Courtesy: ORU Media Relations ORU senior first baseman Mike Notaro
Golden Eagles Begin Fall Practice
The Oral Roberts University baseball team has begun fall practice in preparation for the 2009 season, where the Golden Eagles look to claim their 12th consecutive conference championship.
ORU’s fall practice runs through mid-October, with intrasquad scrimmages at J.L. Johnson Stadium held every Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The scrimmages are free and open to the public.
Sixth-year head coach Rob Walton welcomes 17 returning lettermen from last season’s squad that compiled a stellar 48-14 mark and captured the Summit League championship en route to making their 11th straight NCAA appearance. The Golden Eagles have to replace 13 letterwinners from 2008, including seven of the top eight hitters in the lineup. ORU will also be without last season’s Summit League Player of the Year (Brian Van Kirk), Pitcher of the Year (Carlos Luna) and Newcomer of the Year (Ben Petralli). FULL STORY
Time Running Out to Contribute to Baseball Team’s Cancer Fundraiser
Tennessee senior outfielder Jarred Frazier recently e-mailed a letter to UT fans asking for their support in the team’s annual fundraising drive to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through the Light The Night Walk:
My name is Jarred Frazier, I’m a senior outfielder on the University of Tennessee baseball team, and I want to thank you for taking a few moments to read about a cause that is very important to my teammates and me.
Last year, our team took an active role in fundraising for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through its Light The Night Walk. Cancer, in its many forms, has affected many members of the Tennessee baseball family, just like many of your families and countless other families throughout the world. FULL STORY
Brad Frick Named Assistant Baseball Coach at FAU
Florida Atlantic University has added Brad Frick to its baseball coaching staff. A winner of six conference championships at the collegiate level as both a player and coach, Frick will focus on the development of FAU’s infielders and outfielders as the program’s defensive coordinator.
“His enthusiasm for the game is unmatched,” said John McCormack, FAU head baseball coach. “He will be a tremendous asset to the position players.”
Frick comes to FAU from Bethune-Cookman University where as an assistant coach in 2008 he helped the perennial Mid-Eastern Atlantic Conference (MEAC) champion Wildcats to the program’s second-best record in school history and 11th league title in 13 years.
Bethune-Cookman’s berth into NCAA Regional Tournament play in 2008 was Frick’s third with the program. Frick was honored as a First Team All-MEAC infielder at Bethune-Cookman as a player from 2003-04, helping the Wildcats win back-to-back MEAC Championships. FULL STORY
Fall Diamond Notes #1
Team Manager Michael Schroeder Gives a Report on the First Few Weeks of Fall Practice
This is Michael Schroeder, manager of the Fighting Illini Baseball Team, and I’m back with another year of Diamond Notes. Like usual, I’ll be giving you an inside look at what is happening with the team as we play through the 2009 season in search of a Big Ten Championship.
Right now we’re still five months away from our first games of the season, but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t preparing. We’ve been going through fall practice for about the last three weeks, which is an important time each year. Guys are getting the opportunity to get back on the field and work with the coaches to get everything up to speed in order to be ready once it’s time to start playing. Think of this time as “pre-practice” – a chance to show the newcomers how things work and teach them important concepts so that the team can hit the ground running in January.
Practices in the fall generally follow the same pattern. The guys start off with their stretching and throwing routines, then the hitters go through bunting practice while the pitchers work on PFPs (pitcher’s fielding practice). After that, it’s time for team defense, which usually means working on bunt coverage, defending run-downs, or what to do in situations when the other team has runners on first and third. FULL STORY
Change Made to Alumni Game Schedule
Sunday’s baseball alumni day schedule has been altered. Due to only a handful of players showing an interest in the “old-timers” game at noon, it has been cancelled. The late game however, featuring recent alumni versus the 2008-09 Dukes will still be played at 2:30 pm. FULL STORY
Maine Fall Baseball Games Postponed
To Be Played Oct. 9 and 10
The University of Maine fall baseball games, scheduled for Sept. 26 and 27, at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor, have been postponed due to the impending bad weather scheduled for the greater Orono area. The games against the Academy of Baseball Canada have been rescheduled. FULL STORY
The Ross Report – Stephen Strasburg
Aztecs’s right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg took some time to talk to Christina Ross for this weeks edition of The Ross Report. FULL STORY
