SDSU'S Addison Reed (Courtesy SDSU Media Relations)
FROM NCBWA RELEASE
Birmingham, Ala. — San Diego State relief pitcher Addison Reed is the 2009 recipient of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s Stopper of the Year Award, the NCBWA announced Saturday in Omaha on the opening day of the College World Series.
Reed recorded a nation-leading 20 saves in 20 opportunities this season. He finished the season with a microscopic 0.65 earned run average and 38 strikeouts over his 27.2 innings of work. Reed has allowed only seven walks, with two of those being intentional passes. Only one of the 20 hits he allowed in 2009 went for extra bases (a double vs. Nevada on Feb. 26).
His save total is a new San Diego State and Mountain West Conference season record, breaking the old mark record of 17 set by Royce Ring during the 2002 season. The Aztec and conference career marks of 26 are held by Ring as well.
“It’s a great honor and I’m very excited to win this award,” said Reed. “It’s a good ending to what was a good season for our team and the SDSU program.”
In being named to the All-Mountain West Conference first team, he finished league play with six saves and in his nine appearances in MWC action he allowed only one unearned run on two hits with four walks (two intentional) and 14 strikeouts. Conference opponents hit just .065 against him.
Reed, just a sophomore, has received an invitation to the 2009 USA Baseball National Team Trials to be held at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C., June 15-24. The National Team Trials will be comprised of 36 collegiate players vying for a spot on the final 22-man roster to be announced on June 24.
“We took it for granted that every time we’d send him to the mound he would get the job done and he did,” San Diego State head coach Tony Gwynn stated. “He was perfect in his save opportunities and was involved in almost half of our 43 wins this past season. Even when he wasn’t at his best he was able to close it out and help deliver the win.”
This year’s finalists also included Kyle Bellamy of Miami (Fla.), Jake Hale of Ohio State, Matty Ott of LSU and Eric Pettis of UC Irvine. All five relief aces helped their respective teams advance to the 64-team field of the 2009 NCAA Baseball Tournament.
More than 45 of the nation’s top collegiate relief pitchers were included in the selection process for this year’s NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award, beginning with initial preseason nominations by baseball contacts at NCAA Division I schools.
Texas hurler J. Brent Cox won the inaugural Stopper of the Year Award in 2005, with Don Czyz of Kansas claiming the honor in 2006, Luke Prihoda of Sam Houston State in 2007 and Georgia’s Joshua Fields topping the field last season.
The NCBWA, founded in 1962, presents the Dick Howser Trophy to the nation’s top player. It also selects a Division I All-America Team, Division I Coach of the Year, Division I and III Players of the Week, Division I District Players of the Year and Division II and III Players of the Year.
The Stopper of the Year will also be recognized on the College Baseball Awards show, July 2 in Lubbock, Texas. This event will feature the presentation of the Dick Howser Trophy to the National Player of the Year. Other awards scheduled to be presented during the show include the Brooks Wallace Award, honoring the nation’s best shortstop, and the Pitcher of the Year Award. All of the NCBWA season awards will be recognized during the show.
For more information on the NCBWA Stopper of the Year, contact Chuck Dunlap at the Southeastern Conference at 205-458-3000 or Russ Anderson at Conference USA at 214-774-1351.
