Carson-Newman Baseball Pitchers and Catchers Position Preview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – With the start of the 2023 Carson-Newman baseball season less than one week away, the athletic communications staff has compiled a three-part series profiling the Eagles roster in preparation for the year starting with a look at the pitchers and catchers with senior right-hander Tyler Shaver.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – With the start of the 2023 Carson-Newman baseball season less than one week away, the athletic communications staff has compiled a three-part series profiling the Eagles roster in preparation for the year starting with a look at the pitchers and catchers with senior right-hander Tyler Shaver.
Starting on the rubber, the Eagles will need to replace several of the team's most reliable arms from a year ago headlined by all-region selection Matt Bradley. The right-hander was 8-0 a year in 13 starts beating No. 21 Lenoir-Rhyne and locking down Lincoln Memorial in an elimination game of the South Atlantic Conference Baseball Tournament.
In addition to him, former All-American Brayden Coe and steady starter Matt Coles, producing three quality starts last year, graduated. Out of the bullpen, Ryan Smithson appeared in a team-high 22 games posting a 3.82 ERA walking five over 30 2/3 innings.
"They led by example," Shaver said. "I played with Matt Bradley a long time. He's a gamer and has an attitude that he's going to win the game when he's on the mound. I felt like as a team we knew we were going to win that game when he was pitching during that All-American year. He was lights out. It was more of a mentality thing. They had that swagger and conviction that they were going to dominate."
Led by Shaver, the Orange and Blue bring batch several consistent arms. The Dandridge, Tenn. native has appeared in 48 career games over four years winning 11 games while striking out 136 batters over 118 innings pitched. He fanned multiple batters in six of his final seven appearances of 2022 posting 16 over the final 15 2/3 innings pitched.
"I think it's more of finding a groove," Shaver said. "I feel like last year I couldn't really get that groove going. I need to understand what my role is and what the team needs from me. I don't want to overthink things. This game is already complicated. As soon as it gets in your head it makes it that much harder. Keep it simple, one pitch at a team, don't worry about the last outing and stay in the present."
Jake Wright (Ringgold, Ga.) was the team's closer a year ago slamming the door shut out six saves fanning 53 batters in 31 1/3 innings pitched. Of his 20 outings, 14 ended with a zero in the run column. In his first two seasons, the righty has 88 punch outs in 62 innings pitched. Joining Wright in the backend of the bullpen is Hunter Harritan (Huntersville, N.C.). The Marshall transfer did not allow an earned run over his first seven outings punching out 32 batters in 25 innings for the year.
Noah Pridmore (Ootlewah, Tenn.) found a rhythm at the end of the season posting an ERA below four over the final month of the season snaring four wins on the year as a starter and in relief. Mason Mooney (San Jose, Calif.) has toed the slab 26 times over the past two seasons recording three wins and a save for the club.
Add in Grif Hughes (Knoxville, Tenn.), Jake Shamblin (Athens, Tenn.) and Jackson Harbin (Gastonia, N.C.) and the Orange and Blue returns eight of the club's 13 hurlers than logged double-digit frames on the rubber.
In addition to several rookies, Carson-Newman added three transfers to the mix. Ethan Patch (Whitehall, N.Y.) comes to Mossy Creek from Herkimer Community College where he started seven games going 5-2 with a 2.89 ERA striking out 54 in 46 2/3 innings. On April 23, 2022 the southpaw fanned 11 batters over six innings against Jefferson Community College. In his next start against Cayuga, he went seven innings striking out seven.
Jacob Overbeck (Morris, Ill.) comes to the Eagles from Southwestern Illinois where he won four games in 13 appearances in 2022. The right-hander saved his best work for the end of the year striking out nine over seven innings of one-run baseball on April 29 before fanning eight in six stanzas of one-run baseball on May 10.
James Denten (Mt. Prospect, Ill.) is a two-way player that appeared in 11 games with Kaskaskia College a year ago winning two games adding three saves with 20 strikeouts and three walks in 17 innings.
"I think we are going to be very scrappy," Shaver said. "I think we are going to have to really fight. We are very confident but we will have to see how it goes. We have guys that haven't had much of opportunity and they are going to need to step up this year."
Behind the dish, the Eagles need to replace all-conference pick Matt Parkinson who hit .351 with 13 homers over the past two years. Fortunately, the group returns preseason All-SAC selection Harrison Travis (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.). Over the final 33 affairs of the year, he hit .342 with nine dingers, eight doubles, two triples and 37 RBIs. He finished in the top 10 of the league with one RBI per game, a .622 slugging percentage and a team-leading four triples.
Mitchell Balint (Avondale, Pa.) transfers to C-N after stops at Delaware and Rowan College where he hit .377 with nine long balls and 73 RBIs in 2022. Helping to lead the Roadrunners to the NJCAA World Series, he had four multi-hit games in the set going 12-for-22 at the plate at Pioneer Park with a homer and three doubles. All told, he produced 21 multi-RBI games and 24 multi-hit games. Balint had hits in 17 of the final 19 contests of the year hitting north of .450 over that period.
Providing the depth behind the plate, Spencer Bright (Iron Station, N.C.) earned 11 starts at catcher helping the team to a 6-5 record. Frankie Delgado (Deltona, Fla.) appeared in seven contests.
The second part of the position previews will be released on Saturday with a look at the outfield with Henry Jackson previewing the unit.
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