2007 Baseball Season Preview

Mar 6, 2007

2007 Media Guide (.pdf)

The Allegheny College Gators start their 2006 season with the longest win streak in the NCAC after winning its last five games a season ago, and will look to carry the momentum into a solid season in 2007. The top three batters return to a team that that struggled to a 14-18 season a season ago. Returning for the Blue and Gold is the entirety of its infield from a year ago, including Jimmy Fernandez and Matt Young, who batted .351 and .327, respectively last season and center fielder Eric Rich who led the team with four triples, batting .350.

Gone are three of the four starting pitchers and two-thirds of the outfield from a team that had the program’s first losing season since 1982. One of the many challenges for head coach Mike Ferris, in his ninth season, include finding a pitching rotation and helping develop a young Gator roster that has just one senior and 14 freshman.

“This is a very good group of kids attitude-wise,” said Ferris. “This is a squad that has everyone believing in the team concept. They are a close-knit group, both on and off of the field. They enjoy being around each other and want to win, whether they are in the lineup or not. That unselfishness will go a long ways towards making us a better team.”

In previous years, the Ferris style of baseball was focused a lot on the long ball, as virtually all of the offensive records have been set since he came back to the program as an assistant coach in 1993. This year, however, the team will look to utilize a completely different style of play – “small ball”.

“We are going to play hard and be scrappy,” noted the head coach. “If we can play fundamentally sound defensively, and get good pitching outings, then we will have a chance to win games. We need to be more aggressive running the bases, and be able to execute in the short game. We hope to force our opponents into making mistakes by putting pressure on them through playing ‘small ball’. We are going to be more fun to watch in how we try to create run-scoring opportunities – not just a team that sits back waiting for the three-run home run.”

INFIELD
The squad returns five players that started at least seven games in the infield from a season ago. Back for the squad is third baseman Fernandez, the team’s only senior, and shortstop Young, a junior, who solidified the left side of the infield. Fernandez started 27 of the 28 games he played at the hot corner, batting .351 for the year, best on the squad, driving in 12 runs and was one of two players on the team with a positive walk-to-strikeout ratio (11 walks, 6 strikeouts).

Young, who batted .336 as a freshman, struggled during the start of the 2006 campaign, batting .135 through the first 18 games of the season before turning his season around, batting .543 (25-of-46) over the final 14 games, improving his season batting average to .327 for the year. He hit all five of his home runs and drove in 23 of his team-high 30 batters during the span, as he had a 1.043 slugging percentage with 48 bases in 46 at bats. As Young went, so did the team, with the squad had been hitting just above the Mendoza Line for the first 18 games (.208), before Young and the team turned the bats around, batting .340 during the final 14 games of the year.

“Jimmy Fernandez played third base last year and did a good job,” said Ferris. “He is a senior, and with a relatively young team, he will have to show great leadership. We will count on him to play consistently and be someone who leads by example, both in how he handles himself off of the field and how he prepares to play each game. Matt Young has been a two-year starter at shortstop for us. He brings strong leadership, and we will count on him to be one of our top run producers.”

Back at second base for the Gators is Pete Obourn, who played in 28 games, 24 of those games as a starter, before Brian Schmidt took over in the final seven games. Obourn, also a wide receiver on the football team, hauling in four passes for 45 yards during the 2006 season, batted .247, with Schmidt hitting .367 in 30 at-bats. Also seeing time at second was Steve Beckett, who played in two games, starting one, before having his season cut short by injuries, not before hitting a triple and scoring two runs in four official at-bats with the squad.

“Brian Schmidt is back, and he played a decent amount in the infield last year,” commented the skipper. “He and Pete Obourn each played a good role. They both have experience and are both going to be battling for an infield position. They are two players who we are expecting to be the favorites for different positions. Steve Beckett is another player who can play infield if needed, and we also converted him to the outfield in the fall. He is someone who can offensively be one of our top hitters.”

The Gators will look for a replacement at first base, as Alex Herrnberger, who started 25 games a year ago, is moving back to his natural position of catcher for the 2007 season. Obourn, who also started three games at the position, and is someone that Ferris says is a good athlete that can play virtually any position in the infield, is a strong candidate to fill the position. Also a possibility at first base for the Blue and Gold is freshman Andy Schleihauf. “Andy is someone that can hit for power,” said Ferris. “He will get a close look as well.”

Also looking to fill in for infield positions are freshmen Mike Pereslucha, Anthony Wilbur, Troy Speicher and Nate Rojek.

“Mike Pereslucha is a freshman who can play pretty much anywhere,” said Ferris. “He has shown that he has the toughness and the competitiveness that we like to have on the field and on the team. He is someone who will be battling for a position, including pitcher. The rest of the infielders, Anthony Wilbur, Troy Speicher and Nate Rojek are also freshmen, and are all hard workers and will be pushing the guys ahead of them because of their competitiveness. One of the things we learned about the team in the fall is that the younger guys are hard-nosed, competitive kids, which is good. It creates more competition, which is something that is needed on any team.”

OUTFIELD
Junior center fielder Eric Rich returns after starting all 32 games in center field last year, but loses his teammates from the left and right, Dirk Bonessa and Dan Ayer, who combined to start 60 of 64 games last year.

Rich was one of the few bright spots for the team during the early portions of the season, batting .452 during the team’s spring trip to Phoenix, Arizona with three triples, and slugging to a percentage of .710 (22 bases in 31 at-bats), as he was one of just two players to bat above .250 in the 11 games in Arizona. For the season the junior, who now has a career batting average of .367, finished second on the team, batting .350, while leading the team in total bases (57) and triples (4) while tying for the team lead in doubles (8).

“Eric had a real nice year last year,” noted the head coach. “He is someone who provides speed in our lineup. He is going to be someone in the middle – someone we can count on getting on base, scoring some runs and stealing some bases for us. With his speed in the outfield he can certainly cover a lot of ground. He has worked extremely hard in the off-season, and really worked on his strength and conditioning. In his own way he is a great leader for the team because of the effort he puts in off of the field improving himself physically.”

Looking to fill in the left and right field positions will be sophomores Beckett and Zack Skowvron, along with freshmen Pereslucha, John Hess, Greg Martin and Mike Stadelman.

“J.R. Hess is very athletic,” said Ferris. “He handles himself very well in the outfield defensively. Zach Skowvron returns from last year and he shows some good potential. He is one of the few power-hitting players we have on our team. He also handles himself well in the outfield defensively. Again with Pereslucha and Beckett, those are guys that can make a team better, and we are just trying to find the best place to put them. They are athletic and play the game hard. Stadelman and Martin are both able to play multiple positions - they play hard, have great attitudes and want to win. They are going to push guys and for playing time. It is just a matter of finding the best combination defensively and putting together a productive lineup. We have better athletes, more team speed and more versatility than we have had in a few years. We are going to be solid defensively at all positions, which is going to be important, with having an inexperienced pitching staff.”

CATCHERS
Despite losing all-conference catcher Zack Oblak, the Gators return Alex Herrnberger, who started 23 games at first base last year, returns to his natural position behind the plate. The sophomore batted just .114 on the year, but committed just six errors in 164 chances at first base. Now back to his normal position, big things can be expected out of him.

“Catcher is his natural position,” said Ferris about Herrnberger. “Last season he demonstrated to us that he was athletic enough to play other positions as well, so he ended up winning the first base job. It is good that he got some playing time, because it was definitely a learning experience for him. Now he is back to where he likes to play and where he is more natural. He did a great job in the fall in being a leader on the field, like a catcher should be. He does a good job working with the rest of the team, and being the take-charge guy on the field. It will be his first year catching, though, and as the year goes on he should get better and better.”

Looking to add depth behind Herrnberger is junior Jon Podeszek, and freshmen Martin, Schleihauf, Stadelman and Joe Jurinko.

“Joe Jurinko played for a very successful high school program,” said Ferris. “He is someone that we would not hesitate putting into the game. He is aggressive, a leader on the field and has a very strong arm. Jon Podeszek also does a good job in his role. He is a hard worker, pushes the other catchers and works well with the pitching staff.”

PITCHERS
Last season lack of pitching depth proved to be the weak link for the squad, as the four starting pitchers, Drew Scibetta, Jon Schmitt, Craig Misiewicz and Viehdorfer combined to pitch 201.1 innings out of 219 total innings by the squad. Viehdorfer returns with his 45.1 innings of work, along with Aaron Skalko (6.2 innings) and infielder Pete Obourn (4 innings).

“Colt and Aaron are the guys that will have to be consistent every time they go on the mound,” said Ferris. “They have to give their best performances every time. Colt has more innings under his belt and can beat anyone on any given day. He is going to have to do that consistently as our number one guy. Aaron got a little bit of action last year, and showed that he has the ability to be a top-rate pitcher, and if he can consistently throw strikes he is going to get people out and give us a chance to win. Those two will be counted on heavily.”

Looking to add depth to the position is a group of 10 others, three of which are also field position players. Obourn saw action in two games a season ago, striking out a pair in four innings of work while C.J. Knudsen also returns to the squad after taking off a year. As a freshman in 2005, Knudsen saw action in two games, starting one, and striking out three in three innings of work. Sophomore transfer James Fago leads a group of newcomers that includes Hess, Pereslucha, Brandon Majkowski, Josh Bobrow, Matt Dishong, Justin Abbott and Scott Rea.

“Out of the rest of the group, there are guys who can give us the innings that we need and give us a chance to win,” noted Ferris. “The key is that the staff will have to grow up fast – not think about being freshmen. A positive thing though is that there is a lot more depth on the pitching staff than what we had in the past year. This group is going to have to work hard, get consistent and in control of their pitches, and understand that they have eight guys behind them. What they have to do is be able to throw strikes and let their defense work for them.”

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