Northwestern State baseball head coach J.P. Davis
FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State baseball head coach J.P. Davis has announced the signing of seven players during the National Early Signing Period last week.
Davis inked four high school players – all four pitchers with one who can also play in the infield – and three junior college players – one outfielder and two pitchers, one of those that will play infield as well.
“We’re very excited to add these players in the early signing period,” said Davis. “We believe these guys will have a bright future in our program.”
Tyler Carter, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound right handed pitcher from Flower Mound, Texas, preps at Marcus High School. Carter possesses good arm strength, throwing his fastball in the 88-90 mpg range. He’s also got the ability to throw a plus secondary pitch.
“He is a guy that really came into his own this summer and fall, pitching for the Dallas Tigers of the Dallas Fall Scout League,” said Davis. “He is very athletic and will only continue to get stronger.
Oscar Garcia is a 6-0, 180-pound outfielder from El Paso and El Paso Community College.
He earned all-conference honors as a freshman and was named to the Texas Junior College All-Star game this fall after hitting .386 with six home runs, 45 runs batted in, 19 doubles, and six triples.
“He has proven to be one of the top hitters in all of the Texas junior colleges,” said Davis. “He is an outstanding all-around athlete who was a decorated quarterback during his high school days. We look for him to have an immediate and huge impact in our lineup.”
Matt Harrell is a 6-1, 185-pound right handed pitcher and infielder from San Antonio and Reagan High School.
Harrell has a good fastball that hits 88-89 and has the ability to throw a good breaking ball. He was invited to try out for the Texas Area Code team.
“Matt possesses maturity and a very competitive nature on the mound,” said Davis. “He should definitely be a factor on our pitching staff as a freshman.”
Ryan Houston is another right handed pitcher, standing 6-2 and 210 pounds from Amarillo High in Amarillo.
He posted a 7-5 record with a 2.56 ERA. He competed for the prestigious Elk City (Okla.) Travelers during the summer and compiled a 7-0 record with a 3.60 ERA. He was another invitee to tryout for the Texas Area Code team.
“Ryan has the size and ability to be a dominant guy for us on the mound,” said Davis. “He has very good arm strength and a plus second pitch right now. We believe he will factor in heavily in the pitching rotation as a freshman.”
Another high school signee is Mason Melotakis, a 6-3, 170-pound, left handed pitcher from Grapevine, Texas and Grapevine HS.
Melotakis posted a 7-1 record with 61 strikeouts in 56 innings with a 1.36 ERA as a junior. He was named the District 5-5A Pitcher of the Year that season and was also invited to the Texas Area Code team.
“Mason is another quality high school arm who has a good frame that really projects out,” said Davis. “He throws three pitches for strikes. We are very excited to have a young left hander of his quality join us.”
Adam Roy is no stranger to Northwestern State, having been a member of the football team in 2007 before transferring to Hutchinson Community College where he hit .321 as a freshman with six home runs, 45 RBI, 10 doubles, and two triples.
Roy, a 6-2, 210-pound infielder and right handed pitcher from Belle Chasse, played for former Demon assistant Kyle Crookes and former Demon standout Stephen Adams at Hutchinson.
“He is a big, strong hitter who brings power potential to the plate,” Davis commented. “He hit in the four-hole as a freshman and is expected to do the same this year for Coach Crookes. What we really like about Adam is that he really works the middle of the field. He is a line drive hitter that doesn’t hit a lot of fly balls.”
Julio Torres wraps up the early signing list for NSU. Torres is a 6-4, 190-pound left handed pitcher from Bayamon, Puerto Rico and Odessa Junior College.
As a freshman, Torres compiled a 7-3 record with 73 strikeouts in 64 innings pitched and a 2.67 ERA.
“Julio is a power left hander that is regarded as one of the top JC pitchers in all of Texas,” said Davis. “We fill that Julio will come in immediately and be a force on our pitching staff.
“This early recruiting class fills several needs that we have for the 2010 season,” said Davis. We have added several quality arms that will have an immediate impact on our club. Just as important, we’ve added two quality junior college hitters that will give us much needed help in the middle of the order for us.
“Each of these guys are high quality players, but more importantly, are high quality people.
“I just want to say that Coach (Jeff) McCannon and Coach (Bobby) Barbier have done an outstanding job of evaluating and recruiting quality student-athletes to NSU Demon baseball.”
