McNeese State Cowboys open baseball practice

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FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE

McNeese State kicked off baseball practice this week with 21 lettermen on hand.

Former McNeese pitching standout Terry Burrows is in his second season as the team head coach and will have about a month to get his team ready for the year. The Cowboys begin their season on Feb. 20 in a three game series with Houston Baptist.

They will also play their first 11 games at home including the Southland Conference season opening series with Northwestern State.

The Cowboys are expected to be much improved over last year’s squad which went 13-42 overall and 7-23 in conference play.

“We addressed the issues that we had – pitching and defense – and I feel that we have made big strides,” Burrows said. “Our offense wasn’t a question last year. We could score runs. We were just short in pitching and our fielding and I think that we have corrected them with the additions that we have made to this year’s squad.”

Keys returnees include catcher Taylor Freeman, shortstop Shon Landry, outfielder Sam Merrill, infielder Nick Eubanks and pitcher Tyler Davis.

Freeman is back from a triple crown winning effort as he led the Cowboys in home runs (8), RBIs (52) and batting average (.372) last year.

Landry returns for his fourth season as the Cowboy starter at short. He batted .299 with 35 RBIs last year and has such credentials as all-conference and freshman all-American status in his background.

Merrill hit .288 as the Cowboy centerfielder while Eubanks slammed seven homers and drove in 30 runs as a rookie last season. The lefthander Davis was the Cowboy mainstay on the mound with a 3-6 record and a 5.42 ERA.

Among the top newcomers to the team are expected to be pitcher Tommy Luce and infielders Alex Johnson, Matt Fontenot and Steve Irvine.

The 6-6, 235 pound Luce, a righthander, compiled a 7-4 record and 3.34 ERA average in 12 starts during a junior college career at Seminole in Oklahoma. He was also credited with 10 saves.

Johnson batted .340 and belted 20 home runs while playing at Wharton JC and Irvine hit .404 with nine home runs and 30 stolen bases for Eastern Oklahoma State College last year.

Fontenot redshirted last year after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He had joined the Cowboys from Bossier Parish Community College where he had batted .302 with four home runs and 58 stolen bases.