Wednesday June 30, 2010

2011 Clemson Baseball

2011 Clemson Baseball
Today we take a look at each position for the Clemson baseball program heading into the 2011 campaign. There will be a couple of key off-season situations to follow with the drafted players taking center stage. Casey Harman is the biggest key to the off-season. If the ace of the staff returns then this staff could be one of the ACC’s best. John Hinson’s status will be another key. His bat could be a welcomed return to this lineup that will have to replace Mike Freeman and most likely Kyle Parker and Jeff Schaus. Player development is always a key to the off-season in college baseball as well. Also the incoming freshmen will get their first chance to impress this fall. Below is a look at how each position stands in terms of the returning players and what we have seen so far:

Outfield
Clemson’s outfield will look a lot different in 2011. Wilson Boyd was a senior this past season so a new centerfielder will be in the lineup. Kyle Parker was a first round pick of the Rockies and most think he has played his last baseball game at Clemson and Jeff Schaus was a 27th round pick of the Indians in the draft. Most of the time a 27th round pick may return for his senior season but I am not sure if Schaus takes that route.

Chris Epps and Addison Johnson return for next season. Both have had success but both had been very inconsistent so far in their careers.

Will Lamb has seen time in the outfield and he is an option but he is also a pitcher and has played first base at times. He is not pitching this summer so he will concentrate only on being a position player in his summer league. One of the storylines for 2011 will be Lamb’s role.

A wildcard in the outfield may be Brad Miller. He struggled defensively the past two seasons and maybe a move to the outfield could be beneficial to Miller but that move may also be a long shot.

Infield
Richie Shaffer missed some time at first this season with a hamstring injury but he enjoyed a fantastic freshman campaign with a .323 average and some excellent work on the defensive end. Shaffer reminds me of some of the All-ACC first basemen Clemson has had in the past so this position should be solid for the next two seasons.

Mike Freeman has graduated which leaves a big hole at second base but there are options here. We could see Jason Stolz take over the spot. Stolz started 22 games last season mostly at third base. We could also see Brad Miller move from shortstop or John Hinson move from third. Both Miller and Hinson had tremendous years at the plate but both struggled defensively. Miller made 32 errors at short and Hinson made 11 at third. A switch for either could take pressure off of their defense and keep their productive bat in the lineup.

Hinson has a decision to make though. The red-shirt sophomore was taken by the Phillies in the 13th round. Juniors taken the 13th round usually go but Hinson still has two years and could return for his junior season without losing leverage. My guess is that it will be hard for Hinson to turn down the opportunity to jump to the pro game.

There are other options in the infield for next season. We could see Will Lamb or John Nester play first base and Shaffer could move to third, a position he played in high school.

Catcher
The catching situation for 2011 took a big turn for the better with the last 13 games of 2010 when Spencer Kieboom surprisingly took over the catching duties and played well. He hit .263 for the season and the staff like his defense and the way he handled the pitchers. Therefore, going into the fall, it would appear that Kieboom has a strong hold on the starting catching position.

Phil Pohl started 17 games in 2010 but struggled with a .212 batting average. I think Pohl is a very good defensive catcher and still has promise but he needs a good fall.

John Nester started 41 games last season and got off to a terrible start before rebounding in the middle of the season to hit .246. Nester was a 39th round pick of the Oakland Athletics in the draft. In many cases a 39th round pick may come back for his senior season but sense Nester lost his starting job to a true freshman there is a better chance he could sign with the A’s.

Marcus Curry red-shirted last season and could provided depth here but a lot of that could depend on Nester and Pohl.

Pitchers
The Tigers lose senior Tomas Cruz and some think Josh Thrailkill might not return for 2011.

Casey Harman was the season long ace of the staff last season. He was a 29th round pick of the Cubs. Juniors who return lose their leverage in financial terms but many 29th round picks come back to school and try to improve their draft status. The single biggest story in the next two months of Clemson baseball will be Harman’s situation. If he returns, he could be a part of a terrific staff. If not, Clemson will need to find another weekend starter next season.

Scott Weisman returns after an impressive 9-2 campaign as a sophomore. He pitched well in his one start in Omaha and was a solid weekend starter through the entire season. If Harman returns, the Tigers could have one of the best starting pitching staffs in the country. If not, Weisman inherits the Friday night job.

Dominic Leone, Scott Firth and Will Lamb could be considered the front runners a spot in the weekend rotation as both had positive starts this past seasons. Like many Sunday starters both also were inconsistent at times too.

Alex Frederick, Kevin Brady and David Haselden were all key components of the bullpen this past season and their roles may increase in 2011. If all three stay in the pen and continue to improve, the bullpen could be a major strength next season.

Inconsistency was also from young pitchers like Kevin Kyle, Jonathan Meyer, Joseph Moorefield and Mike Kent in 2010 but most of those guys also showed promise and will get a longer look this fall.

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Prayer List
We have started a prayer list on the blog. Here are the guidelines:
*If you are offended by prayer or prayer lists then I apologize in advance. The blog is free and the prayer list will be on the bottom of the page so you don’t have to read it.
*If you would like to add someone to the list please e-mail me at mickeyplyler@hotmail.com
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*Please let me know when it is appropriate to take the person off of the prayer list

Those who need our prayers include:
Finn Brookover, RTG-Pawsitive Tiger, Mary-Louise Pawlowski (John's daughter), Jo Ann Bachman, Kenneth Bryant, Pruitt Martin, Got igers and his family, David Rowland, Leonard, Gillespie and his family, Jim S, Christine Hepfer, Daniel Rosborough, Amy Murphey, The Huffman family, Nancy Winkler, John Reeve, Ethel Southard, Vinnie Brock, Kaitlyn L, Susan Miller, Joyce Harley, Steve Proveaux, Jeffrey Greene, the Hutto family, Sherl Drawdy, Caleb Kennedy, Teresa O'Connor, Matt Jacobs,Perrin Seigler, Carole White Begley, Candee Massee, Lindsey Jordan, Sam Catoe, Tyler Felch, Steve Cato, the Nicolopulos family, Cason Palmer, Scott Jackson, "the Jacksonville, FL guys", Kim Sims, the Coyle familty, Ryleigh Tedder, Steve Lee, Richard Crawford, Kelly Trakas, Jimmy Moore, Steve Williams Jr, Steve Williams III, Kim Thomas, Reid Thomas, Sam Thomas, Linda Wiggs, Emily Claire Young, Dr. Wallace Honeycutt, Stacy Fowler.