July 5, 2011
COLUMBIA, Mo. - As the dog days of summer approach, the Mizzou baseball team has made plenty of headlines lately, most notably with former ace Aaron Crow being named to the MLB American League All-Star team over the weekend. Also, head coach Tim Jamieson guided Team USA's Collegiate National Team to three more wins over the weekend. But plenty of Tigers are playing well across the country in collegiate summer leagues. Below is an update on what the Tigers have done so far.
Eric Anderson - Falmouth, Cape Cod League/USA Baseball Collegiate National Team Anderson started his final game from the Team USA Collegiate National Team over the weekend and earned his second win of the summer after firing seven shutout innings against the USA Baseball 18U National Team. He leads the USA Collegiate National Team with two wins, 12.0 innings pitched, a perfect 0.00 ERA and he has given up just eight hits and two walks while striking out seven this summer. Combine his line with Team USA with the two starts that Anderson has had in the Cape Cod League this summer, the Tiger righty has put together a great summer so far. He has thrown 24.0 innings and allowed just two earned runs, good for an ERA 0.75 in four starts this summer.
Eric Garcia - Falmouth, Cape Cod League After raising his average from .129 to .195 last week, Garcia played in a pair of games last week, going 1-6 with two RBI and a run scored. On the season, he his hitting just .191 but continues to drive in runs with five RBI and eight runs scored. He has also walked eight times in 16 games. He has one extra-base hit on the season as well, a double, which came in a July 3 win over the Kettleers. He drew a walk and drove in the game-winning run in that game.
Brannon Champagne - San Luis Obispo Despite starting very hot in as a member of the SLO Blues, Champagne has seen his average dip to .208 this summer. Despite the decline in his batting average, Champagne has done plenty of good things that have helped him remain in the starting lineup as he has scored 13 runs and swiped a team-high 11 bags. He also had walked 11 times - which is second-best on the team - helping him boast an OBP of .356 despite the low average. He has driven in five runs while helping guide the Blues to a 20-6 record this summer.
Sal Belfonte - San Luis Obispo Belfonte, a reserve outfielder for the Tigers last season, is playing with Champagne for the Blues and has put together a very impressive season so far. Belfonte is hitting .292 in 20 games played and leads the team in walks (16) and runs (19) while ranking second in OBP (.447) and stolen bases (10). He has also driven in three runs and has three doubles on the season so far. He has started 19 of 20 games as well and leads the team with 654 at-bats.
Blake Brown - Santa Barbra Foresters, California Collegiate League Brown was just named to the CCL All-Star team after putting together a very impressive summer so far. Brown, who is playing with the Santa Barbra Foresters this summer, is hitting .291 with two home runs and has been one of the team's top run producers with 12 RBI and 13 runs scored. He is also slugging .509 with an OBP of .379 with eight walks. Brown also is a perfect 6-6 in the stolen base department this summer. He has started 16 games and also owns a perfect fielding percentage on the summer. The Tigers' starting right fielder has continued to show extra-base power this summer, just as he did during the second half of the season last year. He has 16 hits on the year and six have gone for extra bases, including four doubles, a triple and two home runs.
Jeff Emens - Sedalia Bombers, MINK League Emens continues to shine as a member of the Sedalia Bombers in the MINK League. He had one start since our last update and was a tough-luck loser. It was a quality start as he went 6.0 innings and allowed just two earned runs while striking out four, but he was dealt the loss in a 5-4 decision. Regardless of the outcome, Emens has put together a very good season, boasting an ERA of 1.77 with a 26-6 strikeout-walk ratio. In his last five appearances, Emens has picked up three wins and has allowed just three earned runs while striking out 21 over 24.2 innings.
Kenny Burton - Sedalia Bombers, MINK League Playing on the same team with Emens, Burton struggled in his start last week. On Saturday, Burton gave up five earned runs in five innings against Omaha while taking the loss. The outing moved his record this summer to 0-2 and he had a 6.30 ERA. He has started four games and appeared in six total. In four of those six outings, he has given up less than two earned runs and none in three of those outings.
Drew Carlile - Saskatoon Yellow Jackets, Western Major Baseball League Carlile, a backup catcher for the Tigers last season, continues to swing a hot bat for Sakatoon this summer. He is hitting .300 with 13 RBI and 12 runs scored. He has played in 30 games this season and has 24 hits in 80 at-bats with four of those hits being doubles. Last week, he tallied just one hit in 17 at-bats as he has slowed down after hitting .397 through the first 18 games this summer.
James Hudelson - East Texas Pump Jacks Hudelson, a reliever for the Tigers in 2011, has assumed the same role with the Pump Jacks this summer. He earned his third win of the summer last week after throwing 4.2 shutout innings against the Generals on June 21. He then came back on June 25 and fired 3.0 shutout innings, helping the Pump Jacks to a 9-1 win. He appeared in one game last week, allowing an earned run an in inning of work, but he helped the Pump Jacks to a 5-2 win. He now owns a 2.92 ERA in 24.2 innings pitched this summer and boasts an 18-8 strikeout-walk ratio.
CJ Jarvis - East Texas Pump Jacks Jarvis started the season hot, hitting .308 through his first six games, but he has struggled since then as he is hitting just .154 this summer. He appeared in two games last week and went hitless.
Dusty Ross - Klamath Falls Gems/East Texas Pump Jacks After compiling a 1-1 record with a 4.50 ERA with the Klamath Falls Gems, Ross switched teams and joined with Hudelson and Jarvis as a member of the Pump Jacks. So far, Ross has started a pair of games and thrown 8.0 innings while allowing just two earned runs. He has struck out 12 batters in the 8.0 innings of work as well and walked just three. He has also allowed only four hits in his limited action with the Pump Jacks. He should continue to get plenty of work in East Texas as he owns a 2.25 ERA so far.
Scott Sommerfeld - Mankato MoonDogs, Northwoods League Sommerfeld, who was the Tigers' starting first baseman for the majority of the season in 2011, is having a good summer so far with Mankato. He is hitting .233 in 16 games and has 12 RBI and a home run. He has 14 hits in 60 at bats and has struck out just twice as he continues to put the ball in play. He had four RBI in a 9-3 win over St. Cloud on June 5 and drove in three more runs with a home run on June 3 against Rochester. He did not play last week.
Ryan Yuengel - Cowlitz Black Bears, West Coast League A righty for the Tigers, Yuengel has been sharp out of the bullpen for the Black Bears this summer. He has a 3.86 ERA in nine appearances and owns a win on the season. He was hit around in in his first three appearances and saw his ERA rise to 10.39, but since then he has given up just one earned run in six appearances, lowering his ERA to 3.86 in that span.
For all the latest on Mizzou baseball, including weekly updates of all of the summer league players, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and be sure to follow the team on twitter @MUTigerBaseball.