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.