University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Baseball Brings Experienced Squad Into the 2003 Season
2/20/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
With nine seniors on the squad who have been to the NCAA Regionals twice in their respective careers, there is a sense that this group knows the kind of hard work and dedication it will take to get back to the NCAAs. Minnesota has continued the successful tradition of Golden Gopher baseball by either winning the Big Ten regular season or tournament title in four of the last five years. The 2003 team is loaded with players who have contributed heavily to that legacy and are hungry to continue doing so.
"I think last year was a little bit of a wake-up call for our team in terms of missing the NCAA Tournament," said Minnesota Head Coach John Anderson. "We succeeded in winning the Big Ten title during the regular season, but during the season we lost games that we needed to win to make sure we made it to the NCAA Tournament. This year's team is very focused on making sure that we go into every game this season completely focused."
Minnesota returns a very solid group of veterans that will play a big hand in keeping the Golden Gophers focused on keeping a winning attitude day in and day out. These veterans include the 2002 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year C.J. Woodrow, 2002 Tri-Big Ten Player of the Year Luke Appert and the 2002 Big Ten Conference Batting Champion Scott Welch.
Woodrow led the way last year for the Gophers pitching staff with a 7-1 record in Big Ten conference play, an 8-5 overall record and had a team-best 3.71 ERA. Appert was one of the main catalysts for the Golden Gophers on offense leading the team in batting average (.361) and homers (14), along with 55 runs and 43 RBI. Welch led the Big Ten with a .398 batting average in conference play and was second on Minnesota overall with a .339 batting average.
"I am very confident in the players we have returning on this team," said Anderson. "We probably have the most proven talent returning in the Big Ten this season. It gives you confidence when you can look at the roster and see a conference player of the year, pitcher of the year and a conference batting champion returning to your team from the previous year. Those players also do a good job of leading by example, and will be part of the group that will set the tone for a successful 2003 season." On top of that group, Minnesota also has a talented group of redshirt players, who developed last season and are hungry to contribute. That list includes outfielder Paul Dean, infielder Jon Schemel, junior utility man Jared Sanders and lefthander Glen Perkins.
The Golden Gophers also bring in a young talented group of freshmen who could possibly contribute right away. Highlighting that group is left-handed pitchers Andy Peters and Brian Bull, along with outfielders Luke MacLean, Taylor VanderAarde, infielder Mike Mee and shortstop Matt Fornasiere.
"We like the group we are bringing into the program this season," said Anderson. "With the experience we bring back it would seem as if a lot of freshmen would be redshirt candidates. However, this is a talented group that helps makes our roster very deep heading into the season. We will have a lot of position battles heading into the year. In this group of freshmen and our redshirt players from last year we have mainly addressed the need of getting more left-handed pitchers on our staff, as well as adding a talented group of position players to the mix."
Minnesota returns junior outfielder Sam Steidl who batted .312 and was second on the team with 19 stolen bases, and Ben Pattee who was third on the team in batting average at .332 and tied for second in RBI on the team with 43 last season. The Golden Gophers also return plenty of experience in their pitching statff after only losing one pitcher to graduation from last year.
The infield should continue to be one of the strength's for Minnesota heading into the season. Three of the four starting infield spots are projected to be filled by seniors. Minnesota's infield strength starts up the middle where Appert, a 2002 Third-Team All-American will be playing second base and Welch will be returning to shortstop, after receiving First-Team All-Conference honors last season.
First base will be manned by senior David Roach, who batted .299 with 28 RBI and provided clutch hitting down the stretch for Minnesota. Roach is a steady presence at first base who had a .997 fielding percentage last year, only committing one error in 317 chances. Minnesota will continue with a move that they made at third base late last season by starting David Hrncirik at the hot corner. Hrncirik led the way off the bench for the Golden Gophers last year by batting .397 with 19 RBI. He will also pitch on occasion, giving some other players opportunities to start at third base when he is on the mound. Schemmel and Sanders, who were both redshirts in 2002, will get some chances at third, along with Mee who is a true freshman.
Also in the mix for the Gopher's infield is freshman Matt Fornasiere who is a talented shortstop out of Maple Grove with a great bat, who will work his way into the lineup in different situations. Senior Jon Becker will come into the game off the bench and fill in as a starter occasionally for the Golden Gophers after batting .387 in 31 at-bats last season. Dan Thompson is another utility infielder who will see some time for Minnesota.
"One of the main strength's of our team is that we have a very solid and experienced group of infielders," said Anderson. "We also have a strong group of players backing them up. Matt (Fornasiere) is a very talented shortstop, giving us a rare luxury in college baseball of having two quality shortstops. Welch has the experience edge, but we will look for ways to get Matt's bat in the game. Luke (Appert) and David (Roach) are very talented seniors who we feel very comfortable putting out there on an everyday basis. We are also excited about Hrncirik's potential at third base. We had him there towards the end of last season, and we think he can excel at that position this year."
The position on the roster that is probably the most competitive is catcher. With the loss of senior Jeremy Beaulieu, Gary Dick and Jake Elder represent the most experienced options for Minnesota. In his freshman season Elder played in 41 games and hit .267 with two homers and 14 RBI in 86 at-bats. Dick played in 28 games and batted .240 as a sophomore. Minnesota will also give redshirt freshman Andy Hunter, and true freshmen Kevin Carlson and John Arlt a shot at the starting catching job.
"The catching position is up for grabs heading into the season and it should be a battle with the caliber of players we have at the position," said Anderson. "Gary (Dick) is in his fourth year in the program and is the most experienced of the candidates. However, Jake (Elder) played the most at the position last year out of the two returning catchers. We also have three talented freshmen who will also battle it out for playing time behind the plate."
The one area that Minnesota suffered its biggest losses in was the outfield position. Four-year starter Jason Kennedy was drafted as a senior in the 20th round by the Detroit Tigers after leading the team in steals with 27 and RBI at 61, while batting .316. The Golden Gophers also lose Scott Howard who batted .327 with 28 RBI last year.
Minnesota does return Steidl, who has been a Big Ten All-Conference outfielder the past two seasons. Steidl, who has played centerfield the past two seasons, will most likely be shifted to left field. The Golden Gophers enter the season with high hopes for redshirt freshman Tony Leseman, to be their starting centerfielder. The switch-hitting Leseman is a tremendous all-around athlete who batted .333 in the fall. The Golden Gophers will also move Pattee, who was also Third-Team All-Big Ten last year, from third base to rightfield this season.
Sophomore Logan Gerken</ a> will also get some time in the outfield. Last season Gerken batted .300 with eight RBI in 30 at bats. Minnesota will also give redshirt freshman Paul Dean a chance for some playing time in the outfield, as well as possibly giving talented true freshmen Luke MacLean and Taylor VanderAarde a shot if they are not redshirted this season.
"We are hoping that Tony (Leseman) can come in and play centerfield for us after redshirting last season," said Anderson. "He is a very talented athlete and the move would allow us to shift Sam (Steidl) to a more natural position in leftfield. We also think that Ben (Pattee) will be more comfortable playing the outfield and are optimistic that he will continue to put up strong offensive numbers. We are excited about some of the other players who can play in the outfield for us. It should give us a lot of options going into the season."
Minnesota returns an abundance of experienced pitching to the staff for the 2003 season, including Woodrow who is the reigning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and finished 2003 with a 6.3 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio. Along with Woodrow, junior starters Craig Molldrem and Jay Gagner will anchor an experienced starting staff. Molldrem was 5-4 with a 4.67 ERA, a shutout and was second on the team in strikeouts with 56. Gagner had offseason surgery to fix some of the arm troubles that plagued him last year. However, he was still 4-0 with a 4.58 ERA. The Golden Gophers did take a hit in their returning starters with Josh Krogman set to miss the season after "Tommy John" surgery. Minnesota will also be without reliever Luke Beresford who had elbow surgery during the offseason.
The coaching staff was encouraged by the way sophomore Matt Loberg ended the 2002 season. Loberg was 4-3 pitching primarily out of relief, but did make three starts. He also picked up the win in relief for the Golden Gophers, which clinched the Big Ten regular season title on the final day of the season with an 8-5 win against Ohio State in Columbus. Freshman lefty Brian Bull who hails from high school baseball powerhouse Creighton Prep in Omaha, Neb. will also be a starting rotation candidate.
Minnesota returns virtually all of its relief corp from the 2002 season. Leading the way are Jeff Moen and Tim Theis who tied for the team lead in appearances with 16 last season. Senior Nick McCauley had a 4.61 ERA and led the team with three saves. The Golden Gophers also return Dan Anderson who was 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA and picked up his first collegiate win in the Big Ten Tournament over Northwestern. Redshirt freshman Glen Perkins is a solid lefthanded pitcher who will get opportunities in relief for Minnesota. Reid Mahon and Nate Broehm are also a pair of experienced pitchers that return for the Golden Gophers. Freshmen lefthanders Andy Peters and Bill Johnson will compete for spots in Minnesota's pitching staff. Junior walk-on Jonathan Holt will get some appearances in relief for the Golden Gophers this season.
"Our pitching staff returns some good arms and a lot of experience from last year," said Anderson. "I think the number of pitchers we have and the experience gives us a lot of choices, and that is important because you can never have enough pitchers at this level."
As is the annual tradition in the Minnesota baseball program, the Golden Gophers will jump right into the season with an extremely difficult schedule. Minnesota starts off by traveling to Tucson, Ariz. on Feb. 21-23 to take on Arizona in a three-game series and Oklahoma State (Feb. 23) in a single game. The Golden Gophers will then host a trio of preseason nationally ranked teams Feb. 28 - Mar. 2 at the Dairy Queen Baseball Classic. The field includes Wake Forest, 2002 College World Series participant Notre Dame and 2002 College World Series participant Nebraska. After taking on Minnesota-Duluth on Mar. 5, the Golden Gophers will welcome another preseason Top-25 team in Cal State-Fullerton in a three-game series that will take place in the Metrodome on Mar. 7-9. After that series Minnesota will hit the road for a 10-day, nine-game California road swing that will see it take on Pacific (Mar. 14-16), San Jose State (Mar. 17), Sacramento State (Mar. 18-19) and Fresno State (Mar. 21-23). The Golden Gophers will also have a home and home series against Northern Iowa (away - Apr. 9 and home - Apr. 23), as well as a trip to Lincoln, Neb. to face the Cornhuskers on Apr. 30.
"We have always had the philosophy that you find out a lot more about your team and players by playing a tough schedule," said Anderson. "If your goal in this sport is to continually get better then you have to play the best teams out there. This is what we want to strive to do as a team, and what we feel is best for the development of our players individually."
Minnesota starts off Big Ten play at Siebert Field on Mar. 28-30 in a series against Michigan State. The Golden Gophers will play their first road Big Ten series at Ann Arbor, Mich. against the Wolverines on Apr. 4-6. Minnesota's home Big Ten series will come against Penn State (Apr. 11-13), Purdue (May 2-4) and Ohio State (May 16-18). The Golden Gophers will take to the road in conference play against Illinois (Apr. 18-20), Indiana (Apr. 25-27) and Iowa (May 9-11).
"I think the Big Ten will be closer top to bottom then it has the past few years," said Anderson. "A lot of teams lost top players from last year, and that closes the gap between all the teams in the conference. It should make for a very interesting conference race."
Heading into the 2003 season, Minnesota looks to recapture a Big Ten crown and make a return back to the NCAA Tournament. The hunger from a one-year absence from the NCAA Tournament and a very deep and experienced team should go a long towards helping the Golden Gophers re-establish themselves as an NCAA Tournament team.
"This is one of the deepest rosters we have had," said Anderson. "We feel that the players on our roster give us a lot of options heading into the season, and at the end of the season that should make us a better team." The Minnesota Golden Gophers head into the 2003 season with a good combination of factors working in their favor. Those include the fact that Minnesota is an experienced squad, but at the same time is extremely hungry for a highly successful 2003 campaign. That hunger is fueled by the fact that despite winning a second regular season Big Ten title in the past three seasons, Minnesota missed out on its annual goal of making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1997.
With nine seniors on the squad who have been to the NCAA Regionals twice in their respective careers, there is a sense that this group knows the kind of hard work and dedication it will take to get back to the NCAAs. Minnesota has continued the successful tradition of Golden Gopher baseball by either winning the Big Ten regular season or tournament title in four of the last five years. The 2003 team is loaded with players who have contributed heavily to that legacy and are hungry to continue doing so.
"I think last year was a little bit of a wake-up call for our team in terms of missing the NCAA Tournament," said Minnesota Head Coach John Anderson. "We succeeded in winning the Big Ten title during the regular season, but during the season we lost games that we needed to win to make sure we made it to the NCAA Tournament. This year's team is very focused on making sure that we go into every game this season completely focused."
Minnesota returns a very solid group of veterans that will play a big hand in keeping the Golden Gophers focused on keeping a winning attitude day in and day out. These veterans include the 2002 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year C.J. Woodrow, 2002 Tri-Big Ten Player of the Year Luke Appert and the 2002 Big Ten Conference Batting Champion Scott Welch.
Woodrow led the way last year for the Gophers pitching staff with a 7-1 record in Big Ten conference play, an 8-5 overall record and had a team-best 3.71 ERA. Appert was one of the main catalysts for the Golden Gophers on offense leading the team in batting average (.361) and homers (14), along with 55 runs and 43 RBI. Welch led the Big Ten with a .398 batting average in conference play and was second on Minnesota overall with a .339 batting average.
"I am very confident in the players we have returning on this team," said Anderson. "We probably have the most proven talent returning in the Big Ten this season. It gives you confidence when you can look at the roster and see a conference player of the year, pitcher of the year and a conference batting champion returning to your team from the previous year. Those players also do a good job of leading by example, and will be part of the group that will set the tone for a successful 2003 season." On top of that group, Minnesota also has a talented group of redshirt players, who developed last season and are hungry to contribute. That list includes outfielder Paul Dean, infielder Jon Schemel, junior utility man Jared Sanders and lefthander Glen Perkins.
The Golden Gophers also bring in a young talented group of freshmen who could possibly contribute right away. Highlighting that group is left-handed pitchers Andy Peters and Brian Bull, along with outfielders Luke MacLean, Taylor VanderAarde, infielder Mike Mee and shortstop Matt Fornasiere.
"We like the group we are bringing into the program this season," said Anderson. "With the experience we bring back it would seem as if a lot of freshmen would be redshirt candidates. However, this is a talented group that helps makes our roster very deep heading into the season. We will have a lot of position battles heading into the year. In this group of freshmen and our redshirt players from last year we have mainly addressed the need of getting more left-handed pitchers on our staff, as well as adding a talented group of position players to the mix."
Minnesota returns junior outfielder Sam Steidl who batted .312 and was second on the team with 19 stolen bases, and Ben Pattee who was third on the team in batting average at .332 and tied for second in RBI on the team with 43 last season. The Golden Gophers also return plenty of experience in their pitching statff after only losing one pitcher to graduation from last year.
The infield should continue to be one of the strength's for Minnesota heading into the season. Three of the four starting infield spots are projected to be filled by seniors. Minnesota's infield strength starts up the middle where Appert, a 2002 Third-Team All-American will be playing second base and Welch will be returning to shortstop, after receiving First-Team All-Conference honors last season.
First base will be manned by senior David Roach, who batted .299 with 28 RBI and provided clutch hitting down the stretch for Minnesota. Roach is a steady presence at first base who had a .997 fielding percentage last year, only committing one error in 317 chances. Minnesota will continue with a move that they made at third base late last season by starting David Hrncirik at the hot corner. Hrncirik led the way off the bench for the Golden Gophers last year by batting .397 with 19 RBI. He will also pitch on occasion, giving some other players opportunities to start at third base when he is on the mound. Schemmel and Sanders, who were both redshirts in 2002, will get some chances at third, along with Mee who is a true freshman.
Also in the mix for the Gopher's infield is freshman Matt Fornasiere who is a talented shortstop out of Maple Grove with a great bat, who will work his way into the lineup in different situations. Senior Jon Becker will come into the game off the bench and fill in as a starter occasionally for the Golden Gophers after batting .387 in 31 at-bats last season. Dan Thompson is another utility infielder who will see some time for Minnesota.
"One of the main strength's of our team is that we have a very solid and experienced group of infielders," said Anderson. "We also have a strong group of players backing them up. Matt (Fornasiere) is a very talented shortstop, giving us a rare luxury in college baseball of having two quality shortstops. Welch has the experience edge, but we will look for ways to get Matt's bat in the game. Luke (Appert) and David (Roach) are very talented seniors who we feel very comfortable putting out there on an everyday basis. We are also excited about Hrncirik's potential at third base. We had him there towards the end of last season, and we think he can excel at that position this year."
The position on the roster that is probably the most competitive is catcher. With the loss of senior Jeremy Beaulieu, Gary Dick and Jake Elder represent the most experienced options for Minnesota. In his freshman season Elder played in 41 games and hit .267 with two homers and 14 RBI in 86 at-bats. Dick played in 28 games and batted .240 as a sophomore. Minnesota will also give redshirt freshman Andy Hunter, and true freshmen Kevin Carlson and John Arlt a shot at the starting catching job.
"The catching position is up for grabs heading into the season and it should be a battle with the caliber of players we have at the position," said Anderson. "Gary (Dick) is in his fourth year in the program and is the most experienced of the candidates. However, Jake (Elder) played the most at the position last year out of the two returning catchers. We also have three talented freshmen who will also battle it out for playing time behind the plate."
The one area that Minnesota suffered its biggest losses in was the outfield position. Four-year starter Jason Kennedy was drafted as a senior in the 20th round by the Detroit Tigers after leading the team in steals with 27 and RBI at 61, while batting .316. The Golden Gophers also lose Scott Howard who batted .327 with 28 RBI last year.
Minnesota does return Steidl, who has been a Big Ten All-Conference outfielder the past two seasons. Steidl, who has played centerfield the past two seasons, will most likely be shifted to left field. The Golden Gophers enter the season with high hopes for redshirt freshman Tony Leseman, to be their starting centerfielder. The switch-hitting Leseman is a tremendous all-around athlete who batted .333 in the fall. The Golden Gophers will also move Pattee, who was also Third-Team All-Big Ten last year, from third base to rightfield this season.
Sophomore Logan Gerken</ a> will also get some time in the outfield. Last season Gerken batted .300 with eight RBI in 30 at bats. Minnesota will also give redshirt freshman Paul Dean a chance for some playing time in the outfield, as well as possibly giving talented true freshmen Luke MacLean and Taylor VanderAarde a shot if they are not redshirted this season.
"We are hoping that Tony (Leseman) can come in and play centerfield for us after redshirting last season," said Anderson. "He is a very talented athlete and the move would allow us to shift Sam (Steidl) to a more natural position in leftfield. We also think that Ben (Pattee) will be more comfortable playing the outfield and are optimistic that he will continue to put up strong offensive numbers. We are excited about some of the other players who can play in the outfield for us. It should give us a lot of options going into the season."
Minnesota returns an abundance of experienced pitching to the staff for the 2003 season, including Woodrow who is the reigning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year and finished 2003 with a 6.3 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio. Along with Woodrow, junior starters Craig Molldrem and Jay Gagner will anchor an experienced starting staff. Molldrem was 5-4 with a 4.67 ERA, a shutout and was second on the team in strikeouts with 56. Gagner had offseason surgery to fix some of the arm troubles that plagued him last year. However, he was still 4-0 with a 4.58 ERA. The Golden Gophers did take a hit in their returning starters with Josh Krogman set to miss the season after "Tommy John" surgery. Minnesota will also be without reliever Luke Beresford who had elbow surgery during the offseason.
The coaching staff was encouraged by the way sophomore Matt Loberg ended the 2002 season. Loberg was 4-3 pitching primarily out of relief, but did make three starts. He also picked up the win in relief for the Golden Gophers, which clinched the Big Ten regular season title on the final day of the season with an 8-5 win against Ohio State in Columbus. Freshman lefty Brian Bull who hails from high school baseball powerhouse Creighton Prep in Omaha, Neb. will also be a starting rotation candidate.
Minnesota returns virtually all of its relief corp from the 2002 season. Leading the way are Jeff Moen and Tim Theis who tied for the team lead in appearances with 16 last season. Senior Nick McCauley had a 4.61 ERA and led the team with three saves. The Golden Gophers also return Dan Anderson who was 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA and picked up his first collegiate win in the Big Ten Tournament over Northwestern. Redshirt freshman Glen Perkins is a solid lefthanded pitcher who will get opportunities in relief for Minnesota. Reid Mahon and Nate Broehm are also a pair of experienced pitchers that return for the Golden Gophers. Freshmen lefthanders Andy Peters and Bill Johnson will compete for spots in Minnesota's pitching staff. Junior walk-on Jonathan Holt will get some appearances in relief for the Golden Gophers this season.
"Our pitching staff returns some good arms and a lot of experience from last year," said Anderson. "I think the number of pitchers we have and the experience gives us a lot of choices, and that is important because you can never have enough pitchers at this level."
As is the annual tradition in the Minnesota baseball program, the Golden Gophers will jump right into the season with an extremely difficult schedule. Minnesota starts off by traveling to Tucson, Ariz. on Feb. 21-23 to take on Arizona in a three-game series and Oklahoma State (Feb. 23) in a single game. The Golden Gophers will then host a trio of preseason nationally ranked teams Feb. 28 - Mar. 2 at the Dairy Queen Baseball Classic. The field includes Wake Forest, 2002 College World Series participant Notre Dame and 2002 College World Series participant Nebraska. After taking on Minnesota-Duluth on Mar. 5, the Golden Gophers will welcome another preseason Top-25 team in Cal State-Fullerton in a three-game series that will take place in the Metrodome on Mar. 7-9. After that series Minnesota will hit the road for a 10-day, nine-game California road swing that will see it take on Pacific (Mar. 14-16), San Jose State (Mar. 17), Sacramento State (Mar. 18-19) and Fresno State (Mar. 21-23). The Golden Gophers will also have a home and home series against Northern Iowa (away - Apr. 9 and home - Apr. 23), as well as a trip to Lincoln, Neb. to face the Cornhuskers on Apr. 30.
"We have always had the philosophy that you find out a lot more about your team and players by playing a tough schedule," said Anderson. "If your goal in this sport is to continually get better then you have to play the best teams out there. This is what we want to strive to do as a team, and what we feel is best for the development of our players individually."
Minnesota starts off Big Ten play at Siebert Field on Mar. 28-30 in a series against Michigan State. The Golden Gophers will play their first road Big Ten series at Ann Arbor, Mich. against the Wolverines on Apr. 4-6. Minnesota's home Big Ten series will come against Penn State (Apr. 11-13), Purdue (May 2-4) and Ohio State (May 16-18). The Golden Gophers will take to the road in conference play against Illinois (Apr. 18-20), Indiana (Apr. 25-27) and Iowa (May 9-11).
"I think the Big Ten will be closer top to bottom then it has the past few years," said Anderson. "A lot of teams lost top players from last year, and that closes the gap between all the teams in the conference. It should make for a very interesting conference race."
Heading into the 2003 season, Minnesota looks to recapture a Big Ten crown and make a return back to the NCAA Tournament. The hunger from a one-year absence from the NCAA Tournament and a very deep and experienced team should go a long towards helping the Golden Gophers re-establish themselves as an NCAA Tournament team.
"This is one of the deepest rosters we have had," said Anderson. "We feel that the players on our roster give us a lot of options heading into the season, and at the end of the season that should make us a better team."
