Brett Bond and the rest of Mizzou Baseball have something to prove this spring. Bond, Mizzou's senior backstop from St. Louis, Missouri, was selected by the Houston Astros in the 23rd round in last spring's MLB First Year Player Draft. However, Bond opted to return for his senior season in Columbia.
"The main thing is that I love Mizzou. I love everything about it, the campus, the coaches, the team. I have a lot of fun playing college baseball," explained Bond. "That's been the biggest thing. And I want to be a part of a regional."
While Bond has been a mainstay in the Mizzou lineup for the last three seasons, he had his most productive campaign last spring. Bond posted a .307 average at the dish while tallying 10 homers and 45 RBI. He owns a handful of preseason accolades heading into the 2018 season as he was ranked the No. 4 college senior by PerfectGame.org and will likely be named to the Johnny Bench award watch list.
"I want to come back and prove to myself and everybody else that I can help this team make a regional," Bond explained earlier this week.
Along with Bond, Right-handed hurler Bryce Montes De Oca (Lawrence, Kan.), also decided to return to Columbia for another season. The redshirt junior was a 15th round selection of the Washington Nationals in last year's MLB Draft. During his time at Mizzou, Montes De Oca has been able to build an impressive repertoire around his fastball that touches triple-digits. Montes De Oca and sophomore lefty T.J. Sikkema (DeWitt, Iowa) will spearhead the Mizzou pitching staff. Sikkema posted an 8-2 record and a 2.72 ERA en route to earning All-SEC Freshman Team honors.
Meanwhile, senior Trey Harris (Powder Springs, Ga.) is back to inject life into the Mizzou offense after putting together his best season at the plate last spring. Harris had a team-high 12 home runs and ranked 10th in the SEC with 48 RBI.
"Experience is definitely going to be helpful this year," Bond explained. "Having Bryce come back is an awesome plus. Trey being back will be really good too. We have some guys who put in a lot of time and work here at Mizzou so it's going to definitely show this year."
With a handful of roster additions from junior college programs, and a large group of familiar faces, Bond is already seeing the squad come together around a common goa
"Our team is set to make a regional," he said. "That's our goal, to win all of the games we should, do really well in the SEC, and head into the tournament and anything can happen once you make it there. Our chemistry, already just over the fall and how well we get along, has been really good."
The season will continue Wednesday at Miami after the Tigers took two of three from Florida International during opening weekend.
"I'm excited obviously for Wednesday. I'm ready to continue to play and to see what our team's all about," said Bond. "The excitement and the adrenaline will definitely rush in when we get back on the field in the good weather. Everybody's itching to play so I think once we get out there, it'll all click."