Summer On The Diamond
September 15, 2010 | Baseball
Sept. 15, 2010
Originally printed Sept. 11, 2010 in the First and Goal football game program
By Malcolm Gray,
Assistant Director of Media Relations
Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL)
In what is regarded as the most prestigious summer baseball league, East Carolina sent four players to the CCBL to showcase their talents against the best competition in college baseball. Rising junior Kevin Brandt returned for his second tour of duty for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the CCBL posting a 1-4 record in six appearances (five starts) sporting a 3.62 ERA with 25 punch outs and six walks in 32.1 innings.
John Wooten and Mike Wright led the Harwich Mariners to the playoffs with a 22-21 overall record. Wooten, an All-Conference USA Freshman Team selection last season, played in 31 games where he batted .211 (20-for-95) with four RBI and smacked his lone home run of the season against the Brewster Whitecaps. Wright started 3 of 12 games on the mound for the Mariners working 41.1 innings with 35 strikeouts to just nine walks with a 0-2 record.
After playing in the New England Collegiate Baseball League a year ago, catcher Zach Wright spent his summer playing for the Falmouth Commodores where he batted .127 (7-for-55) in 17 games with two home runs, a triple and five RBI.
Coastal Plain League (CPL)
Six Pirates stayed close to home this summer playing in North Carolina and the CPL. Shawn Armstrong and D.J. Jauss toed the rubber for the Morehead City Marlins. Armstrong helped the Marlins to the South Division title with a 4-3 overall record in 12 appearances (nine starts). The right-hander sported a 2.25 ERA and ranked among the league leaders in strikeouts (72/4th), IP (64.0/4th) and opposing BA (.178/5th). Jauss worked just 10.0 innings for the Marlins all out of the bullpen in seven games with 13 punch outs.
Jake Harris and Joseph Hughes teamed up with the Asheboro Copperheads, who went 27-28 during the season. Harris was started 3 of 10 games working 21.1 innings with 12 strikeouts. Hughes, who was named Rawlings CPL Pitcher-of-the-Week (July 6), led the team in wins (5), ERA (2.64), IP (58.0), strikeouts (52) and strikeouts looking (19), which was also fourth in the league.
Philip Clark started all 16 games played for the Outer Banks Daredevils where he batted .224 (15-for-67) with a home run, triple and five doubles. Outfielder Jacob Davis, who helped the Wilson Tobs to a league-best 37 wins, registered 27 starts and batted .279 (31-for-111) with two home runs.
New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Mike Anderson helped the Danbury Westerners to its first-ever appearance in the NECBL finals after claiming the Western Divisional Championship. The right-hander, who made 15 appearances out of the bullpen, posted a 1-1 record with a 5.68 ERA in 19.0 innings of work and was called upon in the championship game to try and preserve the win for the Westerners, who fell 5-4 to North Shore.
A trio of Pirates (Bryan Bass, Chris Gosik and Tyler Joyner) honed their skills for the Laconia Muskrats. Joyner, a mid-season all-star selection and second-team All-NECBL member, led the league with 53 strikeouts and ranked eighth in ERA (1.97). He started seven contests and made a pair of relief appearances on his way to a 2-2 record on the mound.
Bass played in 32 games at second for the Muskrats batting .270 (27-for-100) with seven RBI and 14 runs scored, while Gosik hit .196 (10-for-51) with four RBI.
Joining Joyner this season as an East Division All-Star selection and second-team All- NECBL member was closer Seth Simmons, who threw a scoreless ninth inning in the 10-0 victory for the East squad during the mid-summer classic. He recorded 10 saves, second in the league, for the Newport Gulls while allowing only 12 hits in 28.2 innings. Simmons has also fanned 47 batters while walking just six and helped the Gulls to the regular season East Division crown.
Southern Collegiate Baseball League (SBCL)
After losing the first contest of the three-game series against the Asheville Redbirds to determine the SCBL championship, the Copperheads came back to win the next two contests. Lance Honeycutt and Tanner Merritt combined to throw all nine innings in the series-deciding 6-4 victory. Honeycutt went the first five, allowing three runs-one earned-on four hits while striking out 10 to earn the victory. Merritt, who picked up the save after working the final four frames, did not surrender a hit, issued only one walk and fanned five.
Honeycutt went 3-1 this summer with a 4.10 ERA in eight appearances. In 37.1 innings pitched, he struck out 45 batters, while Merritt finished the summer with a 2-3 record while posting a 3.27 ERA during his 17 appearances with 34 strikeouts.
