Baseball Player And Season Preview

Led by ninth-year head coach Guy Robertson, Frostburg State University’s baseball team is ranked 10th and off to an incredible start of their 2016 season with five wins and one loss. Frostburg’s historic 2015 season opened doors for the future of Bobcat baseball.

Last spring, the Bobcats ended their season second in the nation in wins (43) and were ranked second in both major national polls (ABCA & D3baseball.com). They managed to set not only the Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) record for wins in a season, but also set the record for Frostburg and gained both the CAC regular-season and tournament titles.

The Bobcats won Frostburg’s first NCAA Mideast Regional Championship and earned the opportunity to make their first appearance in the NCAA World Series.

With the return of 22 players from last season’s roster including two All-Capital Athletic Conference honorees and pair of All-Americans, Frostburg is molding their strategies to returning to the World Series again this year. All-American Pitcher Greg Schneider, as well as the rest of the talented group of returning athletes, will have this year’s staff built around them.

Schneider, a sophomore, received All-American honors by D3baseball.com as a utility player last spring. This spring he was named a preseason All-American by two other publications. He finished his freshman year ranked second in the country in strikeouts (98), 12^th in victories (9), and 55^th in ERA (1.85). When Schneider wasn’t busy pitching, he hit .333 with 31 hits, 23 runs, three HRs and 14 RBIs.

Key pitching returners this season are noted as seniors Nick Huff, Logan Hunt and Kyle McCormack. Also returning will be junior Ryan Callahan and sophomore Daniel Richardson. Huff pulled saves in a few of Frostburg’s biggest wins in their season. His performance was noticed in the CAC Tournament Championship game over Salisbury and the NCAA Mideast Regional game. McCormack appeared in 10 games, earning one run with 16 strikeouts. Hunt pitched for six games with 12 strikeouts. Callahan was fourth on the roster with five wins in nine starts with 34 strikeouts in 47.2 innings pitched. Pitching as a freshman, Richardson earned 19 strikeouts.

New team members include senior Anderson Burgess and sophomore Lane Ward, who are expected to push toward the starters and be valuable assets to this season. Burgess, was voted team MVP as a senior at La Plata High School.

This season’s returners are emphasized by seniors Zach Keeler, Connor Cooper, Jamal Windom and Jeremy Remalia, along with junior JT Tipton. Keeler was named an Academic All-American and All-CAC selection. He was sixth on the team last year with a .327 batting average as well as 50 hits, 36 runs, and 30 RBI. Cooper is expected to take on a bigger role offensively this season. He left last season with 33 hits, 16 runs and 25 RBIs. Windom will take on this season as the starter at centerfield. Last season Windom appeared in 41 games. He noted 16 hits, 14 runs, and seven RBI. Remilia, a corner infielder, placed nine hits, scored four runs and drove five runs.

In order for Frostburg to make it to the World Series again, they will have to take on tough opponents throughout their upcoming season. According to the preseason D3basbeall.com poll the Bobcats will face three ranked opponents and two teams receiving votes. Among their toughest competitors will be Salisbury (#4), Shenandoah (#16), and Marietta (#24).

The battle of the CAC schools will kick off March 12, 2016 at Penn State Harrisburg.