Jan. 16, 2011

Lineup Card

Lineup Card is a feature highlighting notes from around college baseball.

January 10-16, 2011

Rob Childress, entering his sixth season as head coach at Texas A&M, received a contract extension through the 2015 season. The 2008 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Childress has led the Aggies to 40 wins in three of the past four seasons. Texas A&M has won three Big 12 titles under Childress, including last year’s championship. Childress has compiled a record of 199-113-2 in five seasons with the Aggies.

Mitch Moreland, Texas Rangers first baseman, returns to his alma mater as the featured speaker at Mississippi State’s 14th annual First Pitch/Meet the Team celebration on Feb. 12. The event features an informal family-style barbeque, an introduction of the 2011 squad and events associated with the team’s on-going “Do It For Duffy” fund-raising campaign.

Houston sophomore infielder David Murphy recently completed his final treatment for acute lymphoid leukemia at Texas Children’s Hospital. He was diagnosed in September of 2007 and is now in remission. Murphy will compete for time at third base this season.

Kansas State assistant Andy Sawyers resigned to pursue other opportunities. Sawyers helped direct the Wildcat offense over the past two years.

For the second straight year. LSU head coach Paul Mainieri will serve as “Fire King” for the Fire & Ice Gala, benefiting the Louisiana-Mississippi Chapter of the ALS Association. The event will be on Jan. 22 at Boudreaux’s on Government Street in Baton Rouge with a VIP reception at 6 p.m. prior to the gala at 7 p.m.

Former Kansas assistant Kevin Frady has been named head coach at Wenatchee Valley College. He was a volunteer assistant and director of baseball operations with the Wildcats from 2006 to 2010.

TCU will host the second annual “Frogs for the Cure” Women’s Baseball Clinic on Feb. 17 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Sam Baugh Indoor Facility. Proceeds will benefit the Susan G. Komen of Greater Fort Worth for the Cure for research and breast cancer treatment.

Delaware named seniors Dave Anderson, Pat Dameron and Steve Ulaky as captains for 2011. Shortstop Anderson batted .303 last season with 12 doubles, three homers, 40 runs and 28 RBI. Outfielder Dameron hit .353 in 2010 with 19 doubles, 14 home runs and 59 RBI. Outfielder Ulaky batted .374 a year ago with 19 doubles and 37 RBI.

The UCF Baseball Fan Fest Presented by B2 Café will be on Jan. 29 at 5:30 p.m. prior to the men’s basketball game against UAB.

Alabama has tickets on sale now for its 33-game home schedule. The Crimson Tide opens the season on Feb. 18 against Alcorn State. Alabama will host SEC series against the past two national champions, LSU and South Carolina.

South Carolina sophomore pitcher Ethan Carter has been dismissed from the team for a violation of team rules. The right-hander appeared in 24 games a season ago, posting a 3-0 record with two saves and a 5.46 ERA. Carter fanned 30 in 28 innings.

Texas A&M associate head coach Matt Deggs has resigned to focus on personal health and family matters. Deggs guided the team’s offense and infielders the past five years and helped with recruiting. The Aggies batted .306 with 299 homers over the past four seasons.

Mark Crocco was named an assistant coach at Air Force. He spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach at Wingate, working with the hitters and infielders. A native of Perkasie, Pa., Crocco was a four-year letter-winner for the Bulldogs (2005-08) and earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education with a minor in sports management from Wingate in 2010.

The Sun Belt Conference will use a round-robin format for its 2011 championship at ULM May 25-29. The tournament will include the top eight teams, separated into a pair of four-team pools. The winners of each pool will meet in the championship game. Each team will be guaranteed three games and a day off prior to the title contest.

Monmouth will play an exhibition game against the Lakewood BlueClaws, the Single A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, on April 5 at 6:05 p.m. at FirstEnergy Park. General admission tickets are $5 and Monmouth students will be admitted free with a valid student ID. Tickets will be available March 1.

Oklahoma will hold its eighth annual Diamond Dinner on Jan. 28 at 7 p.m. Daniel McCutchen, who played for the Sooners from 2004-06, will be the event’s honoree. Current OU players and coaches will join former Sooner greats for an autograph session.

Cal State Fullerton will hold its alumni game on Jan. 29 at 1 p.m. at Goodwin Field. Admission and parking are free.

The 2011 ESPN Zone Anaheim Baseball Coaches Cooking Challenge will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 26. The event features 12 of the head baseball coaches from the Southern California and Central Coast regions. They will prepare a pair of entrees in 15 minutes for a panel of three judges.

Middle Tennessee will hold its 38th annual Groundhog Day Luncheon to benefit Blue Raider baseball on Feb. 2 at 11:30 a.m. at the James Union Building on campus. The event will feature the traditional menu of ham hocks, white beans, tomato salad, green onions, corn bread, chocolate cake and ice cream.

Lamar will hold its 2011 Baseball Banquet on Feb. 5 at the Elegante Hotel. The dinner will honor the 2010 Southland Conference Tournament champion Cardinals.

Baylor has scheduled its third annual Meet the Team dinner for Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Galloway Suite at Floyd Casey Stadium. Former Bear and current Tampa Bay Rays catcher Kelly Shoppach will be the guest of honor. Shoppach played at Baylor from 1999-2001. He was a first team All-American as a junior, batting .397 with 20 doubles, 12 homers and 69 RBI. Shoppach won the inaugural Johnny Bench Award as the nation’s top collegiate catcher in 2001.

TCU will have its eighth annual TCU Baseball First Pitch Banquet on Feb. 1 at the Onmi Hotel in downtown Fort Worth. ESPN analyst Tim Kurkjian and Managing Partner and CEO of the Texas Rangers Chuck Greenberg will be featured guests along with the 2011 Horned Frogs baseball team. Kurkjian has been with ESPN since 1998. He covered the Texas Rangers for the Dallas Morning News from 1981-85. Greenberg joined the Rangers in 2010 and has been an owner and operator of three minor league teams (Myrtle Beach Pelicans, State College Spikes and Altoona Curve).

NC State will hold its annual First-Pitch Banquet on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. at the Raleigh Marriott-City Center in downtown Raleigh. Turtle Zaun, Brian Bark and Tom Sergio will be inducted into the NC State Baseball Hall of Fame. Zaun (1985-88) was the ACC Player of the Year in 1988, batting .399 with 19 doubles, 25 homers and 87 RBI. Bark (1987-90) was a four-time All-ACC honoree. A two-way player, Bark left NC State with eight career offensive records as well as the leader in appearances (72) and saves (20). Sergio (1994-97) was ACC Rookie of the Year in 1994 and was a three-time All-ACC pick. He was third-team All-America in 1995 and first-team All-America in 1997.

Former Major League player and College Baseball Hall of Famer Will Clark will be the keynote speaker at Nicholls State’s fifth annual First Pitch Banquet on Feb. 11 in the Student Union Ballroom. A New Orleans native, Clark played 14 seasons in the big leagues with San Francisco, Texas, Baltimore and St. Louis. He was a six-time All-Star and won two Silver Slugger Awards and one Gold Glove. The Mississippi State star was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 2008.

Oregon State has season tickets now on sale. The home schedule begins on March 4 at Goss Stadium against Hartford. Single-game tickets will be available starting Jan. 31.

Kentucky assistant coach Brian Green was a featured presenter on infield defense at the American Baseball Coaches Association Convention in Nashville. His presentation was “double play and position specific skills.”