Jan. 25, 2007

Ohio State head coach Bob Todd has a positive outlook for the 2007 season. Of course, so does every other coach around the country as his team heads toward its season opener, but Todd thinks his optimism has merit.

"We are entering the 2007 season with a lot of optimism," Todd, the 20th-year Buckeye head coach, said. "We have quite a few returning players and more importantly, for the first time since I have been at Ohio State, we have all four of our starting pitchers back. It is highly unusual that you have your complete starting rotation intact."

Those four weekend starters, who include Dan DeLucia, Cory Luebke, Jake Hale and J.B. Shuck, all of whom return from a pitching staff that led the Big Ten in earned run average (3.46).

DeLucia was the Buckeyes' first 10-game winner since 1999 and Shuck, the 2006 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American, won eight games. Luebke returned to school after being drafted last June by the Texas Rangers as a draft-eligible sophomore and Hale showed promise last year as a freshman.

The Buckeyes have several key position players returning, as well. Catcher Eric Fryer, first baseman Justin Miller, second baseman Jason Zoeller, centerfielder Matt Angle all return, as does Jacob Howell, who split time in left field last year with Shuck. DeLucia, Angle and Zoeller all were first-team All-Big Ten picks last season and Fryer, Shuck, Howell and Luebke also were among the nine total Buckeyes to earn all-conference mention in 2006.

"I think this team overall has good team speed, which should not only help us on the base paths, but should result in a better team defensively," Todd, who has guided the Buckeyes to six Big Ten regular season and seven tournament titles, said. "The biggest question marks are going to be the left side of the infield, where we lost Ronnie Bourquin at third and Jedidiah Stephen at short. Not only are those two positions valuable, but the quality of player we lost is going to be tough to replace."

Bourquin, the 2006 Big Ten Player of the Year, was selected in the second round of the draft by the Detroit Tigers while Stephen, a second-team All-Big Ten pick, went in the eighth round to the Baltimore Orioles.

The Buckeyes led the league in team batting average (.332) in their third-place finishes during the regular season and conference tournament. However, Bourquin and Stephen accounted for 17 of the team's modest 28 home runs and made up 25 percent of the team's hits.

Of the six position players who return, five batted .325 or better. In fact, Angle, a first-team All-Big Ten pick last year, was second on the team with a .369 average and Fryer, a second-team all-conference selection, was just behind him with a .368 batting average. Those two combined for 157 hits, just eight less than the combined total of Bourquin and Stephen.

Todd thinks the Buckeyes have the tools they need to battle for a Big Ten title and a regional berth, especially with their pitching staff. If they can fill in the left side of their infield, the Buckeyes could be looking at an seventh Big Ten title and 12th NCAA tournament appearance under Todd, who became coach at Ohio State in 1988.

The Infield
First and second base appear to be set with Miller and Zoeller returning. Miller settled into the starting job at first base last year as a true freshman and made 30 starts there, including the final 21 games of the season. The sophomore, was flawless defensively in 269 chances. He batted .280 with 37 hits and 12 RBI. Shuck, who made 15 starts at first base last year, and fifth-year senior Kris Moorman also could figure into the mix at the position, as well.

Zoeller, a senior, was the first-team All-Big Ten second baseman in 2006. In his second year as the starter, he batted .337 overall and .354 in league games, finishing with 60 hits, including 13 doubles, four triples and five home runs. Junior Tony Kennedy, who has backed up Zoeller at second for two years, again will be the backup at second, but this year could challenge for the open spot at third base. Junior Chris Macke, who backed up Bourquin each of the last two years, also returns. Miller and Moorman also could contend there, as could Brian DeLucia, Dan's younger brother and one of the 14 newcomers on this year's Buckeye squad.

Zoeller could slide over to shortstop with Kennedy in the game at second, but the Buckeyes likely will look to freshman Cory Rupert, the 2006 Ohio Division I Player of the Year, to fill the void left by Stephen at short.

"Freshman Cory Rupert played sound defense in the fall and we obviously feel like he has earned some playing time, but whether he is able to win the starting job has yet to be seen," Todd, who has guided the Buckeyes to 40 or more wins 10 times in his career, said.

Backing up the infield will be redshirt freshmen Matt Curran and Ben Toussant and freshmen Cory Kovanda and Matt Streng.

The Outfield
The outfield could be one of the best during Todd's tenure. Angle, a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection and a Cape Cod League all-star last summer, returns in center field as do Howell and Shuck, who split time in left field last year while Howell battled a hamstring injury. Howell, a two-time all-conference selection, and Shuck both have been freshmen All-Americans. Ohio State outfielders made 15 assists in 2006 led by Angle's six. The Buckeyes also have a hole to fill in right field.

Angle, who batted .396 in Big Ten games, had 79 hits, the fourth highest total in the league last year. He led the conference with 63 runs scored and stole 25 of 29 bases. Howell batted .402 in 35 games, while Shuck batted .325 in the 40 games he picked up a bat.

"I still feel like our outfield is going to be very stable," Todd, who has never had a losing season with the Buckeyes, said. "Matt Angle in center certainly anchors it. We gave J.B. Shuck some playing time in the outfield last year and we still have Jacob Howell. There has been some really good competition from Jonathan Zizzo and red-shirt freshman Zach Hurley. Both have made a lot of progress."

Zizzo saw action in 28 games with 18 starts last year, including eight in the outfield. Hurley spent a lot of time in the batting cage while redshirting last season.

"Jonathan is trying to get some playing time in what I think is a very talented outfield. He did a good job for us last year at key times offensively," Todd said. "And Zach Hurley is one of the hardest workers on the team. He has shown a lot of potential to be productive offensively."

Red-shirt sophomore Michael Arp, red-shirt freshman Chris Griffin as well as freshmen Brad Brookbank and Ryan Dew will try to challenge for outfield spots.

Behind the Plate
Fryer stepped out from behind the plate and over to first base early in the year last year until the Buckeyes could find a more permanent solution at first base. Of his 57 starts in 2006, 43 were behind the plate, where he is most comfortable. He was third on the team with a .368 batting average and 78 hits, behind Bourquin and Angle, and was named second-team All-Big Ten. Fryer, like Angle, DeLucia and Luebke, gained valuable experience last summer in the Cape Cod League. He finished with a .250 batting average, 23 hits and nine RBI.

"Eric Fryer is a tremendous worker and leader," Todd said. "He is definitely one of the best athletes on the team. He does a very good job handling the pitching staff and will hit in the middle of our lineup."

On the Mound
The strength of this team is its starting pitching. DeLucia, Luebke, Hale and Shuck accounted for 29 of the team's 37 wins last year, led by DeLucia. He was 10-2 as the team's Friday night starter, was a first-team All-Big Ten honoree and is a preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. He led the Big Ten in wins and innings pitched (108.0) and was ninth in the league with a 3.25 ERA.

"We are very comfortable with the leadership we are getting from Dan DeLucia," Todd, whose pitching staff led the Big Ten in ERA last season for the sixth time in his career, said. "He pitched No. 1 for us last year, which is very difficult to pitch the opening game of a series. I thought he handled it well. He was excellent on Friday night with his poise and competitiveness.

"We're happy that we have Cory Luebke back, who is very talented and has a world of potential. Last year, he was drafted in the 22nd round by the Texas Rangers and realized what was best for him was to come back to school. Obviously, we are happy and agree with that decision."

Luebke was 7-6 and managed a 3.38 EA and 65 strikeouts in 85.1 innings and earned third-team All-Big Ten honors. He pitched seven complete games, albeit during doubleheaders.

The other two spots in the rotation belong to sophomores Hale and Shuck. Hale also was used in the seven-inning doubleheader games and tossed three complete games. He finished 4-5 with a 3.38 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 64.0 innings. Shuck led the Buckeyes with a 2.51 ERA and was 8-5 as the team's No. 4 starter. Shuck, a second-team all-Big Ten selection, won five games before his first loss and won his first two conference games.

"I see our starting pitching with some talent and a lot of potential," Todd said. "But our bullpen needs to be a whole lot better than it was last year if we are going to be successful. As I look back at last year's team, maybe the one Achilles' heel might have been middle relief. We have good competition on our staff."

Sophomore left-hander Josh Barrera and redshirt freshmen lefthanders Eric Best and Brad Hays, along with freshmen Josh Edgin and Theron Minium, will be the team's middle relievers in 2007. Barrera was 3-1 with a 4.42 ERA in 14 appearances last year as a rookie. After that, Todd will turn to closers Trey Fausnaugh and Rory Meister. Fausnaugh made 15 appearances, while Meister made six saves in 29 appearances.

"They are another year older and more experienced and we expect them to improve on last year's performances," Todd said.

Team Captains
Ohio State elected four captains following the conclusion of the fall season in October. The team re-elected seniors Dan DeLucia and Jacob Howell, who served as captains in 2006. They also elected juniors Matt Angle and Eric Fryer. Ryan Dew and Brian DeLucia were elected freshmen captains.

Newcomers
Ohio State welcomed 14 new faces in the fall and all but one are freshmen. Right-handed pitcher Darren Sizemore, a sophomore from Hamilton, Ohio (Ross), transferred from Georgetown University. He joined freshmen pitchers Josh Edgin (Three Springs, Pa./Mercersburg Academy), Theron Minium (New Cumberland, Pa./Cedar Cliff), Eric Shinn (Pinehurst, N.C./Pinecrest), Jared Strayer (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) and Dean Wolosiansky (Uniontown, Ohio/Green). The group also included two catchers: Nathan Grove (Canal Fulton, Ohio/Central Catholic) and D.J. Hanlin (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington); four infielders: Brian DeLucia (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Watterson), Cory Kovanda (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne), Cory Rupert (Mansfield, Ohio/Mansfield Madison) and Matt Streng (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington); and two outfielders: Brad Brookbank (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Xavier) and Ryan Dew (Croton, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne).

Preseason Rankings
Preseason publications are taking note of Ohio State. Of the four major polls, the Buckeyes received mention by two. Collegiate Baseball ranked Bob Todd's 20th Buckeye team 40th in its preseason Top 40 poll, while Baseball America ranked Ohio State 47th in its preseason Top 50 poll. Ohio State received votes in the Top 35 poll by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and in the USA Today/ESPN coaches Top 25 poll. Many of the services pick Ohio State to finish first or second in the Big Ten and to earn a regional bid. PGCrosschecker.com ranked the Buckeyes 30th in its preseason Top 100.

Preseason Awards
Dan DeLucia was named a third-team preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. Last year, DeLucia was Ohio State's first 10-game winner since 1999 and led the Big Ten with his 10-2 record and 108 innings pitched. The first-team All-Big Ten selection managed a 3.25 earned run average and limited opposing batters to a .255 average. DeLucia maintains a 19-10 career record and his 3.80 career ERA is the 13th best in school history. DeLucia was joined by teammate J.B. Shuck on the preseason watch list for the Brooks Wallace Award, the College Baseball Foundation's player of the year award. Shuck was Ohio State's ninth player to earn Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors last year when he went 8-5 and managed a team-best 2.51 ERA in 15 appearances. His eight victories equaled the second best total by any league pitcher and his ERA was the fourth best. The pair also appears on the preseason watch list for the Roger Clemens Award, which goes to the college baseball pitcher of the year.