Wake Forest Athletics
Countdown To First Pitch: 2006 Outlook
2/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 8, 2006
The goal of Wake Forest baseball heading into the 2005 season was to gain respect. After struggling through a 17-33 and 4-20 ACC season in 2004, the Demon Deacons improved their overall win total by 11 games and captured eight more games in league play under first-year head coach Rick Rembielak. The 11-game improvement in victories was the largest over one season since 1997 and the second-best improvement in school history.
The Deacs also picked up their first ACC Tournament victories in three seasons. Wake Forest, which had dropped four straight tournament games from 2002-04, recorded three victories at the 2005 ACC Tournament -- ousting Duke, Maryland and North Carolina. The Demon Deacons were the last remaining team from the state of North Carolina in the tournament.
Wake Forest also registered its first win at Florida State in 10 years, snapping a 15-game losing streak with a 12-inning, 13-10 triumph on April 10. The Demon Deacons defeated #5 Miami, 13-6, on March 19. The victory was the first for Wake Forest over a top-5 team since April 26, 2002.
While the improvement was significant, Rembielak has much larger goals for the Wake Forest baseball program. Specifically, a return trip to the NCAA Tournament, an event the Demon Deacons have missed the last three years after putting together a school-record streak of five-straight appearances from 1998-2002.
Wake Forest will miss the likes of catcher J.B. Tucker (.322, 13 HR, 65 RBI), designated hitter Ryder Mathias (.316, 12 HR, 68 RBI), second basemen Ben Ingold (.310, 4 HR, 42 RBI), center fielder Matt Miller (.280, 6 HR, 32 RBI) and starting pitcher Brian Bach (2-4, 5.08 ERA). Tucker (Seattle Mariners organization), Mathias (Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization) and Ingold (Oakland A's organization) all moved onto professional baseball.
Wake Forest does return 17 letterwinners, five position starters and seven of its top eight pitchers from a year ago. The Demon Deacons will also welcome 13 newcomers this spring, the largest recruiting class in recent memory.
The 2006 version of Rembielak's squad features second team Preseason All-American junior third basemen Matt Antonelli as well as All-ACC candidates sophomore outfielder Brett Linnenkohl and redshirt sophomore outfielder Eric Williams to bolster the offensive attack. On the mound, three of the top four starting pitchers from a year ago return, led by juniors Charlie Mellies and Josh Ellis.
Wake brings back its entire bullpen, including sophomore southpaw Eric Niesen and All-ACC candidate senior closer Kyle Young. The Deacons will also benefit from the return of redshirt senior Justin Keadle. The right-handed hurler was Wake's top starter in 2004, but missed all of 2005 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Antonelli, an early candidate for 2006 ACC Player of the Year honors who has already been named a second Preseason All-American by Baseball America, is at the top of that list. Antonelli really came into his own with a phenomenal sophomore year, but was slightly overshadowed in the ACC by MLB top 10 draft picks Ryan Braun and Ryan Zimmerman. Antonelli led the Deacons in batting average (.332), runs scored (68), on-base percentage (.475) and walks (57). The walks not only led the entire ACC and ranked second in the country (0.98 walks per game), but also eclipsed the previous school record of 55 (Billy Masse in 1988). Antonelli ranked among the top 10 in the ACC in runs scored, doubles, walks and on-base percentage. He was the only Demon Deacon to start all 58 games at one position.
Linnenkohl, a sophomore outfielder, struggled adjusting to the college game early in 2005, but exploded over the final two months of the season and turned in one of the better rookie campaigns in Wake Forest history. Over the first half of the season, Linnenkohl batted just .220 with no home runs, 11 RBI and three stolen bases, but the left-handed hitter batted .302 with four home runs, 33 RBI and seven stolen bases over the Deacons final 25 games. In the end, Linnenkohl ranked among the top 10 in Wake Forest freshman history in at-bats (217, t-2nd), runs (44, t-6th), stolen bases (10, 4th), triples (3, t-5th) and RBI (44, 9th).
Williams, a transfer from Arizona State, will step into the program and start in centerfield. The redshirt sophomore had an incredible fall season leading the Black to the Black & Gold World Series title. Williams batted .692 (9-for-13) with three stolen bases, three runs scored and a pair of doubles. Prior to college, he played for the nationally known Bayside Yankees in the summers of 2002-03 and helped them to the CABA World Series Championship in 2003 and was named to the all-tournament team and earned the Golden Glove Award.
Mellies, a junior starting pitcher, had a breakthrough season in 2005. The right-handed hurler not only moved into the starting rotation, but was a weekend starter in ACC action. Mellies went just 3-5, but posted a respectable 4.17 earned run average and closed the season at the top of his game. He hurled back-to-back complete games against Clemson (May 15) and Duke (May 24). In the complete game ACC Tournament victory over the Devils, Mellies allowed just four hits and one earned run while striking out five. He pitched in 18 games, made 10 starts, led the staff with two complete games and ranked second on the staff in innings pitched (82.0), second in earned run average and second in starts. He worked into the sixth inning in eight of his 10 starts and into the seventh inning five times.
Ellis, a junior right-handed pitcher, continued his rapid development during a sophomore campaign that saw him go 6-4 and lead the squad in wins, starts (14) and innings pitched (86.1). He spent most of the season as the Deacons Friday starter and performed admirably. He tossed at least 6.0 innings in nine of his 14 starts and worked into the seventh inning five times, highlighted by his matchup with North Carolina All-American Andrew Miller. Ellis allowed just two earned runs over 7.0 innings and fanned seven.
Keadle, a redshirt senior, returns to the Demon Deacon rotation after missing all of 2005. As the staff's ace in 2004, Keadle went only 2-5 and posted a 6.22 earned run average, but tossed a team-best two complete games and logged 88.1 innings, 20 more than any other pitcher on the staff. He struck out a team-high 66 batters and pitched seven or more innings eight times including five games of at least eight innings, highlighted by a five-hit complete game effort against NC State. Keadle also struck out 10 Wolfpack hitters in the 4-1 victory.
Similar to the starting rotation, the Wake Forest bullpen is in place. Young and Niesen will look to anchor the back end of the pitching staff.
Young, a senior right-hander, made 32 relief appearances for the Deacons and went 4-1 with a 3.06 earned run average. He led the staff in saves (6), earned run average, batting average against (.272), relief appearances and tied for the team lead in total appearances (33). Young ranked third on the staff in wins and fourth in innings pitched (53.0). In his only start of 2005, he tossed 6.1 innings and did not allow an earned run in the ACC Tournament victory over North Carolina (May 26).
Niesen, a sophomore southpaw, is arguably the team's hardest thrower. Similar to Linnenkohl, he had a solid freshman campaign. Niesen went 5-2 and struck out a team-high 55 in 33 appearances for Wake Forest. The 33 appearances were the most ever for a Wake Forest freshman and the 55 strikeouts were the eighth-most by a Demon Deacon rookie. He picked up one save, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings of relief in the series sweep clinching victory over Virginia. Niesen was untouchable in his two outings in the ACC Tournament. He tossed 2.2 innings of scoreless relief against North Carolina and 2.0 scoreless innings of relief against Florida State. Niesen fanned seven in the two appearances.
Mellies, Ellis, Keadle, Niesen and Young should have plenty of support on the mound as Wake Forest has several other pitchers returning from last year's squad that should give the Demon Deacons one of its deepest staffs ever. Senior left-hander Kip Byrum (3-2, 7.52 ERA, 52.2 IP, 24 SO) is back after establishing himself as a reliable option out of the bullpen. With the depth of the 2006 staff, Byrum will be used as situational southpaw, much more to his strengths. Sophomore right-handed hurler Matt Hammond (3-6, 10.69 ERA, 51.1 IP, 42 SO) and junior Sean Souders (1-0, 8.80 ERA, 15.1 IP) also return. Hammond worked in a starting role last season, but spent the entire fall working out of the bullpen. He dropped his delivery down and found outstanding success. Redshirt sophomore Andrew Knox (0-0, 1.80, 5.0 IP) also returns after missing all of last season with a torn labrum.
Wake Forest also returns senior outfielder Casey Sterk, redshirt junior designated hitter Brendan Enick and sophomore second basemen Andy Goff -- all of whom started last season.
Sterk saw action in 56 games, starting 53, predominantly in right field. The right-handed hitter batted .250 with a home run and 24 RBI. Sterk also swiped 10 bases. Enick had a breakthrough season in 2005 after seeing almost no playing time his first two years at Wake Forest. The slugger batted .311 with five home runs and 45 RBI. He was named ACC Player of the Week on Feb. 28 after batting .786 (11-for-14) with two doubles, one home run, six runs scored and seven RBI in one week. In fact, he recorded hits in nine consecutive official at-bats, the first nine hits of his Demon Deacon career. Goff started all 57 games in which he played, most coming at shortstop after a move from second base midway through the season. While Goff batted just .197, he did smack a couple home runs and drove in 32. He also led the Deacs in sacrifice bunts with seven. Goff spent the summer with the Bourne Braves in the Cape Cod Baseball League. He started 38 games at shortstop and second base for the eventual Cape Cop League runner-up.
Other returning players that will compete for a starting spot include redshirt senior co-captain Grant Achilles (.254, 1 HR, 7 RBI), redshirt junior catcher Dan Rosaia (.091, 0 HR, 0 RBI/missed most of season after ankle injury), junior outfielder Brian Shust (.040, 0 HR, 1 RBI), redshirt freshman infielder Nathan Frazier and redshirt freshman catcher Weldon Woodall.
In addition to Williams, Wake Forest has four other players that have transferred into the program including sophomore pitcher Ben Hunter (Furman), redshirt freshman pitcher Greg Young (Tulane) and sophomore catcher Austin Jones (Yavapai JC). The Deacons also welcome back redshirt junior Kirby Wedekind (Georgia), who was a member of the Demon Deacons in 2003-04.
Wake Forest's eight member freshman class include left-handed pitcher Garrett Bullock (Greenville, NC), first basemen Allan Dykstra (San Diego, CA), right-handed pitcher Joel Ernst (Loveland, OH), catcher Cory Hindel (Tallmadge, OH), right-handed pitcher Brad Kledzik (Fairfax Station, VA), outfielder Evan Ocheltree (Richmond, VA), infielder Dustin Hood (Nederland, TX) and infielder/right-handed pitcher Tyler Smith (Boca Raton, FL).
Dykstra (Boston Red Sox, 34th round) is the only freshman from the group to be selected in the 2005 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
Schedule
Wake Forest will face another extremely difficult schedule as the Demon Deacons have four of Baseball America's Preseason Top 10 teams, including 2005 NCAA runner-up Florida. Wake Forest will not only face two other opponents among the top 25, but challenge other NCAA Regional qualifiers like Coastal Carolina, Miami (Fla.), Ohio State, Quinnipiac and Virginia. In all, 25 of the Demon Deacons' 56 regular season games will come against teams either ranked in the top 25 or NCAA Tournament participants from a year ago.
The squad will be challenged in the first month of the campaign with road trips to Charlotte (Feb. 11-12) and UNC Wilmington (Feb. 17-19). The 49ers took both meetings from Wake Forest last year, while the Seahawks have won 40 or more games three consecutive seasons.
After the home opener at Hooks Stadium with Charlotte (Feb. 21), the Deacs will again hit the road for one of the top tournaments of the 2006 season. Wake Forest will travel to Gainesville, Fla. for The Pepsi Baseball Classic (Feb. 24-26). Wake Forest will open the tournament with defending Big 10 champion Ohio State. The Buckeyes went 40-20 in 2005 and won their third Big 10 title in four years. Ohio State has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 11 times under 18th-year head coach Bob Todd. The following day, the Deacons will play No. 10 Missouri. The Tigers went 40-23 last season, reaching their third consecutive NCAA Regional. Missouri also returns arguably the top starting pitcher in the entire country, first team All-American Max Scherzer. The Tigers also retained the services of third team All-American selection Hunter Mense. Wake Forest will close the weekend with NCAA runner-up and host Florida. The Gators return 23 letterwinners and seven position starters from a squad that went 48-23 last season.
Following the road trip to Florida, the Deacs will return for a four-game homestand against Xavier (Feb. 28) and Wright State (Mar. 3-5). The meetings with the Musketeers and Raiders will be the first in program history.
Wake Forest will travel to Coastal Carolina (Mar. 7) before returning home for a season-long nine-game homestand. The Chanticleers captured a school-record 50 games before losing in the Arizona State Regional.
The Demon Deacons open the homestand with Southern Conference foe Elon (Mar. 8). The Phoenix were a thorn in the Deacons side prior to last season. Elon had captured four of five against Wake Forest before the Deacs were able to win both meetings in 2005.
Wake Forest opens ACC action at home with archrival No. 6 North Carolina (Mar. 10-12) in a three-game series. The Tar Heels swept the Deacs in the regular season last year, but Wake Forest exacted a bit of revenge by eliminating North Carolina from the ACC Tournament. The Deacs have also defeated the Tar Heels five straight times in ACC Tournament action. North Carolina returns a wealth of talent from 2005, including projected first round draft picks Andrew Miller and Daniel Bard. The duo will most likely both be drafted within the first 10-15 selections of the 2006 MLB Amateur Draft.
After a midweek battle with Quinnipiac (Mar. 14), NCAA Participants in 2005, the Deacs will host new ACC foe Boston College (Mar. 17-19) before closing the homestand with High Point (Mar. 21).
Wake Forest faces Virginia (Mar. 24-26) in its first three-game ACC series away from the friendly confines of Hooks Stadium. The Deacs swept the Cavaliers in 2005, but Virginia reached the ACC Tournament championship game and the NCAA Regionals.
The Deacs then face Davidson (Mar. 28) and Virginia Tech (Mar. 31-Apr. 2) at Hooks Stadium. Wake Forest will look to improve against both the Wildcats and Hokies. Davidson defeated the Deacs twice in 2005, while Virginia Tech took two of three from the Deacons to close the regular season.
Wake Forest will hit the road for eight of the next nine games, the only home game coming against UNC Greensboro (Apr. 12). Wake Forest will play at Big South power Winthrop (Apr. 5), No. 24 NC State (Apr. 7-9), Elon (Apr. 11) and ACC rival Duke (Apr. 14-16).
The Deacons will play seven of its next eight games at home with the only road game coming against UNC Greensboro (Apr. 26). Wake Forest will face Davidson (Apr. 18) and Maryland (Apr. 21-23).
The Deacs will return to the field after eight days off with a three-game series against No. 15 Florida State (May 5-7). The Seminoles, who went 53-20 and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals, return ACC and National Player of the Year candidate Shane Robinson. Florida State took two of three from the Deacons in the regular season and eliminated Wake Forest from the ACC Tournament.
After a Tuesday affair at High Point (May 10), Wake Forest will close its ACC slate with three-game sets at Miami (May 12-14) and Clemson (May 18-20). The Hurricanes and Tigers each reached the NCAA Super Regionals. While Miami is unranked by Baseball America, they do return 15 lettermen from the 2005 team that finished 41-19-1. The Tigers, on the other hand, might just be the most talented and deepest team in the ACC. Clemson is ranked No. 2 by Baseball America. The Tigers, who were 43-23 and came within one game of the College World Series in 2005, are the highest-ranked ACC team. Clemson has made 19 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, tied for the third-longest streak in NCAA history, and returns all eight position starters in the field.
The Deacons not only hope to finish among the ACC's top-eight teams and reach the 2006 ACC Tournament in Jacksonville, Fla., but also aspire to earn their first postseason berth since 2002. NCAA Regional action begins June 2-4 at one of 16 sites around the nation that will be announced on the final day of the regular season. The winners of the 16 regionals will advance to Super Regionals, best-of-three series that will be held in eight separate locations across the country and be televised live by ESPN for the third fourth year. ESPN will also provide exclusive coverage of every game at the 59th College World Series in Omaha from June 16-25.
Scouting Report From The Coaches
"The depth that we have, not only with our pitching staff, but also our position players is a huge advantage for us. We lost something like nine games by just one run and a lot of that was caused by our lack of depth last season. Our team will have much more identified roles as the season progresses. We feel that it definitely makes us stronger over the course of a season and hope it translates into more victories." -- head coach Rick Rembielak
"We did lose a strong part of our lineup after last season, but we have a solid mix of veterans and young guys that will fill those holes. With our team speed and ability to put the ball in play, I feel we have tough outs throughout order. The increased depth of our bench will give us the luxury to make some moves late in games. As always, it will come down to who gets hits in key situations to determine how many runs we will score. I am confident that we have the mix of players who can get the job done." -- hitting coach Jon Palmieri
"The starting rotation will have many options this year. The experience of our returning guys is huge and it will pay dividends. Justin (Keadle), Charlie (Mellies) and Josh (Ellis) have all thrown over 120 career innings in college. The relievers and overall depth of the staff should enable us to make some moves depending on the game situation. With Kyle (Young), Eric (Niesen) and Ben (Hunter), we could have one of the better bullpens in the conference." -- pitching coach Chris Sinacori
"Obviously, the task off replacing a player like J.B. Tucker behind the plate will be difficult, but Dan (Rosaia) and Austin (Jones) have worked very hard to make the transition easy. It is great to have Dan healthy again and with the addition of Austin, I am confident that both will do a great job for us this season." -- assistant coach Marshall Canosa
