Freshman of the Year

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt right-hander Kumar Rocker has been named freshman of the year by Baseball America and D1Baseball.com, the publications announced Friday.

The accolade comes two days after the Athens, Georgia, product was tabbed the College World Series Most Outstanding Player. Rocker went 2-0 with a 1.46 ERA alongside 17 strikeouts and three walks in 12.1 innings at the event including setting a Commodore CWS record with 11 strikeouts against Michigan in Game 2 of the finals.

Over his last 11 starts, Rocker went 10-1 with a 2.17 ERA, striking out 82 batters across 70.2 innings. The freshman finished his campaign 12-5 with a 3.25 ERA and was named to the SEC’s all-freshman team as well as to the NCAA Nashville Regional all-tournament team.

Vanderbilt captured its second national title in six seasons, taking 2-of-3 against Michigan. The Commodores, who also secured the SEC regular season and tournament titles, set a conference single-season record with 59 wins and with the help of Rocker, posted a school record 765 strikeouts.