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Happy Opening Day

As of this writing, the 2011 Cape League season begins in six hours.

I can’t believe it’s happening so fast. Obviously, the build-up here hasn’t been as big as I would have hoped, but summer is here nonetheless.

Today on RFF (hopefully):
Bourne Early Look
Orleans Early Look
Wareham Early Look
Season Preview

Tonight:
Baseball (!)

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Notes: Future Firebird Getting Attention

Rutgers sophomore Steve Nyisztor is slated to be in Orleans this summer. If some of the preseason hype holds, he may head in as one of the league’s top players.

Baseball America college guru Aaron Fitt tabbed Nyisztor as his top breakout player in the country, saying that the infielder is “poised to make the leap to college baseball superstardom this spring.”

Nyisztor was ranked by Baseball America as the top prospect in the Northwoods League last summer, and the pick wasn’t just about tools. Nyisztor also produced, earning league MVP honors with a .306 average, eight home runs and 56 RBI.

As a freshman, the 6-4, 200-pound Nyisztor started from day one and hit .410 for the Scarlet Knights. Fitt compares him to former Rutgers and Chatham star Todd Frazier. They hail from the same baseball-rich community of Tom’s River, N.J.

  • On a down note, I don’t know if it’s trend or coincidence, but for the third year in a row, the top freshmen arms in the country are not slated to come to the Cape. This year, Dylan Covey and Karsten Whitson, both first-round picks last year, are nowhere to be found on Cape rosters. Last year, TCU’s Matt Purke didn’t pitch on the Cape, and the year before that, UCLA’s Gerrit Cole and Texas’ Taylor Jungmann never made it. In some cases, these kind of players have been on rosters but went to Team USA. In the case of Covey and Whitson, the Cape apparently isn’t an option at this point. There are some top freshmen slated to be on the Cape like LSU’s Kevin Gausman, but it’s interesting that the top-top-level pitchers have not been making it across the bridges. I’d love to hear thoughts on this. Maybe it’s a trend or maybe it’s just the way things have gone.

  • On the brighter side, 12 of the top 20 players on Baseball America’s list of the top freshmen are on Cape rosters. Stanford’s Austin Wilson, who’s ranked third, is the top player. He’s on the Harwich roster.

  • College baseball starts Friday. I’m planning on posting some stuff on the weekend’s action tomorrow. I’ll also continue with the team notes over the next few weeks.
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    Chatham Notes

    The Anglers started fast last summer but cooled off significantly and ended up finishing in last place in the East. Chatham was fourth in the league in ERA but last in batting average.

    2010 Notes

  • Southern Cal’s Ricky Oropesa got off to a quick start and did finish tied for the league lead in home runs with seven. But he also hit .222 and led the league in strikeouts. Still, I’d expect a big junior season for him.

  • Like Oropesa, Siena’s Dan Paolini got off to a good start, and it looked like the two of them could carry the Anglers. Paolini ended up hitting .200, though, with just one home run. While that performance may have raised a few questions, Paolini is still the top player and top 2011 prospect in his conference. Baseball America featured him last week.

  • Pepperdine’s Brian Humphries had a solid summer for Chatham, hitting .253 with 12 doubles. Baseball America has selected him as a preseason all-conference pick.

  • Vanderbilt’s Aaron Westlake emerged as Chatham’s top hitter as the summer went on and he closed out his season with a .292 average and five home runs, good enough for all-league honors. He’s a preseason all-conference pick and he’s rated by BA as the 66th best college prospect in the nation.

  • Baylor’s Logan Verrett was consistently great last summer, ranking as one of the top pitchers in the league. He finished with a 0.87 ERA and earned all-league honors. He was also Chatham’s top prospect, checking in at No. 19 on BA’s list.

    • 2011 Notes

  • The Anglers currently list five returning players, a group headed by sophomores Beau Amaral and Stephen Perez. Both had their struggles last summer, but they’re two pretty good players to build around.

  • Maine sophomore pitcher Jeff Gibbs was on the Chatham roster last spring but didn’t make it for the summer. The native of Canada had a great first season at Maine, finishing with a 3.94 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 75 innings. He’s a BA preseason all-conference pick this year and out-ranks Nick Tropeano on the list of top America East prospects.

  • Hudson Randall is part of a deep Florida pitching staff that has the Gators ranked No. 1 in the country. He was second on the team in ERA as a freshman.

  • I don’t know if Ithaca has ever sent a player to the Cape, but relief pitcher Tucker Healy is set to go this year. A junior, Healy had a 1.17 ERA last spring and was named the top relief pitcher in the NECBL over the summer.

  • In Pepperdine pitcher Scott Frazier and San Diego infielder Kris Bryant, the Anglers have two of BA’s top three newcomers in the West Coast Conference. Frazier drew major attention last spring when he struck out 18 in a no-hitter during the high-school season. He was then drafted in the fifth round. Bryant was an 18th-round pick out of high school.

  • South Carolina’s Evan Marzilli came on late last season and was a key part of South Carolina’s run to the College World Series championship. He kept his personal momentum going by flashing big potential in a short stint in the NECBL. BA had him as the league’s fifth-best prospect.

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    Cotuit Notes

    For two years in a row, the Cotuit Kettleers watched the other team celebrate. In 2010, it was finally their turn. Catching fire in the playoffs, they beat Y-D for the championship. The team that celebrated looked a lot different than the one that opened the season, but the Kettleers put things together when it counted.

    2010 Notes

  • Playoff MVP Jordan Leyland wasn’t a superstar for UC Irvine last year, but you can bet he’ll bring some confidence back to the Anteaters, who were tabbed as the second-best team in the Big West Conference preseason poll.

  • Paul Hoilman, who struggled a bit during the summer, was voted the Atlantic Sun preseason Player of the Year.

  • Baylor’s Brooks Pinckard, a key player down the stretch, opted not to sign with the Cubs after getting picked in the 18th round last June. Baseball America tabbed him as a preseason all-conference player for the Bears.

  • Playoff hero Nick Tropeano returns to Stony Brook as perhaps the top pitcher in the America East Conference. BA has Tropeano as the pitcher of the year, and the league’s second-best prospect for the 2011 draft.

  • Austin Wood, the fourth-round pick who flashed the best velocity on the Cape, didn’t sign either and he’s set to begin his career at Southern California after playing in junior college last year. BA ranks him as the 26th-best college prospect in the country.

  • Deven Marrero is set to begin his sophomore season at Arizona State and is back on Cotuit’s roster for 2011. He was the picked by BA as the seventh-best prospect in the league last summer, tops among Cotuit players.

    • 2011 Notes

  • Cotuit has only 18 players on its roster at this point. Marrero, Michael Faulkner, Mike Yastrzemski and Brady Rodgers are the returning players. Rodgers joined Marrero in BA’s list of the top Cape prospects, checking in at No. 21.

  • Lots of good newcomers, led by Oregon freshmen Ryon Healy and Stefan Sabol. Healy was the top prospect in the California Collegiate League last summer while Sabol was tops in the West Coast League. Sabol was a 17th-round pick out of high school and is a cousin of Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.

  • Cory Spangenberg, of Indian River CC, also had a strong summer last year, ranking as the third-best prospect in the Valley League. Florida freshman Keenan Kish was rated the third-best prospect in the Cal Ripken Collegiate League.

  • Catcher Chris O’Dowd was Dartmouth’s top hitter last season, finishing at .384 with six home runs.

  • Michigan’s Patrick Biondi hit .313 last year and earned Freshman All-America honors.

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    Orleans Notes

    I’ll get the traditional early looks going once the college season is a few weeks old, but for now I wanted to offer up some first impressions on the teams of 2011, while also taking a peek at the past and what their stars of 2010 are up to now. Let’s begin with Orleans . . .

    It was a nice second year for the Firebirds, who went 23-19-2 and made it to the East Division championship series. And for the first time since 1999 — when Lance Niekro took home the hardware — Orleans was home to the Cape League MVP. Hawaii’s Kolten Wong captured the honor after hitting .341.

    2010 Notes

  • Wong, a junior, has been named a first-team preseason All-American by Baseball America. BA also ranked him as the 24th-best draft prospect in the country. Hawaii opens its season on Feb. 18 against Oregon.

  • Florida’s Preston Tucker struggled in 27 games with the Firebirds, but you can expect a bounce back this spring. Tucker’s Gators are ranked No. 1 by BA and Tucker is a second-team All-American.

  • Duke two-way star Marcus Stroman had a huge summer on the mound last year, finishing with 10 saves and an ERA of 0.00. The reigning ACC Freshman of the Year, Stroman had a good showing with the bat in Duke’s fall classic.

  • Vandy’s Jason Esposito is also a second-team All-American according to BA, and he’s ranked just behind Wong in the list of top 50 prospects.

    • 2011 Notes

  • Florida State’s Jayce Boyd and Illinois State’s Kenny Long are the lone returnees currently listed on the 2011 roster. Boyd had a nice freshman year and is rated by BA as the 29th-best sophomore in the country. Long quietly had a really good year out of the bullpen last summer, finishing with a 1.13 ERA.

  • Sophomore Matt Boyd led Oregon State in ERA last season and had a solid summer in the West Coast League.

  • Stanford outfielder Jake Stewart was named the top prospect in the Alaska League last summer after hitting .270 and flashing great tools.

  • Florida International’s Rudy Flores was a third-team freshman All-American according to Ping last year after hitting .357. He was also the fifth-ranked prospect in the Valley League, where he hit over .400.

  • Steve Nyisztor was Rutgers’ top hitter last spring, finishing with a .410 average. Baseball America ranks him as the 13th-best sophomore in the country, way up there among players who will be on the Cape.

  • Anthony Gomez burst onto the scene for Vanderbilt last year, hitting a team-best .379. He was first among all SEC freshmen in hitting.

  • USC freshman catcher Jake Hernandez was a 22nd-round draft pick in 2010.

  • UCLA freshman pitcher Adam Plutko was a sixth-round pick.

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    Digging Out

    I spent part of yesterday afternoon trying unsuccessfully to free Ms. Right Field Fog’s car from a giant patch of ice. With every swing of the hammer (it came to that), I realized I’m pretty much done with winter.

    We need to fire up the hot stove.

    I’m not really sure why the whole hibernation thing happened. I wasn’t having an existential blog crisis. Nothing terribly exciting was happening in my life. A week just turned into two and that turned into a month, and then everything got snowed in. For those who have been checking and coming up empty, I apologize.

    But the hibernation is over, so let’s stop talking nonsense and talk something important. Baseball.

  • Rosters are out and available all in one place on the official site. I’ll go into much more detailed analysis in the coming weeks, but a few names that caught my eye: batting title runner-up Drew Martinez back on the Brewster roster; first-team preseason All-American Kenny Diekroeger on the Y-D roster, along with Stanford teammate Mark Appel; and St. John’s sophomore Jeremy Baltz, a super-frosh last year, on the Falmouth roster.
  • We’ve also got a schedule. The season opens with a full slate of games on Friday, June 10. Start in Cotuit at 5 p.m., stop in at Bourne at 6 and catch the nightcap in Wareham? Yes, please.
  • Our friends at Codball got a nice new look. Also a really angry commenter.
  • The Cape League will follow the NCAA’s lead in adopting a 20-second pitch clock this season.
  • Yahoo axed its college baseball coverage, but in a bit of good news for college baseball fans and for the man himself, their baseball guru Kendall Rogers didn’t miss a beat and is now writing for Perfect Game.
  • Baseball America’s early Top 50 (subscriber content) for the 2011 draft includes 18 former Cape Leaguers, led by UConn’s George Springer, who ranks fourth. Anthony Rendon of Rice is No. 1.
  • Triple A got Ms. RFF’s car unstuck. Slightly embarrassing for me since the guy apparently pushed it out. I tried that.
  • And in the best news I’ve heard all day department: the college baseball season opens on Friday, Feb. 18, just two weeks from today.
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    Catching Up

    After a weekend away, I’ll be back to the regular posting schedule tomorrow. For now, a few brief thoughts from some box score catching up.

  • I guess Friday was shutout night. Four of the five games were shutouts, and the other was a 5-1 game.

  • Tyler Ray (Troy) had the best strikeout numbers of the shutout pitchers, finishing with seven. Matt Larkins (UC Riverside) allowed just one hit in his five shutout innings against Chatham.

  • B.A. Vollmuth (Southern Miss) and Matt Skole (Georgia Tech) made their debuts for Falmouth on Friday. Both are returning players coming off huge sophomore seasons.

  • Pitching for the first time since last year’s College World Series, Josh Spence (Arizona State) struck out five in two innings for Cotuit on Saturday. I’ll be interested to see how much he can — and how much he wants to — pitch this summer.

  • Chatham’s Ricky Oropesa (USC) hit a home run and drove in three as the Anglers tied Cotuit in the second game of their Saturday twin bill. Oropesa leads the league in home runs and RBI.

  • Kolten Wong (Hawaii) and Steve Selsky (Arizona) combined for five hits as Orleans ran its win streak to three with a sweep of Wareham on Saturday. Selsky also hit a home run. Selsky and Wong now rank 1-2 in batting average. Orleans got to Matt Barnes (UConn) in the first game for four runs in seven innings. Jed Bradley (Georgia Tech) made his Wareham debut in the second game and allowed five runs (three earned) in six innings.

  • Bourne’s Mike Morin (North Carolina) delivered the second-best strikeout performance of the summer on Saturday, punching out 10 and allowing just one hit in five innings as the Braves topped Y-D for a split. Morin was the top prospect in the MINK League last year as an incoming freshman.

  • Luke Bard (Georgia Tech) struck out five in three innings for Brewster in a win over Falmouth. Also pitching for the Whitecaps in that game was late addition Tommy Kahnle (Lynn). Kahnle, a flame-throwing fifth-round pick, pitched for Orleans last summer and was on the Orleans roster for a while this year. He’s with Brewster instead, joining Anthony Ranaudo as a high pick getting some Cape innings. Kahnle pitched one innings for the Whitecaps and recorded all three outs via the strikeout on his way to a save.