Oct. 21, 2011
Vanderbilt wraps up fall practice this weekend hosting Cal State Fullerton in the DeMarini Fall Classic at Hawkins Field. Game time is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Ticket Info
Tickets will be required this weekend with infield tickets at $7 and outfield tickets at $5. Fans can purchase tickets on line by clicking here, calling 615.322.GOLD or at the ballpark on game day.
The Teams
The Commodores are coming off the school’s most successful season in history with last season’s first-ever trip to the College World Series. But a lot has changed for Coach Corbin and his staff. A Southeastern Conference record 12 players were selected in last summer’s major league baseball draft with only right-hander Will Clinard deciding to return to school. With 11 players from last year’s record setting squad departed, recruiting coordinator/hitting coach Josh Holliday landed the top-ranked recruiting class in the nation headlined by right-hander Tyler Beede and catcher Chris Harvey. The 12 incoming freshmen join 11 sophomores on the roster to make up 23 of the team’s 34 players.
After impressive outings last weekend in the Gold Team’s three-game sweep of the Black Team in the Black & Gold Series, lefties Kevin Ziomek and Sam Selman will get the starting nods this weekend. Ziomek fanned nine in five scoreless innings while Selman punched out five in his five scoreless innings. In the field the Dores should look something like this to start the game (but expect a lot of players to see action):
(Disclaimer: this is neither a depth chart nor a lineup)
C – Drew Fann or Chris Harvey
1B – Conrad Gregor
2B – Riley Reynolds
SS – Anthony Gomez
3B – Connor Castellano or Vince Conde
LF – Tony Kemp
CF – Connor Harrell
RF – Mike Yastrzemski
DH – Jack Lupo or Will Johnson
While the Commodores are wrapping up their fall season the Titans have just practiced together 10 times this fall. Fullerton faces a lot of the same questions VU does after losing nine players in last summer’s draft but the Titans also have a new coaching staff led by former UCLA pitching coach Rick Vanderhook. Fullerton’s former coach, Dave Serrano, is now the head coach at Tennessee. The Titans finished 41-17 a year ago winning a share of the Big West title and hosting a Regional for the 10th time since 2000. However, Illinois eliminated Fullerton in the Regional that was eventually won by Stanford.
On the bump Fullerton will send out right-hander Dylan Floro first on Saturday and on Sunday freshman lefty Kevin Mathews gets the first call. In the field and at the plate the Titans are led by sophomore center fielder Michael Lorenzen, who hit a team-best .342 as a freshman last year and played for Team USA during the summer. The rest of the Fullerton lineup should look something like this:
(Disclaimer: this is neither a depth chart nor a lineup)
C – Jared Deacon and Casey Watkins
1B – Chad Wallach, Carlos Lopez and J.D. Davis
2B – Matt Orloff and Derek Legg
SS – Keegan Dale
3B – Matt Chapman, J.D. Davis and Derek Legg
LF – Austin Kingsolver
CF – Michael Lorenzen
RF – Greg Velazquez
What to watch for
There will be plenty of things to look for this weekend but here are a few.
The Freshmen – Tyler Beede and Chris Harvey might get all the attention but the entire recruiting class is very talented backed up by Baseball America’s top ranking. Granted, time will tell if the talent transfers to success on the field but these guys can play. Connor Castellano and Vince Conde have both looked sharp at third base and bring some pop to the plate. Will Cooper has provided a super utility player and brings speed to the table. Zander Wiel brings a big, physical presence at first base and from the right side. On the hill, three southpaws Philip Pfeifer, Nevin Wilson and Jared Miller provide depth in the bullpen. Local product Brian Miller has been fun to watch and could end up in the back end of the bullpen.
Pitching – Associate Head Coach Derek Johnson might not have the battle-tested arms he did a year ago but he has a variety of talented arms to work with this season. Will Clinard takes over the role of the `old man on the staff’ as just a redshirt junior. Clinard’s experience will be priceless to the Dores this year. Expect sophomores Steven Rice and Keenan Kolinsky to have their roles expanded from a year ago and junior college transfer Drew VerHagen lights up the radar gun.
The X-Factors – Joel McKeithan has had a solid fall at the plate and is possibly the Commodores’ best infield defender. Andrew Harris has been involved in seemingly every rally for his team during scrimmages. The hard-nosed D.J. Luna contributed four hits in three games last weekend in the Black & Gold Series. Josh Lee is learning to play in the outfield and has produced at the plate this fall. Right-hander Robert Hansen has flashed electric stuff during the fall on the mound.
How the games will work
The two games will count against the Commodores’ 56-game 2012 spring schedule, meaning the Dores will once again have a 54-game schedule next spring. Vanderbilt had 54 games on the slate last spring after travelling to Texas for a pair of games against the Longhorns last fall. Both games will be scheduled nine-inning games with a three-inning scrimmage to follow.
How to follow along
For fans that can’t make it to West End this weekend there are a few ways to follow the action. Both games will be webcast on vucommodores.com but a subscription is required. GameTracker will be available for both games as well as the Dores’ twitter feed and a live blog.
Pretty in Pink
The Commodores are one of three Vanderbilt teams that will wear pink wristbands this weekend to help bring awareness to breast cancer. Stacey Parker-Nelson, Director of Education for Susan G. Komen for the Cure in the greater Nashville area, spoke with the baseball team last week. The football and soccer teams will join the baseball team in wearing pink this weekend.
Names and Numbers
With so many new faces on the field along with new players in new numbers, a numerical roster of new players/number changes is below. So if you see a player running around in a No. 2 jersey it’s not the legendary Sonny Gray it’s Will Cooper.
1 Connor Castellano
2 Will Cooper
3 Vince Conde
7 Josh Lee
11 Tyler Beede
22 Philip Pfeifer
24 Nevin Wilson
28 Jared Miller
33 Brian Miller
34 Drew VerHagen
43 Zander Wiel
44 Chris Harvey
