Saint Joseph’s Baseball Inks Four to National Letters of Intent

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FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE

PHILADELPHIA – Saint Joseph’s head baseball coach Fritz Hamburg has announced that four standout student-athletes have signed National Letters of Intent to play baseball at Saint Joseph’s University beginning in 2010.

Kevin Burum, a 6-foot-5 righthanded pitcher from Robbinsville, N.J., had a 4-3 record and a 2.20 earned run average as a junior, helping Robbinsville High School advance to the New Jersey Group 1 Championship Game. Burum started four of the team’s five state playoff games, including the final, and was named Honorable Mention All-Conference. This past summer, he notched a 7-1 record and a 0.77 ERA as the Mercer County American Legion League Pitcher of the Year.

Greg Kumpel, a shortstop from Cornwall, New York, will prep for a year at The Gunnery School before joining the Hawks for the 2010 season. The 6-foot-5 Cornwall High School graduate hit .390 with four home runs as a junior and followed that up with a .440 average and five roundtrippers in his senior campaign. He received Honorable Mention accolades in the Mountain Valley Conference.

St. Joseph’s Prep product Kyle Mullen will come to Hawk Hill and join Prep alums Doug DiSandro and Brett Tiagwad on the SJU roster. Mullen has a 15-3 record in two seasons on the hill, holding opponents to a sub-.200 batting average in each of those seasons. As a junior he threw a seven-inning four-hit complete game as St. Joseph’s Prep won its second straight Catholic League title. The 6-foot righthander has twice been named to All-Conference and All-City teams, including First Team All-Catholic honors in 2008. In addition, his father, Mark, played for Saint Joseph’s from 1978 to 1980.

Eddie Palmer, a 5-foot-10 catcher from Glen Burnie, Md., will join the Hawks after graduating from Archbishop Spalding High School. He was named team MVP as a junior and is a two-time First Team All-Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association and First Team All-County honoree, while also earning Second Team All-Baltimore Metro honors two years running. Over his career at Archbishop Spalding he has hit .414 with 10 home runs and 66 runs batted in. Off the field, Palmer is a member of the National Honor Society.

“We are very pleased that Kevin, Greg, Kyle, and Eddie have made the decision to become part of our baseball program here on Hawk Hill,” Hamburg said. “I feel that (Hawk assistant coach) Greg Manco did a very commendable job recruiting during the coaching transition this summer. We feel that all four guys will make a significant impact as we move our program forward.”

Saint Joseph’s will begin its 2009 season on February 20 at San Jose State.