Baseball Officially Begins Practice
1/28/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation
Two days after jumping up and down like a kid in the "Bear Pit" student section at the Baylor-Texas Tech basketball game, Steve Rodriguez was living "every coach's dream."
Baylor's second-year head baseball coach opened official workouts Friday afternoon with a young team that includes 19 newcomers and two other redshirts who will see their first game action for the Bears this season.
"I think it's every coach's dream when you come out here, first day, everybody's excited," he said. "You wake up, and you want to put the uniform on. As much as a coach you're trying to get your guys ready, you still get some giddiness about it, because it's still fun."
Coming off a 24-29 season and sixth-place finish in the Big 12, Rodriguez signed 14 high school players and five transfers in a massive class that completely turned over the roster. Of the 36 players on the team, there are only 10 holdovers from the Steve Smith era.
"We have a bunch of new guys, a bunch of freshmen, and I have high expectations for them," Rodriguez said. "At the same time, I'm also realistic, knowing that they're still young and their eyes are going to be really wide to a lot of different things. I'm just hoping they can make the adjustment as quickly as possible."
Catcher Matt Menard, returning for a fifth year after hitting a team-best .309 with six homers and 25 RBI, said "Coach Rod is bringing in his recruits and he's doing his thing, getting the guys we need to build up the winning program that Baylor has had for years here. We're excited to get that back on track."
With so many new faces, "a lot of new names to learn," Menard said it was a big adjustment in the fall, "but it didn't take long for us to gel, to mesh, and we're going to keep moving forward. . . . I think everyone is going to like the product we put out there this season."
Five other everyday starters return, including infielders Steven McLean (.308) and Josh Bissonette, outfielder Richard Cunningham (.287), first baseman/outfielder Kameron Esthay (.307) and first baseman/catcher Aaron Dodson.
The biggest bat to replace is Darryn Sheppard, who transferred to Rice after hitting .294 with a team-best eight homers and 40 RBI.
"We've got a lot of young guys, but we've got a lot of returners coming back," Menard said. "We've got a lot of bats still in the lineup, and I think we're going to have a good chance to make some noise in the Big 12."
Junior closer Troy Montemayor leads a pitching staff that has to replace starters Drew Tolson and Daniel Castano, who turned pro after being selected in the 19th round by the St. Louis Cardinals.
A second-team preseason All-American, Montemayor was 14-of-15 in save opportunities last year with a 1-1 record and 0.78 ERA while holding opponents to a .188 batting average. The San Antonio, Texas, native was a first-team All-Big 12 and all-region pick as a sophomore.
"He's one of the staples in our bullpen, and we're looking at him to come in and close out games just like he did last year," Rodriguez said. "Now, roles are constantly changing, so he still has to earn that spot. But, because of what he did last year, I think he's definitely earned that spot to start out with, for sure."
The only other experienced pitchers returning are seniors Nick Lewis and Drew Robertson, juniors Kyle Ott and Joe Heineman and sophomore Kyle Hill. Among the newcomers expected to make an impact on the mound are freshmen Luke Boyd, Cody Bradford, Hayden Kettler and Jimmy Winston and junior college transfer Montana Parsons.
"Roles are going to be defined throughout these next three weeks," Rodriguez said. "You can be a starter, you can be a reliever, you can be a spot guy, you can be a great guy in the dugout. . . . We saw exactly what we were expecting to see (in the fall). Now, it's just a matter of who can get the confidence the quickest, who can feel the best right away, and kind of go from there."
The Bears play eight of their first nine games at Baylor Ballpark, opening with a three-game series Feb. 17-19 against Niagara.
