University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Baseball Signs Scott Fern to National Letter of Intent
8/2/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
The Minnesota baseball team has signed Scott Fern to a national letter of intent according to an announcement made by Minnesota head coach John Anderson. Fern will be eligible to compete for the Golden Gophers in the 2007 season.
Fern is a 6-4, 200 pound righthanded pitcher out of Eau Claire, Wis. He attended school at Memorial High School in Eau Claire, Wis. This past year, Fern finished 9-3-1 with a 2.56 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 65.2 innings for Memorial. On the season, he limited opponents to a .169 batting average in the 65.2 innings he pitched. This year he was voted the team’s top pitcher.
Fern helped pace Memorial advance to the State Tournament with a pair of quality outings in the playoffs, including a three-hitter against Eau Claire North who was the top team in the state. He also pitched a two-hitter in the State Tournament as well.
In his junior season, Fern was named Second-Team All-Conference and All-District. He finished his junior season 4-2 with three saves, an impressive 1.01 ERA, and 90 strikeouts in 48.0 innings of work. In his last two seasons at Memorial, Fern was 13-5-1, with three saves, 2.30 ERA and 196 strikeouts in 113.2 innings.
“Scott (Fern) was a pleasant surprise who really came on late in the spring and in the summer,” said Anderson. “We are excited about his development and his decision to come to the University of Minnesota. With the loss of John Gaub, and with a large group of senior pitchers on the roster next year we felt the need to recruit a good class of pitchers to come into the program. That is not always easy to do so we are happy with quality class that we have coming in next year. We think that Scott has the potential to be another great addition, along with the other pitchers in that class, both on the field and off the field for the program.”
Recruit Pos. B-T Ht. Wt. Hometown (High School) Allen Bechstein P R-R 5-11 165 Apple Valley, Minn. (Eastview) Scott Fern P R-R 6-4 200 Eau Claire, Wis. (Memorial) Drew Hanish IF L-R 6-0 160 McKinley, Texas (McKinley North HS) Kyle Knudson C R-R 6-3 210 Maple Grove, Minn. (Maple Grove HS) Derek McCallum SS L-R 6-0 170 Shoreview, Minn. (Hill-Murray HS) Tim Ryan P R-R 6-5 170 Eagan, Minn. (Eagan) Ethan Vogt P R-R 6-3 210 Sauk Centre, Minn. (Sauk Centre HS/Ridgewater CC)
Scott Fern (on Coming to Minnesota) “I think one of the ultimate goals you have as a player is to eventual play professional baseball. One of the things that the Minnesota baseball program has a great reputation for is developing talent and helping players get the most out of their ability. When I visited I was very impressed with the coaching staff and I felt at home on the campus. I am looking forward to working with the coaches, and learning from pitching coach Todd Oakes. Another thing that struck me when I visited was how much the coaches at Minnesota value the whole student-athletic experience. I am happy to go to a place where they will not only help me develop as baseball player, but as a person throughout my time with the program.”
Todd Oakes Minnesota Pitching Coach on Scott Fern “Scott made a lot of progress and really improved during the spring season. He has plus arm strength (86-90 mph) and the foundation for a very competitive breaking ball. Scott has an outstanding work ethic and the attitude to continue to develop into a competitive pitcher in our program. Former Golden Gopher pitcher Kelly Werner was his high school pitching coach, and he did a great job helping Scott improve his pitching skills. It’s a bonus for us to add a pitcher of Scott’s caliber this late in the recruiting process. We are fortunate to add him to our baseball team.”
