BB: SCAC: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

[historymajor]

My look at the TU roster

11 first years.......2 are LHP.....3 are RHP
7  sophs.............1 is LHP........3 are RHP
9  juniors............1 is LHP........2 are RHP
6 seniors............0 LHP............3 are RHP
4 lefties and 11 righties
33 players

Pitching staff has lots of experience, Adam Frey returning will anchor the pitching staff, and Drew Bignall had lot's of innings as a frosh last year.

Defensively on the infield, they're well stocked at the corners and stocked yet uproven up the middle.

The outfield is largely unproven with only Verrios returning.

They need to improve overall in hitting and start generating some power.....

If things come together in the right places, they should be a strong competition for Millsaps, DePauw and SW.

Go Tigers!

[Dirty_South]

Ralph,

You are correct, but each team did have a say in the overall SCAC champion. Millsaps received 7 out of 10 first place votes for the overall champ.

[frank_ezelle]

Millsaps has their 2006 roster posted at the following link:

http://www.millsaps.edu/athletic/baseball/roster.shtml

I'm assuming that it is correct and one name sent me on a search of SCAC records.  Ben Wilson was a very solid player at first base and at the plate last year and it looks like he is back for another year.  He was listed as a senior last year but apparently he didn't play his freshman year.  Having Ben back again this year is a nice bonus for the Majors.  In 2005 he was HM All-SCAC, had a .308 BA, only 9 SO's in 146 AB's, and had a .987 FLD%.

[Ralph Turner]

Ralph,

You are correct, but each team did have a say in the overall SCAC champion. Millsaps received 7 out of 10 first place votes for the overall champ.

Thanks, Dirty South, I missed that!

[Bob_Lotts]

Petrels go down in opener....

Looking at the box score looks like they played tough, got some good pitching and couldn't catch the ball. By reading the recap looks like Tim Ernst picked up where he left off last year, 3 for 4 with a triple. The returning SCAC batting champ starts off strong.

[consultant]

Per the 2006 Millsaps roster:

Frank,
Ben Wilson is a graduate assistant  coach.  His name should not have been included on the roster.  He does have a year of eligibility remaining, but he opted not to play.  

The Majors travel to East Texas Baptist to play a two game set on Friday and Saturday.  Senior John Fox should get the opening day nod on the mound for Millsaps.  Millsaps also seems to be shuffling their outfield a little bit.  Junior Jason Hadley will remain in left field instead of playing center.  Junior John Pacillo will move from right to center and Garner Wetzel will play right field.  Hadley is strongest in left field, while Pacillo is able to cover significant ground in center.  Wetzel's arm will be advantageous in right.  Also, look for freshman Tait Hendrix to see a good bit of time in the outfield, particularly center, as he is being groomed as the Majors' center fielder of the future.  

Junior Derek Boland will catch....he's a good receiver and controls the game well, and he has improved his arm strength.  Junior Luke Morrow will move from thrid base to first.  Junior transfer Justin Carter will play shortstop, while junior Nick Crawford will play second base.  

Senior pitcher Todd Kindler will be a work horse along with Fox.  Senior Tal Hendrix will be a spot starter and will be the definite closer for the Majors.  Sophomore David Hutzel will be counted on in the weekend rotation, and freshmen Drew Maddox and Zach Moore will be welcome middle relief.  

[frank_ezelle]

And to fill in the Millsaps starting lineup you would add Hunter Abrams at third base.  If my internet research is correct, Hunter, Justin Carter, and Zach Moore all come from New Hope HS in Columbus, MS, one of the top baseball programs in the state (http://www.newhopebaseball.com/home.html).  It also appears that Carter was first team all-state in Mississippi in his senior year of 2003. 

[Dirty_South]

We ahve head from millsaps, Oglethorpe, Rhodes and Trinity...any other schools out there?? Centre, Sewanee, DePauw???

[Dirty_South]

We have head from millsaps, Oglethorpe, Rhodes and Trinity...any other schools out there?? Centre, Sewanee, DePauw???

[historymajor]

Dirty_south... poor me a shot of whatever you're drinking!

[frank_ezelle]

It looks like the SCAC got into the baseball win column today but I'm not 100% sure.  The Rhodes website posted this story:

Lynx Open Season with Big Win at Home
04/10/06---Chris Catalanotto pitched 5 strong innings this afternoon to shut down the Magicians of Lemoyne-Owen. Rhodes opend the game with a 6 run first inning, and later tacked on 7 more to win handily, 13-1. The Lynx play again Saturday in a double header agianst the University of the Ozarks...

Two things about the Rhodes story.  How do you miss both the month and day when you post a story?  Also, why does Rhodes always end their stories with "..."?  I thought that meant there was more to the story so I searched for a way to get to a longer report but I think this is the whole thing.

In a search for more info, I went to the Lemoyne-Owen website.  That's where the story gets a little strange.  On their website (http://www.loc.edu/), they don't even list a baseball team in their athletics department.  I'm sure there is an explanation but after Rhodes scheduled Messenger College in men's basketball and beat them 109-22, I'm wondering if this was a Lemoyne-Owen school team or some guys from the intramural league.

(I probably should but some of those smiley faces somewhere with this post but I hate those things with a passion.)

[Ralph Turner]

Messenger is actually a school in the NCCAA.

[frank_ezelle]

Maybe I should have used those smiley faces.  Yes, Messenger is a legitimate school team that played a limited 10 game schedule which included a 109-22 home loss to Rhodes--not too bad a final score for a game that was 55-6 at halftime.  Messenger had more turnovers (35) than shots (29). 

So, it was mostly with tongue-in-cheek that I wondered if the LeMoyne-Owen team was an intramural team.  I talk often about small college athletes needing to get more support and recognition but it gets really bad when your team isn't even listed under Athletics on your school's website.  For the record, I used a Yahoo search to find a link to LeMoyne-Owen's baseball and here it is:  http://www.loc.edu/athletics/baseball.htm

[Dirty_South]

LeMoyne-Owen is traveling to play LaGrange College this weekend as is Rust College. But you bring up a good point: In the age of websites, emails, message boards, etc. Why haven't some schools picked up on the idea of updating their webpages more frequently. A) Its a huge recruiting tool B) Lets parents and family follow the team C) People like us want some damn info!!

HistoryMajor---RedBull and Vodka (not the cheap vodka) or Beam and Coke or a shot of Tequila (Patron if you have it).

[frank_ezelle]

After a month or more of great practice weather, Millsaps opens the seaon in Marshall, TX with weather more typical for this time of year.  Today it looks like rain, a high of 54 and 10-20 mph winds.  Tomorrow it should be sunny but with a high of only 45 and 20-30 mph winds.  (Of course it could be worse, such as the high of 33 and snow flurries predicted for Greencastle tomorrow.)  I wonder if the wind is going to be blowing in or blowing out in Marshall--the final scores might give us that answer.