FROM CBD NEWS SOURCE
SECAUCUS, N.J. — USA Baseball announced Friday the selection of UCLA’s Trevor Bauer as the recipient of the 2011 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award (GSA). The prestigious award, now in its 34th year of recognizing the nation’s top amateur baseball player, was presented on live television for the first time on MLB Network.
In partnership with Major League Baseball (MLB), Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM) and MLB Network, USA Baseball announced the GSA winner live on “MLB Tonight”, and the presentation was simulcast on GoldenSpikesAward.com, USABaseball.com, MLB.com and the Arizona Diamondbacks (Dbacks.com), Milwaukee Brewers (Brewers.com) and Seattle Mariners (Mariners.com) club sites.
Danny Hultzen (LHP, Virginia) and Taylor Jungmann (RHP, Texas) were the other finalists for the award. Bauer was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the D-backs, while Hultzen went No. 2 to the Mariners and Jungmann No. 12 to the Brewers. It was the first time in the history of the award that all of the finalists were pitchers.
“Trevor Bauer, Danny Hultzen and Taylor Jungmann each exemplify what USA Baseball looks for in its Golden Spikes Award finalists both on and off the field,” said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball executive director/CEO. “Trevor authored an incredible performance in 2011, and we are honored to present such a deserving player with the award.”
The recipient of Baseball America’s and Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball’s Player of the Year awards, Bauer had a record-breaking season in 2011. The Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year set the conference single-season record for strikeouts with 203, eclipsing the previous record of 202 set in 2001 by that season’s GSA winner Mark Prior (Southern California). Bauer went 13-2 for the Bruins, throwing 10 complete games (tied for first in UCLA single-season record history) over 136 2/3 innings (seventh most in UCLA single-season records history). Bauer was the first GSA finalist from UCLA since Troy Glaus in 1997, and he now stands as his alma mater’s lone GSA winner.
Bauer becomes the fifth pitcher in the last eight years to win the GSA, joining 2011 MLB All-Stars Jered Weaver of the Angels (Long Beach State, 2004), Tim Lincecum of the Giants (Washington, 2006) and David Price of the Rays (Vanderbilt, 2007). Stephen Strasburg (San Diego State) of the Nationals took home the award in 2009.
For the fourth year in a row, fans were able to stay up to date on the award by visiting GoldenSpikesAward.com. The website features content devoted exclusively to the GSA, including news, voting history, past-winner photo galleries, and photographs and video highlights of the 2011 finalists.
Since 1978 USA Baseball has honored the top amateur baseball player in the country with the GSA. Following the first-ever presentation of the trophy to Bob Horner of Arizona State, the GSA has been awarded each year to the player who exhibits exceptional athletic ability and exemplary sportsmanship.
The 2010 GSA winner was Bryce Harper of Southern Nevada. Past winners of the award include current Major Leaguers such as Strasburg (’09), Buster Posey (’08), Price (’07), Lincecum (’06), Alex Gordon (’05), Weaver (’04), Rickie Weeks (’03), Pat Burrell (’98), J.D. Drew (’97), Mark Kotsay (’95) and Jason Varitek (’94). Former big league stars that have captured the award include Robin Ventura (’88), Jim Abbott (’87), Will Clark (’85), Dave Magadan (’83), Terry Francona (’80), Tim Wallach (’79) and Horner (’78).
