ST. LOUIS – Dallas Baptist, which returns several key pitchers and a wealth of depth from last year’s squad, has been tabbed as the league favorite in the annual coaches’ preseason poll, receiving seven of eight first-place votes.
The Patriots tallied 63 points and were a sound favorite over second-place pick Missouri State (53 points), as the Bears tallied the remaining first-place vote.
2015 MVC Baseball Preseason Poll
School (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Dallas Baptist (7) 63
2. Missouri State (1) 53
3. Wichita State 43
4. Indiana State 42
5. Evansville 28
6. Illinois State 26
7. Bradley 18
8. Southern Illinois 15
The Valley demonstrates a depth of talent and experience returning to the league this season. The coaches have voted 14 players representing seven teams to the 2015 preseason all-MVC baseball squad.
2015 MVC BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Player, School Pos. B/T Yr. Hometown (Previous School)
Paul DeJong, Illinois State 2B R/R Jr. Antioch, Ill. (Antioch)
Spencer Gaa, Bradley 3B R/R So. Metamora, Ill. (Metamora)
Tyler Leffler, Bradley SS R/R Jr. Benton, Ill. (Benton Consolidated)
Daniel Salters, Dallas Baptist C L/R Jr. Eufaula, Okla. (Eufaula/Eastern Oklahoma State)
Dylan Becker, Missouri State UT L/R Sr. Leawood, Kan. (Shawnee Mission East)
Justin Wall, Dallas Baptist DH R/R Jr. Fort Worth, Texas (Nolan Catholic)
Kevin Kaczmarski, Evansville OF L/R Sr. Cary, Ill. (Prairie Ridge)
Daniel Kihle, Wichita State OF R/L Jr. Goddard, Kan. (Andale)
David Martinelli, Dallas Baptist OF L/R So. Waxahachie, Texas (Waxahachie)
Tate Matheny, Missouri State OF R/R Jr. St. Louis, Mo. (Westminster Christian Academy)
Jon Harris, Missouri State SP R/R Jr. Florissant, Mo. (Hazelwood Central)
Sam Tewes, Wichita State SP R/R So. Lincoln, Neb. (Waverly)
Ryan Keaffaber, Indiana State RP L/L So. Wabash, Ind. (Northfield)
Brandon Koch, Dallas Baptist RP R/R Jr. Plano, Texas (Grapevine)
All eight Missouri Valley Conference baseball teams begin action the second week of February, with tournament play and non-conference games, while league battles will heat up starting Friday, March 21.
Wichita State will host the 2015 Missouri Valley Conference Championship, May 22-25, in Wichita, Kan. All games will be played at Eck Stadium – Tyler Field, and will be shown live on ESPN3.
