Many others are still playing for their college teams, and a lot of them may be taken in the 2007 MLB Draft on June 7. The following is a summary of the activities of all SteepleCat alumni who have been involved with baseball over the past year:
Dexter Butler (INF — South Florida): Everybody's favorite SteepleCat batted .324 for South Florida this spring to go with 44 RBI and a .421 on-base percentage.
Nick Manganaro (LHP): Opted not to finish his collegiate career at the University of South Florida, signing instead with the Los Angeles Angels last September. He has not yet been assigned to any minor league team.
Jon Settle (RHP — Winthrop): The tall, spectacle-wearing reliever was a workhorse as usual out of the bullpen for Winthrop. He made 25 appearances, tossing 30 1/3 innings to pick up a 4-3 record, three saves and 32 strikeouts.
Matt Mindick (OF — Nova Southeastern): Had a season for the display case, and it was capped when he was named to the All-American Second Team for Division 2. The junior led his team with a .414 batting average while also
Chris Reynolds (OF — Nova Southeastern): Didn't have the eye-popping stats of his teammate Mindick, but he still managed to hit .312 with 31 RBI and six stolen bases.
Eric Thibault (RHP — Rhode Island College): Held back by an arm injury that will keep him from returning to the SteepleCats this summer, Thibault managed to pitch with pain for Rhode Island this spring, recording a 4.91 ERA, 4-4 record and 42 strikeouts in 52 1/3 innings.
Chris Lloyd (RHP — UMass): The former Drury star wrapped up his college career with a 5-3 record in 11 starts during his senior season. Lloyd had a 4.74 ERA and 32 K's in 76 innings.
Ryan Franczek (INF — UMass): Started 42 games at third base for the Minutemen and batted .252 with 18 RBI, seven steals and a .348 on-base percentage.
Derrick Alfonso (C — Louisville): Showing the same strong arm that made him a nemesis of NECBL base stealers last summer, Alfonso threw out 26 of 56 runners from behind the plate. He also batted .284 with 30 RBI.
Davis Bilardello (LHP — South Florida): Struck out 15 in 22 innings to earn a 1-1 record and 4.91 ERA.
Paul Morgan (SS — Williams): Finished his career by leading Williams to the NESCAC title and a 2-2 record in the Division 3 NCAA New England Regional. He was named an All-Tournament player after the regional and was also selected to the All-NESCAC Second Team. Morgan batted .348 with 38 RBI, five steals and a .438 on-base percentage.
Pat Moran (RHP): Pitched only seven innings while appearing in four games before voluntarily leaving the University of Maine baseball team for personal reasons. Moran plans to transfer to another college to continue playing next season.
Brandon Harmon (RHP — Gonzaga): Was named West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Week twice this spring as he started 16 games and tossed 123 1/3 innings for Gonzaga. Harmon finished with a 6-8 record, 4.45 ERA, 62 K's and two shutouts. He was rewarded with an All-WCC Honorable Mention.
Brett Palanski (RHP — University of Rhode Island): Started 14 games, pitched 82 2/3 innings and went 6-7 for URI, earning a 5.55 ERA and 67 strikeouts.
Gus Menendez (3B — Miami): Still manning third base for the Hurricanes with his usual fielding precision. Menendez has a mere .263 batting average, but his .387 on—base percentage indicates his talent for picking up walks. He has also hit two home runs and 24 RBI so far this spring.
Teddy Kaufman (LHP — Miami): Has provided only short relief out of the bullpen this spring, tossing 8 1/3 innings in 14 appearances while collecting a 6.48 ERA and 12 strikeouts.
Jefferies Tatford (UTL — Louisiana-Lafayette): Led his team with a .360 batting average and .494 on-base percentage. Tatford also picked up 10 home runs and 46 RBI and committed only one error while starting all of Lafayette's 59 games so far. He was named to the All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team.
Devery Van De Keere (3B — Louisiana-Lafayette): Hasn't had the same success as his teammate Tatford but still managed to bat .256 with 22 RBI while starting 29 games.
John Kopilchack (OF — Wright State): Batted .262 with five home runs, five triples and 30 RBI while playing in 56 games.
Cole Gillespie (LF — Brevard County Manatees): After being named Pac-10 Player of the Year a season ago and helping lead Oregon State to a victory in the College World Series, Gillespie was taken by the Milwaukee Brewers in the third round (92nd) overall in the 2006 MLB Draft. He enjoyed an outstanding first season in professional baseball, hitting .344 with eight home runs, 44 RBI, 18 stolen bases and a .464 on-base percentage with the rookie league Helena Brewers. Promoted to the Single-A Manatees this spring, Gillespie is batting .241 with six homers, 32 RBI and a .359 OBP in 51 games so far.
Kris Watts (C — Hickory Crawdads): Was chosen in the 16th round of the 2006 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates and spent his first pro season with the Single-A Williamsport Crosscutters, finishing at the Mendoza Line with a .200 average in 39 games. He has done better with the Crawdads, another Single-A team, this year, batting .256 with four home runs and 11 doubles in 37 games.
Rich Sirois (LHP — UConn): Made only one appearance, starting the season opener for UConn and giving up seven earned runs in three innings.
Will Romanowicz (RHP — Elon): Started 13 games in the Elon rotation and earned a 5-3 record and 5.35 ERA. Romanowicz also got a save and struck out 56 while eating up 92 1/3 innings.
Brandon Menchaca (OF — Delaware): Couldn't quite replicate the astonishing success of his 2006 season but still put up solid numbers this spring. Menchaca finished with a .284 average and some highly impressive power numbers — 11 triples and seven home runs. He had a .389 on-base percentage and .522 slugging percentage while stealing 19 bases.
Evan Scribner (RHP — Central Connecticut State): Once again led Central Connecticut's staff, throwing a team-high 77 2/3 innings while recording a team-low 2.78 ERA. He also went 6-6 with seven saves and 84 strikeouts. Scribner was named the Northeast Conference's Pitcher of the Week three times this spring.
Ruddy Garcia (RHP — Nova Southeastern): Came back from major arm surgery to go 4-5 with a .459 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 66 2/3 innings.
Jon Nicolla (INF — Duke): Started in only 21 games but made the most of his time, batting .321 with three homers, 18 RBI, a .488 slugging percentage and a flawless fielding percentage.
Kellen Taylor (RHP — Winthrop): Trotted out of the bullpen 14 times to pitch 15 innings, registering a 1-0 record, 10 K's and a 5.19 ERA.
Steve Kost (LHP — Washington State): Earned a 6.00 ERA and 2-3 record while fanning 30 as the workhorse among Washington State's relievers.
Scott Suttmeier (OF — Washington State): Finished second on his team with a .336 batting average and drove in 21 runs. Suttmeier also reached base at a .433 clip.
Miles Ormon (RHP — Western Kentucky): Came back from an injury that wiped out his 2006 season to post a 4.70 ERA in 7 2/3 innings of relief.
Logan Johnson (UTL — Louisville): Was named Big East Player of the Week in March and never cooled down the whole season. Johnson led his team with a .500 on-base percentage while batting .367 with 13 home runs, 55 RBI and seven steals. For his efforts, he was named to the All-Conference First Team and chosen as an All-American. Johnson also set two notable records. He was hit by a pitch 26 times this season and got the same number of doubles, setting a new school record for two-baggers while moving up to sixth in the NCAA history for getting plunked 68 times in his career.
Chris Cates (SS — Louisville): The 5-foot-3 dynamo had another superb season, batting .288 with a .353 on-base percentage and 17 steals while starting all 61 games for the Cardinals.
Anthony Seratelli (INF): After attending an open tryout in late February, Seratelli's contract was purchased by the Kansas City Royals from the Windy City ThunderBolts. He batted .286 with six home runs, 39 RBI, a .387 on-base percentage and .444 slugging percentage in 76 games last year with the ThunderBolts, a team in the independent Frontier League.
Matthew Morizio (C — Burlington Bees): Has played in 24 games with the Single-A Bees this year and struggled offensively: .237 batting average, three homers and 11 RBI. Morizio, who once got a hit off Curt Schilling during a spring training game when he played at Northeastern, did better with the rookie league Idaho Falls Chukars last year, when he hit .264 with a .429 on-base percentage.
Scott Grimes (OF — Sussex Skyhawks): Started the summer slowly, collecting only four hits in 25 at bats for the Skyhawks of the independent Can-Am League.
Bryan Vickers (C/DH — Slippery Rock Sliders): Like Grimes, Vickers is taking some time to get into his offensive groove. He signed with the Sliders of the Frontier League and is only 3 for 16 with a home run through six games this season. He batted .263 last year in 18 games split between the Joliet Jackhammers and the Rockford RiverHawks, two other independent teams.
Matt Memoli (INF — Central Connecticut State): Started 51 games for Central Connecticut, which went 26-26 and came a win away from winning its conference title. He batted .263 with a .351 on-base percentage and 24 RBI.
Eric Grabowski (RHP — Worcester State): Was twice named to the MASCAC Honor Roll in his senior season. He started seven games and went 2-2 for Worcester, finishing with a 5.17 ERA and 41 strikeouts.
Jon Koperniak (OF — Bowdoin): The Adams native ended a sterling collegiate career by batting .340 for Bowdoin this season. He also recorded four home runs, 22 RBI, a .435 on-base percentage, a .535 slugging percentage and a perfect fielding percentage.
Jake Haggerty (RHP — Evansville Otters): Signed after a tryout by the Otters of the Frontier League last March, Haggerty went 5-4 with a 3.67 ERA and 68 K's in 15 starts and 98 innings during his first pro season. He has made only three appearances so far this summer, allowing two walks while fanning five in 2 2/3 innings.
Jon Mikrut (RHP — Palm Beach Cardinals): Has a 3.96 ERA and 1-0 record with two saves and 18 strikeouts with the Single-A Cardinals this season. He tossed 59 innings last summer for the Swing of the Quad Cities, another Single-A club, putting together a 3-1 record, 3.51 ERA and 56 strikeouts.
Nick Batkoski (Boeing): Saying it was an opportunity he couldn't pass up, Batkoski retired from professional baseball in early January to take a position with Boeing. He will work for a master's degree in business administration concurrently with his new job. Batkoski hit .291 with the Traverse City Beach Bums of the Frontier League last season, recording seven homers, 10 steals, 68 RBI and a .367 on-base percentage along the way.
Grant Rembert (OF): Rembert signed with the Evansville Otters after graduating from Elon last year. He batted .258 with 16 RBI in 41 games before retiring in April.
Aaron Rembert (assistant coach — Mars Hill, Cotuit Kettlers): After wrapping up a brief professional career with the River City Rascals, Rembert quickly moved into the coaching ranks, getting an assistant position at Mars Hill, where his team went 21-31 this season during his second year in the job. Rembert is also coaching this summer with the Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League.
Blake Davis (SS — Frederick Keys): Is batting .285 with a .337 on-base percentage through 50 games this season with the Single—A Keys.
Rip Warren (LHP): Warren had a brief but successful term with the Single-A Brooklyn Cyclones last summer, going 1-2 with a 2.96 ERA and 34 strikeouts in 13 appearances and 27 1/3 innings.
Will Mann (RHP): After one-game appearances with first the high Single-A Wilmington Blue Rocks and then the low Single-A Greenville Drive, Mann spent most of the 2006 season with the rookie league Gulf Coast Sox. He excelled with the Sox, picking up eight saves, 18 strikeouts and a 3.06 ERA in 17 2/3 innings.
Blake Owen (RHP — Delmarva Shorebirds): Has obviously grown fond of Salisbury, Md. He's back there now for his third summer with the Single—A Shorebirds. The unusual name "Delmarva" is a compilation of the three states from which the team draws its fan base — Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Owen threw 59 innings for the 'Birds last season, 7-4 with a 3.81 ERA, 10 saves and 50 strikeouts. He hasn't done as well so far this year, compiling a 5.40 ERA, a 2-2 record and 19 K's through 28 1/3 innings.
Neil Walton (SS — Vero Beach Devil Rays): After a disastrous offensive summer with Single-A Western Michigan last year, Walton is doing much better as a member of the Single-A Devil Rays this season. He is batting .245 with 18 RBI through 49 games and was named Florida State League Player of the Week on April 23.
Mike Ekstrom (RHP — San Antonio Missions): Made one appearance with the San Diego Padres during spring training this year, striking out two, earning a save and allowing one hit and one unearned run in 1 1/3 innings. After splitting time between the Single-A Lake Elsinore Storm and Double—A Mobile BayBears last season, he has spent this summer with the Missions, the Padres' new Double-A affiliate. He is 1-2 with a 4.33 ERA and 44 strikeouts through 52 innings and 10 starts so far this year.
Seth Pietsch (DH — Lincoln SaltDogs): After struggling during his minor league career with the New York Mets, Pietsch has been reborn with several independent teams. He was a two-time All-Star and swung a hot bat for the San Diego Surf Dawgs and Jackhammers in 2005 and 2006. Pietsch was traded from Joliet to the SaltDogs of the American Association in January and is now batting .380 with 17 RBI for the 15-4 'Dogs.
Jeff Sues (RHP — Hickory Crawdads): After Sues was picked in the fifth round of the 2005 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, arm surgery shut down the next two seasons for him. He finally made his professional debut with the Crawdads on May 28. It was a rocky beginning as Sues gave up 10 hits and nine earned runs before getting pulled after 3 1/3 innings.
Mike Wagner (RF — San Antonio Missions): Traded in late March from the San Francisco Giants to the Padres. Wagner was promoted after eight games from the Lake Elsinore Storm to the Double-A Missions. He is currently batting .224 with three home runs.
Bobby Wilson (C — Arkansas Travelers): Played in 14 games and got 16 at bats with the Los Angeles Angels in spring training this year. Wilson finished that stint with three hits, including a double, two walks and three RBI. Currently with the Double-A Travelers for the second season, he is hitting .247 with five home runs through 25 games.
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