June 18, 2008
YARMOUTH, Mass. -- Baylor right-hander Craig Fritsch made a strong impression on the Cape Cod League in his first career Cape appearance Monday night for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox against the Brewster Whitecaps. With the beginning of the Cape Cod season last weekend, all summer leagues with Baylor student-athletes are in action.
One of eight Bears assigned to Cape Cod League, Fritsch held Brewster scoreless over 6.0 innings. Fritsch, a rising sophomore, allowed only one hit and had seven strikeouts against no walks. The effort was for naught, though, as Fritsch gained a no-decision. Fritsch left the game with Yarmouth-Dennis leading 1-0, but the Whitecaps scored two runs in the eighth inning to take the lead. The Red Sox scored a run in the bottom of the ninth, and the game ended in a 2-2 tie.
Rising sophomore right-hander Shawn Tolleson also had a no-decision in his first Cape Cod League start. Tolleson, who also pitches for Yarmouth-Dennis, allowed three runs, two earned, on eight hits and one walk with three strikeouts over 5.0 innings. He left the game with the Red Sox and the Harwich Mariners tied 3-3; Harwich eventually won the game 6-5 in 11 innings.
Elsewhere in the Cape, Harwich plans to use rising junior right-hander Willie Kempf as its closer. Kempf has appeared in one game and did record a save. He struck out the side in one inning of work and allowed one hit. Rising junior catcher Gregg Glime and rising junior outfielder Aaron Miller are with the Chatham A's. Miller is 5-for-11 with two RBI in the team's first three games. Glime has made one start. Rising junior infielder Raynor Campbell is with the Wareham Gatemen; he is 1-for-7 with one RBI through the first three games.
USA BASEBALL NATIONAL TEAM
Right-handed pitcher Kendal Volz has made two relief appearances during the National Team Trials tour. Volz, a rising junior, has posted a 2.25 ERA, allowing two runs, one earned, on three hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 4.0 innings. He is scheduled to work two relief innings Friday when the National Trials Team plays at the Fayetteville Swampdogs of the Coastal Plain League. Volz also is scheduled to make one start during the trials tour.
Rising junior infielder Shaver Hansen has appeared in three games for the National Trials Team. Hansen has one hit in nine at bats but has walked twice, scored three runs and produced one sacrifice fly. A Grand Junction, Colo., native, Hansen has seen time at second base and shortstop. He had a pinch-hit single Tuesday night at the Torrington Twisters and later scored.
NORTHWOODS LEAGUE
Southpaw Mace Thurman, a rising senior at Baylor, has been dominant as the closer for the Rochester Honkers. In six relief appearances, Thurman is 1-0 with three saves and a 1.00 ERA. He has allowed one run on three hits and one walk with 16 strikeouts over 9.0 innings. Opponents are hitting .100 against Thurman, who was a 19th-round selection of the Cincinnati Reds in this year's Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft.
Brooks Pinckard, who sat out the 2008 Baylor season as a non-medical redshirt, ranks fifth in the Northwoods League with a .375 batting average; he is 24-for-64 through the first 18 games for the Eau Claire Express. Pinckard was 5-for-6 with a double and three runs scored Sunday in Eau Claire's 16-12 victory at the La Crosse Loggers.
Chris Slater, a rising sophomore outfielder, has helped the Wisconsin Woodchucks to a 15-3 record. The Woodchucks currently have a three-game lead atop the standings in the Northwoods' South Division. Slater is hitting .286 (16-for-56) with two doubles, a triple, five RBI and nine runs scored in 16 games. He has three stolen bases and six walks with a .355 on base percentage.
Rising junior right-hander Reed Woytek has been strong in four relief appearances for the Madison Mallards. He is 0-1 with one save and a 0.00 ERA. He has allowed one unearned run on three hits and four walks with four strikeouts over 8.0 innings. Opponents are hitting .115 against Woytek.
ELSEWHERE
Brooks Kimmey, a rising senior catcher, and Dan Evatt, who sat out Baylor's 2008 season as a non-medical redshirt, are playing for the Danville Dans of the Central Illinois Collegiate League. While Kimmey and Evatt are struggling average-wise hitting .226 and .212, respectively, they are packing plenty of punch with their hits. Kimmey leads the Dans with two triples, while Evatt is tied for the team lead with four doubles. Both are tied for the team lead with eight RBI. Kimmey and Evatt also are the only Danville position players who have not made an error through the season's first nine games. Kimmey has thrown out six of 11 would-be base stealers. ... Dustin Dickerson, a rising junior first baseman, is 5-for-13 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored in three games for the Brazos Valley Bombers of the Texas Collegiate League. Eric Udell, a rising sophomore catcher, is hitting .250 (5-for-20) with a double, two RBI and two runs scored in five games for Brazos Valley.
