Quartet named to USA Baseball Collegiate National Team
SAN FRANCISCO—Four Pac-12 players were selected to compete for USA Baseball during its annual summer collegiate tour. The squad, made up of the top freshmen and sophomores in the country, includes ARIZONA utility man Bobby Dalbec, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and OREGON STATE first baseman KJ Harrison, CALIFORNIA starter Daulton Jefferies and OREGON reliever Stephen Nogosek.
Heading into tonight's friendship series with Cuba, Harrison is batting .308, Nogosek has yet to allow a run in three relief appearances and 5.1 innings and Jefferies struck out six over 4.0 innings in his only start, allowing two runs on one hit. Dalbec in seven starts is hitting .190.
PAC-12 AND TEAM USA: Two legendary Conference coaches led Team USA to medals at the Olympics. USC's Rod Dedeaux, using his own Mark McGwire as one of its stars won Silver at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. In 1988 in Seoul, Stanford's Mark Marquess won Gold. Until 2000, the Olympics used collegiate players.
THE 2015 TEAM: The USA Collegiate National Team roster will include Nick Banks (Texas A&M), Bryson Brigman (San Diego), Zack Burdi (Louisville), Bobby Dalbec (Arizona), Anfernee Grier (Auburn), Garrett Hampson (Long Beach State), KJ Harrison (Oregon State), Ryan Hendrix (Texas A&M), Tanner Houck (Missouri), Ryan Howard (Missouri), Daulton Jefferies (California), Anthony Kay (UCONN), Brendan McKay (Louisville), Stephen Nogosek (Oregon), Chris Okey (Clemson), A.J. Puk (Florida), Corey Ray (Louisville), Buddy Reed (Florida), JJ Schwarz (Florida) Mike Shawaryn (Maryland), Logan Shore (Florida) and Robert Tyler (Georgia). The team is managed St. John’s head coach Ed Blankmeyer and includes N.C. State’s Elliot Avent, San Diego’s Rich Hill, Kentucky’s Gary Henderson, LSU’s Paul Mainieri, Missouri’s Trevor Coleman and N.C. State’s Tyler Younger.
GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD: USA Baseball, which also administers the Golden Spikes Award for the nation's top player has selected seven Conference honorees since its start in 1978: UCLA's Trevor Bauer (2011), WASHINGTON's Tim Linceum (2006), USC Mark Prior (2001), ARIZONA's Terry Francona (1980), ARIZONA STATE's Mike Kelly (1991) ,Odobie McDowell (1984) and Bob Horner (1978).