aaron Luna (Rice) to start the inning. Preston Claiborne, Hunt’s college teammate, came in and gave up a walk to load the bases, but the Red Sox could not cash in on the opportunity as Claiborne struck out Collin Cowgill (Kentucky) and induced a ground ball out from Joey Railley (University of San Francisco) to end the threat.

The Red Sox scored twice in the second off of Hunt thanks to an RBI double by second baseman Railley that drove in Cowgill and a ground ball by the tall middle infielder turned first baseman Green that plated Railley to go up 4-0. Green moved to first base for the postseason after an elbow injury to Sean Ochinko (LSU) in the last game of the regular season left a hole in the lineup for Y-D.

For Yarmouth-Dennis Terry Doyle (Boston College), the 2006 Co-Outstanding Pitcher of the Year, collected the win giving up just two runs on four hits. He struck out seven Commodores, walking three and racking up four wild pitches in his last Cape League start in 6 1/3 innings of work.

Two of those wild pitches led to a Falmouth run as second baseman David Adams (Virginia) took both third and home on pitches that hit the dirt in front of the plate and got by Buster Posey (Florida State). The 6 foot 2 inch 205 pound power hitter, who led the Commodores with 51 hits on the season, reached second base on a double that just missed leaving the park bouncing off the left field fence in front of the score board at Red Wilson Field.

Adam’s scored the second Falmouth run in the sixth inning after reaching on a single, stealing second base, advancing to third on another Doyle wild pitch and coming home on a sacrifice fly by third baseman Phil Carey (Winthrop).

The Red Sox collected three insurance runs in the eighth of off reliever Erik Bird (Nebraska). Green collected his fourth RBI of the night, and Posey and right fielder Matt Long (Santa Clara) each drove in one run putting the final tally at eight for the Red Sox.

DJ Mauldin (Cal Poly State) shut down the Falmouth Commodores to close out the game, pitching 2 2/3 shutout innings to keep Doyle’s seventh win of the season in tact.
For Doyle, there couldn’t be a better way to finish his Cape League career than with back-to-back championships.

“It would be great (to win again), last year was a lot of fun but to be able to go back to back, which nobody’s done in a while, would be great. I mean, everybody likes winning,” said Doyle.

Photo is courtesy of Codball

Checking in with Tony Thomas Jr.

The Idaho Statesman has checked in with an article about Tony Thomas Jr. and how he is adjusting to playing with the short season Boise Hawks who are affiliated with the Chicago Cubs. Thomas dominated the ACC in 2007 with a .430 average and was named the Player of the Year in the ACC while playing for Florida State. The Chicago Cubs picked him in the third round with the 97th overall pick. Thomas started the summer with the Mesa (AZ) rookie ball team but was quickly promoted to Boise. The full article is available here.

FSU Star signs

Tony Thomas Jr. of Florida State has officially joined the Chicago Cubs organization after being a fourth round pick by the Chicago Cubs. He was named Collegiate Baseball's Player of the Year after hitting .430 with 91 runs, 33 doubles, 11 homers, and 31 stolen bases in 2007. The Seminoles are in the process of signing Tony Delmonico who is transferring from the University of Tennessee and should compete for the starting job at second base in 2008.

Tallahassee Democrat Article

NCBWA NAMES 2007 DICK Howser Trophy Finalist!

The four finalists for the Dick Howser Trophy are Vanderbilt pitcher David Price, Texas outfielder Kyle Russell, Rice pitcher-first baseman-designated hitter Joe Savery, and Florida State second baseman Tony Thomas Jr.

One member of this quartet will be named the winner at a national news conference on Friday, June 15, at 10 a.m. (CDT) at the Omaha Press Club, 22nd Floor, 16th & Dodge Streets (the old First National Bank Building), as the 21st recipient of the prestigious award, given annually since 1987.

NCBWA

RiceOwls.com

TexasSports.com

Florida Stae.com

Vanderbilt.com

Thoughts on NCAA Baseball Tourney

The game of College Baseball is starting to see a ton of parity. We have a Big East squad in Louisville making their first appearance in an NCAA Regional. They went into Missouri this weekend and defeated both Miami and Missouri twice. The Cardinals are just one of the northern teams that got through a regional as Michigan went into Vanderbilt and beat the Commodores twice. Vanderbilt was the number 1 overall seed in the tournament. The Texas Longhorns were also shocked by UC-Irvine and Arkansas went down to Oklahoma State. San Diego also went 0-2 in the Regional they hosted at San Diego State.

We also saw seven ACC teams receive bids to the NCAA Tournament but only two ended up getting into the next round of the tournament. The FSU Seminoles were a huge disappointment as they started the season with a perfect 23-0 record before losing to Jacksonville. The Seminoles were flawed as they did not have the pitching staff like the top teams in the country. They were exposed with only a two deep pitching staff in Bryan Henry and Michael Hyde. The history of the Seminoles have always been a strong hitting team but fail in the NCAA Tourney because of the lack of pitching depth. They have been to the CWS the most times without winning a title by making it 15 times to Omaha. Is it the coaching? I don't think it is Mike Martin's Sr. fault but his entire coaching staff needs to do a better job in recruiting better players. He needs to focus on getting some lights and pitchers that can dominate games like Jacob Thompson.

Tallahassee Democrat Article on Mike Martin and 2008

Virginia also bowed out of the tournament early this year but the injury bug hit the Cavaliers as they headed down the stretch. Greg Miclat had surgery on his torn labrum before the Boston College series while Brandon Guyer and Brandon Marsh each got injured in the NCAA Regional knocking them out of the NCAA Tournament. This meant the Cavaliers were missing a whole third of their lineup in which they were not able to overcome. The Cavaliers will lose All-American candidate Sean Doolittle but return Jacob Thompson who will headline the starting pitching rotation next season.

Daily Progress Article with O'Connor

I will be starting my Super Regional Previews on Wednesday and I expect to be done them by late Thursday evening so come back for some great Super Regional coverage.