Greatest N.O. sports teams of all time: No. 10
June 25, 2008
Greatest N.O. sports teams of all time: No. 10 - David Gladow - New Orleans Sports
Posted by David Gladow, NOLA.com June 23, 2008 11:02AM
Categories: College Sports, Tulane, UNO, Video10.) 1984 UNO baseball (46-26) - lost in CWS;
2001 Tulane baseball (56-13) - lost in CWS;
2005 Tulane baseball (56-12) - lost in CWS
Staff / Times-PicayuneJim Bullinger went on to have a great pro career after his time at UNO.We start our countdown off on the right foot … by cheating and including three teams at the No. 10 spot. Hey, it’s our list, and we can do what we want.
Seriously though, each of the teams here achieved a great deal and at the end of the day, there’s not a whole lot separating them. They all topped 45 wins, they all featured great individual athletes, and they all reached the College World Series.
Credit the Tulane squads for more dominating regular seasons, but the 1984 University of New Orleans baseball team achieved the feat of a CWS appearance first, giving the Privateers some bragging rights of their own. And frankly, that UNO team was a good one.
Under Hall of Fame coach Ron Maestri, the Privateers surprised plenty of people by finishing fifth at the College World Series in 1984, but in retrospect, the feat doesn’t look so far out of line. Three players from that team would go on to have Major League Baseball careers: Wally Whitehurst, Mark Higgins and Jim Bullinger. All three played key roles for a squad that was only eliminated by the scarcest of margins, a walk-off home run against Oklahoma State.
Staff / Times-PicayuneAndy Cannizaro and the Green Wave went to the CWS in 2001.The Tulane teams have the benefit of being fresher in the minds of everyone (seeing as how they had their successes this decade). Most locals already know many of the big names from those teams: Rick Jones, Michael Aubrey, Jake Gautreau, Andy Cannizaro, Anthony Giarratano, Micah Owings, Brian Bogusevic and Brad Emaus. But of course there’s more to the story than just the people involved.
In ‘01, the goal wasn’t simply a matter of advancing to Omaha for the first time ever, it was also a mission to conquer the team’s LSU demons. Tulane did just that in a remarkable Super Regional 2-1 series win over the Tigers. For Green Wave fans, it has rarely gotten better than that.
The 2005 team did its best to challenge that notion, grabbing the top national seed and No. 1 ranking on its way to Omaha. A domination of Rice occurred in the Super Regional round, and the Green Wave powered past Oregon State in its first game of the CWS. Back-to-back losses to Texas and Baylor ended the dream a little early, however.
So should the ‘05 team be considered the area’s best due to its immense potential? Or should the ‘84 UNO team be given more consideration for overachieving rather than underachieving? And what about the ‘01 team: should it be called the best for splitting the difference?
Ultimately, that’s up to the fans to decide … right here, they all deserve inclusion, and they all check in at the No. 10 spot.
Expert Takes:
Ted Lewis: 1984 UNO BaseballThe program that Ron Maestri had built virtually from scratch starting in 1972 came to full fruition a dozen years later when the Privateers became the first Louisiana school to reach the College World Series.
They did it in dramatic fashion, defeating host Mississippi State 6-3 in the regional final after earlier losing to the same team 11-4. In the CWS, UNO lost to Texas 6-3 in the opening game, came back to defeat Michigan 11-3 and was then eliminated by Oklahoma State 8-7.
Mark Higgins was the batting star of the team, hitting .384 with 24 home runs and 87 RBIs, school records that still stand. Pitcher Wally Whitehurst was 15-4 with a 3.46 ERA.
The team finished with a 46-26 record.
Peter Barrouquere: 1984 UNO Baseball
Bullinger went on to pitch, but he played short stop for that Privateers team. Whitehurst led the team with 122 strikeouts: They were balanced.
I don’t think they were underrated necessarily, but people knew who they were by the end of the year for sure. The big thing I remember about that team was how everyone thought they’d be even better the next year. They finished 10th in the Baseball America poll, and all the players were coming back the next year. But the ‘85 team had problems at catcher all year and didn’t do as well. The 1984 squad, which beat Michigan and Jim Abbott (and won the Sun Belt tournament), had more success.
Nakia Hogan: 2001 Tulane Baseball
After reaching an NCAA regional title game twice before only to fall short of advancing, the Tulane Green Wave finally had its breakthrough moment, sweeping through the New Orleans Regional in three games before overcoming a Game 1 loss to LSU to win the Super Regional and earn its first berth to the College World Series.
The flirtation with advancing to a super regional two years early only made the 2001 run more special. Behind the stellar play of senior third baseman Jake Gautreau, who was a first-round pick, and first baseman/pitcher Michael Aubrey, who was named the national freshman of the year, Tulane (56-13) etched its name as one of college baseball’s elite teams on its way to winning a school record 56 games.
The Green Wave’s goal of winning a national title fell short. It went 1-2 in the CWS, picking up its lone victory with a 6-5 win over Nebraska. But the season was far from a failure, as it managed a Conference USA regular season and tournament title on its way to setting the standard for future teams.
Nakia Hogan: 2005 Tulane Baseball
The 2005 Tulane baseball team entered the year with high expectations, having been ranked as the nation’s preseason No. 1 team.
For much of the year it lived up to the hype. Propelled by the splendid pitching of Brian Bogusevic and the play of do-everything All-American Micah Owings, who was Conference USA Player of the Year, the Green Wave (56-12) matched the 2001 school record for wins and also captured C-USA regular season and tournament titles before advancing to the College World Series.
The Green Wave appeared poised to make a run for a national title, sweeping through regional play before taking two-out-of-three games from Rice in the super regional.
But after beating Oregon State 3-1 in Game 1 of the CWS, Texas beat the Green Wave 5-0 in its second game. Still, there was plenty of hope. It all evaporated, though, when Tulane blew a 7-0 lead against Baylor and lost 8-7, bowing out of another CWS in three games.
Baseball’s Shooter Hunt Named To 4 More All-America Teams
June 17, 2008
Junior right-hander garners honors from Baseball America, Ping! Baseball, the NCBWA and Rivals.comJune 12, 2008
NEW ORLEANS, La. - One week after becoming the sixth first-round draft pick in the history of the Green Wave baseball program, Tulane University standout Shooter Hunt claimed All-America honors from Baseball America, Ping! Baseball, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and Rivals.com.
A native of Wyckoff, N.J., Hunt claimed first-team recognition on the Pro-Line Athletic/NCBWA All-America Team and the All-Ping! Team, second-team honors from Rivals.com, and earned a spot on Baseball America’s third team. The four All-America teams are the latest round of honors for Hunt, who was named NCBWA Region VII Player of the Year last Friday, claimed second-team Louisville Slugger All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball Magazine on May 29 and was named 2008 Conference USA Pitcher of the Year and claimed a spot on the All C-USA first-team on May 20.
As a junior with the Green Wave, Hunt led the team and the league in opponent batting average (.175), total strikeouts (126), strikeouts looking (48) and innings pitched (100.2). He also led the team and is tied for second in C-USA in wins (nine) and ERA (2.68) ERA.
He was also named a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award by USA Baseball, The Dick Howser Trophy by the NCBWA, the Brooks Wallace Award by the College Baseball Foundation, and the Roger Clemens Award by the Greater Houston Baseball Association in 2008. Hunt ranks fourth in the NCAA in hits allowed per nine innings (5.54) and total strikeouts, 11th in strikeouts per nine innings (11.26), 30th in wins and 43rd in ERA.
He tallied eight or more strikeouts on 10 occasions this season, including four double-digit K totals and a season-high 12 strikeouts against Southern Miss on April 18 and at Memphis on April 25. Hunt held opponents to three or fewer hits nine times, including a one-hit, no-walk, 11-strikeout performance in 7.0 innings against UC Irvine on March 7. He did not allow an earned run on four occasions and held opponents to one earned run two other times.
Hunt was named C-USA Pitcher of the Week three times as a junior (March 10, March 17 and May 12), Louisiana Sports Writers Association Pitcher of the Week twice (April 21 and May 12) and CollegeBaseballInsider.com Central Region Pitcher of the Week once (March 10).
Following a stellar prep career at Ramapo High, Hunt originally enrolled as a pitcher/catcher at the University of Virginia before transferring to Tulane in the summer of 2006. In two seasons with the Green Wave, he posted a combined 15-10 record, a 2.65 ERA and a .204 opponent batting average. He started 31 of the 32 games he appeared in during his Tulane career, during which time he posted a 10.33 strikeout-per-nine-inning average and a 2.67 strikeout-to-walk ratio after fanning 230 batters and walking just 86 in 200.1 innings of work.
His .175 opponent batting average in 2008 is a Tulane single-season record, surpassing the former mark of .203 set by Jason Navarro in 1997, and is fifth in strikeout-per-nine-inning average (11.26). Hunt’s .204 career opponent batting average also tops Navarro’s former school record of .224 (1995-97) and also ranks fifth in Tulane career history in K/9 and is seventh in career ERA.
Baseball’s Segedin Earns Freshman All-America Honors From NCBWA
June 17, 2008
Rookie earns honor after hitting .322 with 59 RBI at the plate while posting five saves from the moundJune 9, 2008
NEW ORLEANS, La. - The Tulane University baseball season may have ended, but the honors continue rolling in for Green Wave two-way standout Rob Segedin as the native of Old Tappan, N.J., was named first-team Freshman All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association on Monday.
The honor is the fourth of the postseason for Segedin as he was named second-team All-Conference USA, claimed a spot on the C-USA All-Freshman Team as well and earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America recognition from Collegiate Baseball. The 2008 NCBWA Freshman All-America Team is the first ever published by the organization.
Segedin played in all 62 games for the Green Wave in 2008, including 61 starts at the hot corner where he hit .322 with 18 doubels, a triple and six home runs while driving in 59. He also appeared in 14 games on the mound as a reliever where he posted five saves, a win and 21 strikeouts in 19.1 innings of work.
He shares the team’s batting average title with junior Anthony Scelfo - becoming the first Tulane rookie to lead the team in hitting since Barry Butera hit .360 in 1975 - and his RBI total is the most by a freshman since Michael Aubrey had 69 in 2001. Segedin’s five saves, meanwhile, are the most by a Green Wave freshman since Sean Morgan posted five in 2005.
At the plate, Segedin also led the team in hits (75) and RBI (59), while ranking second in on-base percentage (.414), third in slugging percentage (.485), fifth in runs scored (37) and tied for fifth in home runs. Segedin led the team with 21 multiple-hit games and 19 multiple-RBI contests. He tied a Tulane single-game record by going 6-for-6 against Northwestern State on March 12, and had both a five- and six-RBI contest to his credit as well.
He had an 11-game hitting streak from April 13-May 3 when he hit .545 (24-for-44) with 3 doubles, 3 homers and 16 RBI. Segedin was also named C-USA Co-Hitter of the Week and earned a spot on the College Baseball Foundation National All-Star Lineup on April 21 after hitting .600 (9-for-15) with two home runs and seven RBI during his time at the plate while also posting a pair of saves, a .071 opponent batting average (1-for-14) and a flawless 0.00 ERA in two appearances and 4.0 innings of work on the mound.
From the mound, Segein did not allow a hit four times and held opponents without an earned run on nine occasions. He posted seven multiple-strikeout performances, including a career-best four Ks in 2.1 innings at UNO (April 9), and his longest outing of the year came against LSU (April 22) when he tossed 3.0 innings of relief.
Segedin helped the Green Wave post a 39-22-1 overall record in 2008, finish third in the regular-season C-USA standings with a 13-9-1 league mark, and advance to the finals of the 2008 NCAA Tallahassee Regional.
He is the lone player from the state of Louisiana named to the NCBWA Freshman All-Amcerica squad and is one of four C-USA student-athletes to do so, joining first-teamers Seth Maness (SP) of East Carolina, Chase Dempsay (RP) of Houston and second-teamer Rick Hague (SS) of Rice.
Anthony Scelfo Taken In 8th Round Of MLB Draft By Tampa Bay
June 17, 2008
Junior infielder/outfield only Wave veteran taken in drafts second day after hitting .322 with 12 homersJune 6, 2008
Quotes Following Day Two Of The 2008 MLB Draft
Scelfo’s Career Information in PDF Format Get Acrobat Reader
NEW ORLEANS, La. - During the first two years of his collegiate career, Anthony Scelfo was a student-athlete who was constantly trying to run in two directions at the same time.
A football player in the fall and a baseball player in the spring, Scelfo had Green Wave fans cheering for him throughout the academic year. In spring 2008, however, Scelfo turned his full attention to baseball and the fruits of his labor have come full bloom as the junior from North Kenner, La., was selected in the eighth round of the 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.
“I’m just excited,” Scelfo said. “I’m glad all that hard work paid off. We’ll see what happens and go from there. Andy Cannizaro (a member of the Rays organization who spent time this season with the Big League club) called me after it happened and we talked for a while. He gave me some advice on what to expect. I know what I’m capable of and I know what I can do. Working on it all spring definitely helped me get to this point. Working on it year round now will help me even more, so hopefully I can make this a career. It’s very exciting.”
Scelfo is the first Tulane player ever drafted by the Tampa Rays, and he is the second of two Green Wave student-athletes selected in the 2008 MLB Draft, joining junior right-hander Shooter Hunt, who was taken with the 31st overall pick yesterday by the Minnesota Twins. Both players have the option of returning to Tulane for their senior seasons should they chose not to sign a professional contract.
“Because of (Tulane head football coach) Bob Toledo and his staff, Anthony Scelfo was able to dedicate himself to baseball this spring and the results are obvious,” Green Wave head baseball coach Rick Jones said. “He was able to concentrate on baseball, worked with the coaches, and learned to use the entire field as far as hitting is concerned. The ability was there. He just needed an opportunity to focus full time on baseball to turn that ability into production.”
Scelfo came to Tulane in fall 2005 via football scholarship and started in both baseball and football during the 2007-08 academic year. On the gridiron in 2007, Scelfo played in all 12 games at quarterback - including eight starts over the final nine games - and led the Green Wave with 1,396 yards and six touchdowns on 111-of-205 passing while ranking second on the team with 171 rushing yards and a score on 57 carries.
On the diamond, he played all three outfield positions as well as first, second and third base, and earned first-team All-Conference USA honors after leading the team in home runs (12), triples (seven), runs scored (72), total bases (133), slugging percentage (.578), walks (54) and on-base percentage (.453). Scelfo also tied for team lead in batting average (.322) while ranking second in hits (74), tied for second in RBI (54), and tied for fifth in stolen bases (eight).
He leads C-USA in walks and triples, second in runs scored, sixth in on-base percentage, seventh in slugging percentage and total bases, tied for seventh in home runs and tied for 10th in RBI. Scelfo finished the year tied for third on the team with 18 multiple-hit games, including five-hit contests vs. Northwestern State (3/12) and at Memphis (4/26). He also ranked second on the club with 14 multiple-RBI games, including five-RBI outings at Nicholls State (4/2), at Memphis (4/25) and vs. Marshall in the C-USA Tournament (5/24). Scelfo had a 12-game hitting streak from April 20-May 10 when he hit .479 (23-for-48) with three doubles, a triple, five home runs and 11 RBI.
Scelfo’s seven triples in 2008 ranks tied for third in Tulane single-season history and his 54 walks ranks tied for eighth. His eight career triples, meanwhile, ranks tied for eighth in school history.
In addition to current Green Wave players who were drafted on Friday, Tulane saw six of its 2009 signees get taken in the MLB Draft as well. Ross Seaton was the first signee taken, going in the supplemental third (109 overall) to the Houston Astros, while J.P. Ramirez (451) and Jamie Bruno (464) were both selected in the 15th round by the Washington Nationals and New York Mets, respectively. Carson Blair was taken by the Boston Red Sox in the 35th round (1072) and Ryan Doiron went two rounds later to the Oakland Athletics.
“The number of draftees in our recruiting certainly shows strength of this class,” Jones said. “I expect most of them to be in calls in the fall and elevate their draft status for three years from now.”
Like Hunt and Scelfo, all six of the Tulane signees who were drafted have the option of playing for the Green Wave next season provided they attend class when it begins in the fall before a professional contract is signed.
Shooter Hunt Selected In Supplemental 1st Round Of 2008 MLB Draft
June 6, 2008
Junior hurler goes 31st overall to Minnesota Twins; becomes the sixth first-rounder in Wave historyJune 5, 2008
Quotes Following The First Round Of The 2008 MLB Draft
Hunt’s Career Information in PDF Format Get Acrobat Reader
NEW ORLEANS, La. - After establishing himself as one of the best pitchers in the history of Tulane University baseball over the past two years, Green Wave standout Shooter Hunt was drafted with the supplemental first round by the Minnesota Twins on Thursday in day one of the 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
A native of Wyckoff, N.J., Hunt was the first selection of the supplemental first round, going 31st overall to the Twins. He becomes the sixth first-round selection in Tulane history and the fifth under 15th-year head coach Rick Jones, joining Frank Wills (1980, RHP, Pick 16, Kansas City), Jason Fitzgerald (1997, OF, Pick 41, Cleveland), Jake Gautreau (2001, 3B, 14th Pick, San Diego), Michael Aubrey (2003, 1B, 11th Pick, Cleveland) and Brian Bogusevic (2005, LHP, 24th Pick, Houston).
“At the end of the day, getting picked was all that matters,” Hunt said. “(Minnesota) is a great organization, it’s a great fit for me and I want to do my best for the Twins. Playing at Tulane is like playing Double-A baseball. We played great competition and it’s a great school. The coaches put in the extra effort to help get you better, and that helped me greatly. I just want to thank everyone at Tulane - the coaches, my teammates and their families, as well as the fans - for giving me a chance to improve myself as a person and player.”
Hunt becomes the eighth Tulane student-athlete selected by the Twins since the modern draft in 1965, joining catcher Mark Maher (7th Round, 1978), third baseman David Stokes (7th Round, 1979), outfielder Brian Butera (4th Round, January Phase, 1980), catcher Steve Riley (25th Round, 1984), outfielder David Smith (5th Round, 1987), pitcher Henry Bonilla (8th Round, 2000) and closer Daniel Latham (15th Round, 2007).
As a junior with the Green Wave, Hunt claimed second-team Louisville Slugger All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball Magazine, was named 2008 Conference USA Pitcher of the Year and claimed a spot on the All C-USA first team after leading the team and the league in opponent batting average (.175), total strikeouts (126), strikeouts looking (48) and innings pitched (100.2). He also led the team and is tied for the C-USA mark in wins (nine) while pacing the club and finishing second in the conference with a 2.68 ERA.
“I’m happy for him,” Jones said. “I’m a little disappointed he fell to the 31st overall pick, but at the same time, he is an undrafted guy who came here and just got better and better. It’s because of his work ethic and his attention to detail, and Coach Sutter working with him every day. Any time you have a guy who comes to Tulane, is a great student, and then gets an opportunity to cash in on a payday and pursue his professional career, that’s a good day.”
Hunt was also named a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award by USA Baseball, The Dick Howser Trophy by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, the Brooks Wallace Award by the College Baseball Foundation, and the Roger Clemens Award by the Greater Houston Baseball Association in 2008. He ranks fifth in the NCAA in hits allowed per nine innings (5.54) and total strikeouts, 12th in strikeouts per nine innings (11.26), 26th in wins and 44th in ERA.
He tallied eight or more strikeouts on 10 occasions this season, including four double-digit K totals and a season-high 12 strikeouts against Southern Miss on April 18 and at Memphis on April 25. Hunt held opponents to three or fewer hits nine times, including a one-hit, no-walk, 11-strikeout performance in 7.0 innings against UC Irvine on March 7. He did not allow an earned run on four occasions and held opponents to one earned run two other times.
Hunt was named C-USA Pitcher of the Week three times as a junior (March 10, March 17 and May 12), Louisiana Sports Writers Association Pitcher of the Week twice (April 21 and May 12) and CollegeBaseballInsider.com Central Region Pitcher of the Week once (March 10).
Following a stellar prep career at Ramapo High, Hunt originally enrolled as a pitcher/catcher at the University of Virginia before transferring to Tulane in the summer of 2006. In two seasons with the Green Wave, he posted a combined 15-10 record, a 2.65 ERA and a .204 opponent batting average. He started 31 of the 32 games he appeared in during his Tulane career, during which time he posted a 10.33 strikeout-per-nine-inning average and a 2.67 strikeout-to-walk ratio after fanning 230 batters and walking just 86 in 200.1 innings of work.
His .175 opponent batting average in 2008 is a Tulane single-season record, surpassing the former mark of .203 set by Jason Navarro in 1997, and is fifth in strikeout-per-nine-inning average (11.26). Hunt’s .204 career opponent batting average also tops Navarro’s former school record of .224 (1995-97) and also ranks fifth in Tulane career history in K/9 and is seventh in career ERA.
The 2008 MLB Draft continues today through 8 p.m. and picks up again tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. The Draft is slated to go 50 rounds and will conclude on Friday.
Wave believes it’s headed in right direction
June 6, 2008
Wave believes it’s headed in right direction- NOLA.com
Year’s experience could help to avoid future rough patches
Friday, June 06, 2008
By Nakia HoganAt some point during the Tulane baseball team’s charter bus ride west on Interstate 10, the sting of being eliminated from the NCAA Tallahassee Regional eased.
A day after the Green Wave’s 16-7 loss to Florida State on Monday night, the future looked as bright as any day since Hurricane Katrina wrecked their facilities and damaged their recruiting classes.
“Everybody really came together on the bus, and we had some great conversation about how we came together and how we could get better,” sophomore shortstop Josh Prince said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who got experience this year, a lot of guys who hadn’t really played in the postseason coming back. I think we are going to be really good next year.”
Prince’s optimism stems from Tulane’s late-season march into the regional finals and the number of players the Green Wave will return.
On its way to ending a one-year NCAA regional hiatus, the Green Wave (39-22-1) finished third in the Conference USA regular season.
But reaching such heights wasn’t easy for the Green Wave, which opened the season with a bevy on newcomers counted on to jell quickly and play major roles.
Five of the regulars in the Tulane lineup — first baseman Sam Honeck, third baseman Rob Segedin, right fielder Drew Allain, designated hitter Andrew Rodgers and Prince — and four of its top pitchers — Matt Petiton, Nick Pepitone, Robby Broach and Mason Griffin — were either freshmen or transfers in their first year at Tulane.
“We meshed pretty well,” Tulane Coach Rick Jones said. “I sort of judge at the end of the year whether we got everything out of a team or not, and I felt like we probably maximized this one as close as we can, knowing all those external things that go with that.
“I’m proud of the club. After all of the individual meetings, I can see a real positive feel of accomplishment even though we didn’t get into the super regional, which is a disappointment. But I think it’s something that we will build on.”
It also doesn’t hurt the Green Wave’s cause that it could return (pending the outcome of the MLB draft) every starting position player and nearly its entire pitching staff — minus staff ace Shooter Hunt, who was selected with the 31st overall pick by the Minnesota Twins on Thursday.
There is a chance Tulane could also lose reserve
outfielders Warren McFadden and Aja Barto and utility player
Anthony Scelfo to the draft, which concludes today.But Tulane’s prized recruiting class, which Jones
called “the best we’ve had” could offset
those losses. That is, if to the draft doesn’t snatch
away many of this heralded class as well.Among the players the Green Wave signed in November were
left-hander T.J. House (Picayune, Miss.), right-hander Ross
Seaton (Houston), outfielder J.P. Ramirez (New Braunfels,
Texas) and infielder Carson Blair (Argyle, Texas). Seaton,
though, was drafted 109th overall by the Houston Astros.
Even with a talented roster, the Green Wave will have to
avoid the pitfalls of this past season, which was plagued by
inconsistencies before putting together a strong showing in
the Tallahassee Regional.Tulane ended the regular season and C-USA Tournament by
losing five of six games, then surprised many by winning its
first two games in the regional, against Florida and
Bucknell.“Some days I didn’t know whether or not this
team was focused enough or mature enough or talented or
committed enough,” Jones said. “But now
they’ve become one of my favorite teams, if not my
favorite team because they had to live up to expectations of
teams that went before them and because of the new stadium
and being under the microscope a little bit more.“They didn’t hear a lot of positives during the
year because we were (up and down). But I think they
responded, and they won my respect.”
Hunt taken by Minnesota, other locals go early
June 6, 2008
Hunt taken by Minnesota, other locals go early - Tulane Beat - Times-Picayune - NOLA.com
Posted by The Times-Picayune June 05, 2008 5:58PM
Categories: BaseballTulane pitcher Shooter Hunt was the 31st overall pick, or the first pick in the compensation Round A, by the Minnesota Twins today in the major league baseball draft.
Hunt, a junior from Wyckoff, N.J., was 9-4 with a 2.68 ERA. In 16 starts, he threw 100 2/3 innings and gave up 62 hits and had 126 strikeouts.
His .175 opponent batting average in 2008 is a Tulane single-season record, surpassing the former mark of .203 set by Jason Navarro in 1997, and is fifth in strikeout-per-nine-inning average (11.26). Hunt’s .204 career opponent batting average also tops Navarro’s former school record of .224 (1995-97) and also ranks fifth in Tulane career history in K/9 and is seventh in career ERA.
Newman graduate Jeremy Bleich, a junior from Stanford, was the 44th overall pick by the New York Yankees. He was also taken in the compensation Round A.
Bleich has made six starts in his eight total appearances for Stanford and has a 2-2 record, 1.09 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 33.0 innings pitched. He has also limited opponents to a .197 batting average against him in 2008. He has an 8-14 career collegiate record with a 4.33 ERA and seven saves over 48 appearances. He also has added one complete game and has 123 strikeouts in 191.2 career innings pitched.
Stanford is playing Cal-State Fullerton in the Super Regional this weekend.
UNO’s Johnny Giovatella was taken early second round, 49th overall, by the Kansas City Royals.
Giavotella, a first-team preseason All-America selection, was chosen with the No. 49 selection overall, the third pick of the second round. He hit .354 this past season to help UNO claim an NCAA Tournament berth for the second straight year.
The Jesuit graduate hit 12 home runs and had 56 RBIs. He also led the Privateers with a .470 on-base percentage. He is ranked eighth in school history with a .363 career average and is tied for fourth with 32 home runs. As a junior in 2007, Giavotella was a third-team All-America pick after hitting .385 with 15 home runs and 65 RBIs.
Baseball’s Segedin Named Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American
June 5, 2008
Rookie earns honor after hitting .322 with 59 RBI at the plate while posting five saves from the moundJune 4, 2008
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Following a stellar rookie season where he saw time both at third base and on the mound as a reliever, Tulane University baseball standout Rob Segedin was named Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball Magazine on Wednesday.
The honor is the third of the postseason for Segedin as he was named second-team All-Conference USA and claimed a spot on the C-USA All-Freshman Team as well. He becomes the 14th Tulane student-athlete to claim Freshman All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball, and is the first to do so since Warren McFadden garnered the distinction in 2006.
Segedin played in all 62 games for the Green Wave in 2008, including 61 starts at the hot corner where he hit .322 with 18 doubels, a triple and six home runs while driving in 59. He also appeared in 14 games on the mound as a reliever where he posted five saves, a win and 21 strikeouts in 19.1 innings of work.
He shares the team’s batting average title with junior Anthony Scelfo - becoming the first Tulane rookie to lead the team in hitting since Barry Butera hit .360 in 1975 - and his RBI total is the most by a freshman since Michael Aubrey had 69 in 2001. Segedin’s five saves, meanwhile, are the most by a Green Wave freshman since Sean Morgan posted five in 2005.
At the plate, Segedin also led the team in hits (75) and RBI (59), while ranking second in on-base percentage (.414), third in slugging percentage (.485), fifth in runs scored (37) and tied for fifth in home runs.
Segedin led the team with 21 multiple-hit games and 19 multiple-RBI contests. He tied a Tulane single-game record by going 6-for-6 against Northwestern State on March 12, and had both a five- and six-RBI contest to his credit as well.
He had an 11-game hitting streak from April 13-May 3 when he hit .545 (24-for-44) with 3 doubles, 3 homers and 16 RBI. Segedin was also named C-USA Co-Hitter of the Week and earned a spot on the College Baseball Foundation National All-Star Lineup on April 21 after hitting .600 (9-for-15) with two home runs and seven RBI during his time at the plate while also posting a pair of saves, a .071 opponent batting average (1-for-14) and a flawless 0.00 ERA in two appearances and 4.0 innings of work on the mound.
From the mound, Segein did not allow a hit four times and held opponents without an earned run on nine occasions. He posted seven multiple-strikeout performances, including a career-best four Ks in 2.1 innings at UNO (April 9), and his longest outing of the year came against LSU (April 22) when he tossed 3.0 innings of relief.
Segedin helped the Green Wave post a 39-22-1 overall record in 2008, finish third in the regular-season C-USA standings with a 13-9-1 league mark, and advance to the finals of the 2008 NCAA Tallahassee Regional last weekend at Florida State.
He is one of seven C-USA players to claim Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America honors, joining East Carolina pitcher Seth Maness, Houston hurler Chase Dempsay, Southern Miss right-hander Todd McInnis, Houston shortstop Blake Kelso, Marshall designated hitter Victor Gomez and Rice shortstop Rick Hague.
Segedin is also one of three student-athletes from Louisiana schools to claim the distinction, joining Centenary reliever Boone Whiting and Southern catcher/first baseman Frazier Hall.
Hunt shooting for the stars in opening round
June 4, 2008
Hunt shooting for the stars in opening round- NOLA.com
2008
With Tulane eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, junior
pitcher Shooter Hunt won’t have a super regional game
to distract him from Thursday’s major league draft, in
which he’s projected as a high first-round pick.
But it’s a distraction he wouldn’t mind facing.
“The draft hasn’t really been on my mind all
season,” Hunt said Tuesday as Tulane returned from
Tallahassee, Fla., after its 16-7 loss to Florida State in
the Tallahassee Regional championship game the night before.
“I don’t think it would have been a big factor if
we’d won, because my goal all season has been to get to
Omaha and win the national championship, instead of worrying
about the draft.
“But it is kind of exciting to start thinking about
it right now.”
LSU junior first baseman Matt Clark will have to deal
with the draft and playing in a super regional. Clark is
projected to be the highest draft-eligible player for the
Tigers, who play UC Irvine in a super regional game at 5
p.m. Saturday at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge. He is
expected to be picked from the fifth to the 10th round.
“You can’t really ignore it,” said Clark,
who was a 24th-round pick last year when he played at
Fontana (Calif.) Community College. “But I’ve
still got a job to do here. Wherever you think you’re
going to go, you get picked there — and then you turn
around and focus on the task at hand.”
Seven LSU juniors could be picked Thursday, including
pitchers Ryan Verdugo, Jordan Brown and Blake Martin.
Teams are not allowed to contact players whose teams
still are in the tournament, other than to inform them that
they have been drafted. LSU Coach Paul Mainieri said
he’s glad that the Tigers’ opening game in the
super regional isn’t until Saturday, so that his
players can digest the information for a day or two.
“There’s no sticking our heads in the sand and
hope it goes away,” Mainieri said.
UNO is expected to lose two juniors — second baseman
Johnny Giavotella and pitcher Ryan O’Shea — in the
draft. Catcher/designated hitter Jeff Lanning is another
possibility.
Tulane junior outfielders Anthony Scelfo and Aja Barto
also could be selected, but possibly not high enough to
persuade them to leave school.
That won’t be the case with Hunt. He entered the
season as a projected high pick, and he hasn’t done
anything to diminish it this season, going 9-4 with a 2.68
ERA and 126 strikeouts in 100 2/3 innings.
Baseball America projects Hunt going to the Houston
Astros with the 10th pick in the first round. Tulane’s
previously highest drafted player was Michael Aubrey by the
Cleveland Indians at No. 11 in 2003.
Going that high would garner Hunt a seven-figure signing
bonus.
“I haven’t looked at the projections,”
Hunt said. “I really don’t want to know, because I
don’t want to get my expectations up. What’s
important to me is that I want to play ball and get to the
Major Leagues as fast as possible.”
Tulane Coach Rick Jones said Hunt has the tools to do
just that.
“This is guy that throws it 92-95 miles per hour and
has good velocity on his breaking ball as well,” Jones
said. “. . . We never let his pitch count get too high
this year, either, so his arm should be fresh.”
Along with its underclassmen, Tulane could lose two
highly regarded recruits — pitcher T.J. House from
Picayune, Miss., and pitcher/outfielder Ross Seaton from
Houston. Both signees are listed among Baseball
America’s top 200 prep prospects.
LSU has three highly rated signees — junior college
pitchers Ryan Chaffee from Chipola (Fla.) and John Michael
Redding of Florida College of Jacksonville, and shortstop
Austin Nola from Baton Rouge-Catholic — who likely will
go before the 10th round.
Pitcher Shane Reidie from Slidell, second baseman Drew
Cumberland, utility player Bo Didier and pitcher Chris
Matulis all could go in the later rounds.
NO DAY AT THE BEACH
June 3, 2008
Wave digs 10-run hole against Florida St. and can’t escape
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
By Nakia Hogan Staff writerTALLAHASSEE, FLA. — It’s over. Those were two words the Tulane Green Wave was not ready to hear or accept.
After Josh Prince grounded out to the second baseman, ending Florida State’s 16-7 victory in the championship game of the NCAA Tallahassee Regional on Monday and concluding what was just beginning to be a fruitful Green Wave season, several Tulane players stood and watched as the Seminoles high-fived their way off the field in front of 6,032 fans at Dick Howser Stadium.
This was exactly the scene they were hoping to avoid. FSU (52-11) will host Wichita State, the winner of the Stillwater Regional, in a best-of-three super regional.
Tulane (39-22-1) simply didn’t have enough pitching to keep pace with the vaunted FSU lineup, which featured eight players hitting better than .300. Though FSU catcher Buster Posey was selected the regional’s Most Outstanding Player, center fielder Tyler Holt stole the show, going 5-for-6 with four runs and two RBIs, becoming the first Seminole this season with five hits in one game.
The Seminoles scored six runs in the fourth inning and four in the fifth to take a 10-0 lead before cruising into their eighth super regional in the past 10 years.
For all the success Tulane had on the mound in winning the first two games of the regional, Green Wave pitchers struggled against FSU, which beat Tulane for the second consecutive day.
After Tulane gave up 14 hits in Sunday’s 17-8 loss to the Seminoles, Coach Rick Jones decided to start staff ace Shooter Hunt, who threw 99 pitches Friday, on two days’ rest.
That experiment started out well but didn’t last long. FSU was just as efficient as the previous day and went on to collect 18 hits Monday.
Hunt tired in the fourth inning, and he wasn’t able to work himself out of the jams the way he did in the first three innings. The Seminoles capitalized, scoring six runs.
Hunt hit Tony Delmonico, the first batter of the fourth inning, then allowed a single to Stuart Tapley. Delmonico eventually scored when Tommy Oravetz grounded out to first, giving FSU a 1-0 lead. Tapley scored on a wild pitch, increasing the lead to 2-0.
But the real damage came with two out in the inning on an
error by center fielder Anthony Scelfo, who dropped a popup
in shallow center after a long run and a near collision with
shortstop Prince. A run scored on the play. And after a
three-run double by Dennis Guinn, FSU led 6-0.Hunt (9-4) took the loss, going 3 2/3 innings, giving up
six hits and six runs (two earned). He struck out two,
walked three and hit three batters on 86 pitches.In all, the Green Wave used six pitchers Monday and nine
for the two games against FSU. None was effective, often
struggling with control and walking nine FSU players and
hitting four.
Perhaps the lone bright spot for the Green Wave in the
two games against the Seminoles was designated hitter Warren
McFadden, who along with left fielder Scott Powell was
selected to the all-regional team. McFadden didn’t play
in the first two games of the regional. But he went 6-for-7
in the final two games, including a solo home run in the
sixth inning that closed FSU’s margin to 10-4.Tulane couldn’t get any closer, though. FSU
continued to batter the Green Wave’s pitchers and
scored four runs in the top of the seventh, increasing the
margin to 14-4.Matt Fairel (11-2) picked up the win for FSU, allowing
seven hits and three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings.