While major league ballplayers are re-introducing themselves and doing their best to not get hurt at spring training sites in Florida and Arizona, college players are back on the grind. The second weekend of the NCAA came to a close yesterday, and Pump Jacks alumni are already in mid-season form.
2010 TCL Freshman of the Year Zac Fisher had a monster weekend at New Mexico State’s launching pad, Presley Askew Field. Fisher went 8-for-12 (.667) with ten RBI, eight runs scored, and four doubles in the Aggies’ four-game sweep of Buffalo. Fisher added five walks for an on-base percentage of .765 to go with his 1.000 slugging percentage. Fisher wasn’t the only Aggie to have a good weekend at the plate, though: New Mexico State outscored Buffalo, 77-39, over the weekend.
Fellow award-winner Lee Orr also put in a good weekend, batting .583 (7-for-12) for McNeese State in three games against Louisiana Tech. The 2010 TCL Player of the Year drove in five runs, scored three, and had two doubles.
Nebraska’s Bryan Peters had a pleasant return to the state of Texas as the Cornhuskers participated in Sam Houston State’s Bearkat Invitational. Peters batter .467 (7-for-15) and drove in eight runs in the four games. He also scored four times and had two doubles. Peters is batting .414 this spring, tied for 12th in the Big 12.
2009 All-TCL second baseman Greg Fontenot was all the offense Louisiana-Lafayette needed on Saturday in downing Siena, 5-4. Fontenot had a hand in all five Ragin’ Cajun runs, scoring twice and picking up three RBI with a bases-loaded double. He went 1-for-3 on the game and leads the team with a .400 batting average.
Stephen F. Austin State’s bats erupted for a 16-7 victory over New Orleans Sunday, and a pair of former Pump Jacks was the heart of the attack. Jarid Scarafiotti went 2-for-4 with his first home run of the season and four RBI, upping his team-leading total to ten. Garrett Smith reached base four times, going 2-for-4 with two walks, scored four runs, and drove in a pair.
Brandon Wood is batting .333 for Texas A&M this season, but one hit on Friday made him an Aggie favorite. After ten scoreless innings, Wood’s single in the bottom of the eleventh scored former Brazos Valley Bomber Jacob House for the 1-0 win over Gonzaga.
Blake Brown took note of his former teammate’s heroics and followed suit on Saturday. Brown’s two-run single in the 12th inning was the margin of victory in the day’s second contest between Missouri and Atlantic-10 power Charlotte. Elevated to the leadoff position for the game, Brown went 2-for-6 to up his season average to .444, good for tenth place in the Big 12.
San Jacinto College is home to two former Pump Jacks hurlers and major league draftees, both of whom are off to excellent starts this season. Miguel Pena finally gave up his first – and only – earned run of the season, giving him a miniscule 0.32 ERA to go with his 3-0 record in four starts. Pena, ranked the TCL’s top prospect in 2010 by PGCrosschecker.com, was drafted by the San Diego Padres last June after the Washington Nationals selected him in 2009.
San Jac teammate David Rollins is recovering well from an arm injury that limited him last spring. The TCL’s top left-handed pitcher in 2009, Rollins is 1-1 with a 2.67 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 21 innings this season. Rollins has been drafted three times: coming out of high school, by the Los Angeles Dodgers, and twice in college by the Seattle Mariners.
Elsewhere in East Texas, two 2010 teammates are having success on American Southwest Conference opponents this spring. Aaron McCain is batting .371 to help UT-Tyler to an undefeated 11-0 start to the season. Meanwhile, Garrett Methvin is batting .368 with a team-leading nine RBI and five doubles at his new home in LeTourneau. The former Pump Jacks and Arkansas pitcher has also made two starts on the mound, and his 4.91 ERA is second among starters.
The Pump Jacks are expected to announce the first members of this season’s roster this week. The team has already announced the return of head coach Ben Taylor and pitching coach Robbie McClellan for the 2011 season. The 60-game schedule is available here.
Pump Jacks season tickets are available now, and at new, lower prices! The Jacks have cut Lower Box seat season tickets to $199 – which includes in-your-seat wait service – and just $150 for Upper Box seats. Grandstand season tickets are available for the low price of $105 for adults and $85 for children and seniors. For more information on season tickets, please click here.
To follow all the news and developments as the Jacks prepare for the 2011 season, visit the Pump Jacks official web site at www.pumpjacksbaseball.com.
|
