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Garcia Getting it Done Now

I usually reserve the spotlights for players who will be new to the Cape Cod Baseball League. Aramis Garcia will not be new. He spent the summer of 2012 in Cotuit and is slated to return in 2013.

But Cape League fans may seeing something new anyway.

Garcia, a standout prep catching prospect who was a 20th-round pick out of high school, hit .271 in his freshman year at Florida International. In Cotuit last summer, he was steady but not spectacular. He hit .250 with three home runs.

Now the breakout is happening.

Garcia was tabbed by Baseball America as the top prospect in the Sun Belt Conference before the season and he’s making that pick look like a very good one. Garcia is hitting .351 with 10 home runs and 40 RBI this spring. His on-base percentage is .399 and he’s slugging .565. His home run total puts him in a tie for 21st nationally, and he ranks second among underclassmen.

He has also started 41 of the team’s 42 games at the catcher spot, and in the one game he started at first base, he later moved to catcher. That’s huge for someone who has so much offensive potential; if he can stick at catcher, look out.

Garcia was a player to keep an eye on last summer, a name to file away. He could be much more this summer.

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Holder Still a Bullpen Ace

Some pitchers are starters for their college teams and bullpen arms on the Cape. Others pitch in relief at school and jump into starting rotations in the summer.

Jonathan Holder does not fit into either category.

He’s a relief pitcher, through and through. And a very good one.

Holder set a Mississippi State school record as a freshman last year when he pitched 27.1 consecutive scoreless innings. He allowed just one earned run for the year on his way to a 0.32 ERA. He also saved nine games.

For the summer, Holder made his way to Wareham and pretty much picked up where he left off, posting a 1.98 ERA in 14 appearances. He saved two games, while sharing closing duties with Arkansas standout Colby Suggs.

Back at school this spring, he’s doing it all again – and then some.

While he’s actually giving up some runs this time around – five earned thus far – he has saved 12 games, which has him tied for third in the country. More impressive, he has struck out 52 and walked only seven in 28 innings of work. Last year, he pitched a total of 28.1 innings and only struck out 30.

Holder is slated to be back in Wareham this summer.

And I think we know where he’ll be in the ninth inning.

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Turner Continues Rise

When you think of star power in the North Carolina State sophomore class, you think of Carlos Rodon, who many people think would be a shoo-in for the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, were he eligible.

But the guy playing second fiddle is pretty good too.

Shortstop Trea Turner took the college baseball world by storm as a freshman last year when he led the nation with 57 stolen bases. For good measure, he hit .336 with a .432 on-base percentage. He scored 72 runs, good for sixth in the nation. A 20th-round pick out of high school, Turner has flashed his skill-set every step of the way.

He’s only gotten better this year. While he isn’t running as much – he’s stolen 17 bases – he’s hitting .437, which leads the ACC and has him tied for second nationally. He’s also shown a bit of pop, with six homers.

Turner was an easy pick for a Cape League roster spot last year, but he was selected for Team USA and spent the summer with them. He’s back on the NC State roster this year, which is a good sign – Rodon was on the Harwich roster last year, went to Team USA and isn’t back on a Cape roster this year.

Whatever happens, Turner is a star, and Y-D would be lucky to have him.

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Foley an Emerging Ace

Rosters for the 2013 Cape Cod Baseball League season feature quite a few pitchers from mid-major programs with great track records.

Jordan Foley is pushing his way to the top of the list.

The Central Michigan righty, who’s on the Hyannis roster, has become a bona fide ace in his sophomore season with the Chippewas. He’s 6-1 with a 1.02 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 61.2 innings. He ranks seventh nationally in ERA and 14th in strikeouts. The only underclassmen ahead of him on the strikeout list are two you might have heard of – NC State’s Carlos Rodon and LSU’s Aaron Nola.

That’s impressive company, but Foley has proved every step of the way this season that he belongs there. He hasn’t allowed more than two earned runs in any of his starts this year, and he’s gone deep into the game every time. He leads the team in innings pitched by a wide margin. Opponents are hitting .185 against him.

All of this comes after Foley had a bumpy freshman season. The Texas native came in as one of the team’s most highly-touted recruits. He was drafted by the Yankees in the 26th round of the 2011 draft. On campus, though, he saw his ERA balloon to 8.20 ERA, largely because he walked almost a batter an inning – 34 in 37.2 innings. He’s improved drastically in that area this year, with 24 walks in 61.2 innings. The 70 strikeouts – and the 42 hits allowed – don’t hurt either.

If Foley keeps it up, he’ll be poised for a big summer. He just might stay at the top of the list.

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Brave Future for Freeman

The Bourne Braves will have the same number of players as everybody else in the Cape League this summer, but for now, they’ve got a few more lined up than most. Forty, to be exact.

And while the list includes standouts from powerhouse programs like LSU, Florida, Ole Miss and Arizona State, it’s a two-way player from East Tennessee State that is rising above the rest so far this spring.

Junior Clinton Freeman was tabbed by Baseball America as the preseason player of the year in the Atlantic Sun, and that pick has looked solid from the very beginning. Freeman blasted two home runs and a triple in the season opener and proceeded to go for 8-for-10 with five extra base hits on the first weekend.

Two months later, Freeman is hitting .369 with eight home runs, 24 extra-base hits and 35 RBI. He’s tied for the league lead in homers and is in the top five in batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, RBI, doubles and triples.

And for good measure, he pitches out of the bullpen, where he’s saved five games while striking out 29 in 33 innings.

Freeman isn’t a flash in the pan either. He hit .365 for the Bucs last year, and he’s had summer success, too. He won the Alaska League batting title last year with a .379 mark.

As a junior, Freeman will be eligible for the draft this year, but if he ends up in Bourne, there’s no reason to think he won’t stand out again.

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Eshelman in Control

At some point in his college career, Thomas Eshelman will walk someone.

At least I think he will. But at this rate, who knows?

The freshman from Carlsbad, Calif., has stepped into the Friday starter role for Cal State Fullerton and is putting together a tremendous season. At the top of the list? He has not walked a batter since he stepped foot on campus.

The streak stretched to 58 innings last week when he tossed eight shutout frames without giving up a free pass.

For perspective, the national leader in innings pitched has thrown 69. So, at 11 off that pace, Eshelman is up near the top. And, it’s worth repeating, he hasn’t walked anybody. The NCAA statistics database has a ranking of fewest walks per nine innings. Eshelman isn’t even on it – probably because the computer doesn’t understand the zero.

I’m not sure what the NCAA record is, but Eshelman is approaching the Fullerton record of 65.2 innings set by Wes Roemer in 2006. The Major League record is 84.1 innings, owned by Bill Fischer of the Kansas City Royals.

If Eshelman does eventually walk someone this year, it’ll be the end of something amazing – but it won’t be the end of an amazing season. Eshelman, who was undrafted out of high school, is 7-1 with a 1.09 ERA. He has struck out 39, has given up one home run and has allowed just seven earned runs. Opponents are hitting .170 against him, and his 0.55 WHIP leads the nation.

Eshelman will get the ball again this weekend when the Titans take on UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos will want to be swinging – not watching.

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Gillaspie Following in Brother’s Footsteps

On this Major League Baseball Opening Day, we spotlight a 2013 Cape Leaguer with Major League – and CCBL – bloodlines.

Wichita State sophomore Casey Gillaspie, who is on the Falmouth roster for 2013, is the younger brother of former Commodore and Cape League MVP Conor Gillaspie, who came off the bench today for the Chicago White Sox in a 1-0 win over the Royals.

The similarities between the two are similar on the surface – Wichita State corner infielders with a great batting eye.

But Casey is making his own name for himself as we speak.

Already a little bigger than his brother – Casey is 6’4, Conor is 6’1 – Casey has gotten a bit more hype to this point. He was the fourth-best prospect in the Northwoods League last summer. Conor was a classic Cape League break-out, and his MVP summer that saw him hit .345 with seven home runs propelled him into prospect status. He was the 37th overall pick in the 2008 draft.

Where Casey winds up remains to be seen, but I think Falmouth will be very happy to have another Gillaspie roaming Guv Fuller Field this summer. Casey is hitting .295 thus far with a .469 on-base percentage, seven home runs, eight doubles and a team-best 20 RBI. He leads the Missouri Valley Conference in home runs and total bases.

For more on Conor, who wound up with the White Sox after a spring training trade, you can catch up on his travels in this Chicago Sun Times piece.

And to read how Casey views comparisons between him and his brother, check out this Wichita Eagle article.

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Bregman Setting the Pace for LSU

With LSU sitting at 23-2 and ranked in the top five, you’d think one of the team’s veterans would be its leading hitter. Someone like Mason Katz, or – I don’t know – Raph Rhymes, that guy who almost hit .500 last spring.

Katz and Rhymes are certainly doing well, but nobody’s been better than freshman shortstop Alex Bregman, who is on the Harwich roster for this summer.

Bregman is hitting .443, best on the team and good for 21st in the nation. He’s also hit two homers, two triples and eight doubles, while driving in 23 runs. His on-base percentage is a team-best .496 and he’s slugging .613.

He’s doing all of this, of course, while starting at shortstop and anchoring the middle of the order for perhaps the most storied program in college baseball. And he’s replacing Austin Nola, a four-year starter who was beloved by the Tiger Faithful.

Bregman has thrived all the same. He was a 29th-round pick of the Red Sox out of high school in New Mexico last year, and he’s living up to every bit of the hype.

It’s also worth noting, from a Cape League perspective, that Bregman is slated to join North Carolina star freshman Skye Bolt in Harwich. Bolt is hitting above .400 as well. A third Harwich freshman, Texas infielder C.J. Hinojosa was a 26th-round pick out of high school and is rated as one of the top freshmen in the nation. Quite a trio.

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Freeland on a Familiar Path

A tall left-hander from a mid-major baseball program in Indiana signs on with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks. Sounds familiar, right?

That was the profile of Sean Manaea, the Indiana State lefty who became one of the biggest breakout stars the Cape Cod Baseball League has ever seen when he dominated for Hyannis last season. Manaea’s performance vaulted him into the conversation for the No. 1 overall pick in the Major League Baseball draft.

It would be unfair to compare Kyle Freeland with Manaea or to predict the same success, but the similar circumstances are worth mentioning. Freeland is a 6’3 southpaw who attends Evansville, and he’ll play for Hyannis this summer.

Those are not the only similarities. Freeland has some serious credentials.

Freeland was a late-round draft pick out of high school, and he brought a little more hype to college than Manaea. He’s the record holder for strikeouts in the state of Colorado.

He had some ups and downs in his freshman season with the Purple Aces but flashed plenty of potential and led the team with 70 strikeouts. Last summer, he headed north to Alaska and was named the league’s second-best prospect by Baseball America. His season included 35 consecutive scoreless innings.

So far this season, Freeland has picked up where he left off. He owns a 3.00 ERA and has struck out 31 while walking just three in 27 innings of work. If he keeps it up, he’ll become one of the top pitchers in the nation.

What happens after that is anybody’s guess, but I’m thinking Hyannis is very happy to have another lefty from Indiana on the way.

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Bolt off to Fast Start for Heels

His name would catch your eye regardless, but North Carolina freshman Skye Bolt has wasted no time making a name for himself on the field.

The 6’2, 175-pound outfielder is bound for Harwich this summer, and if he keeps up what he’s done in the first three weeks of the college baseball season, he’ll head to the Cape with a lot of accolades. Bolt went 2-for-3 in his collegiate debut and 4-for-5 in his next game. He hasn’t slowed down much since, with a hit – and usually more than one – in eight of UNC’s 10 games.

For the season, Bolt is hitting a team-best .472, which is good for fifth in the ACC.

The fast start isn’t a huge surprise. Bolt was drafted in the 26th round but was ranked among the nation’s top 50 high school players by both Baseball America and Perfect Game.

UNC stars have found a home on Cape Cod for many years, from Andrew Miller to Colin Moran. Bolt may be the next Tar Heel star, and the Cape awaits.