Pepperdine Baseball Summer League Update
9/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
MALIBU, Calif. - The Boys in Blue and Orange are back on campus attending classes and getting back in shape for an upcoming 2010 season that's a little over five months away (it will be here before you know it). But before the Waves' 40-man roster begins individual workouts and full team practices, let's take one last glance at their summertime accomplishments.
From the Cape Cod League: Sophomore Cole Cook (Los Angeles, Calif./Palisades Charter HS) finished the summer with a 1-2 record, 4.72 ERA and 25 strikeouts through six starts (eight appearances) for the 25-17 Orleans Firebirds. In recognition of his efforts, Cook was one of two Firebirds to receive the Harry Hossfeld Spirit Award for hard work, sportsmanship, leadership and courage.
Orleans reached the playoffs where it won its first-round game, 4-3, over the Chatham Anglers, but were then swept out of the postseason in two games by the eventual league champion Bourne Braves.
From the Hawai'i Collegiate Baseball League: Sophomores Ricky Villarreal (Edinburg, Texas/Edinburg HS) and Tyler Brubaker (Valencia, Calif./Saugus HS) helped the Waimea Waves post the league's best regular season record at 25-10, but were swept in two games in a best-of-three Championship Series by the Waikiki Surfers.
Brubaker batted .303 and finished the summer with a league-best 14 doubles. He also was ranked among the league's top-five leaders in slugging percentage (.484), runs scored (29), RBI (27) and total bases (59).
Villarreal appeared in 13 games, including five starts and posted a 2-1 record with a 4.71 earned-run average. He struck out 20 batters in 36.1 innings pitched and combined with two other teammates on a 9-0 shut out vs. Kamuela.
From the Jayhawk League: Sophomore Torrey Jacoby (Camarillo, Calif./Notre Dame (Ariz.) Prep) and the Liberal (Kan.) BeeJays placed third at the National Baseball Congress (NBC) World Series in Wichita. Liberal posted a 5-2 record during the two-week tournament.
Jacoby batted .324 during the regular season with two home runs and 16 RBI. He also scored 25 runs and clubbed nine doubles. Liberal finished the regular season at 28-18 (18-14 in the Jayhawk League).
From the New York Collegiate Baseball League: The Saratoga (N.Y.) Phillies, which featured three Waves on its 2009 roster: sophomore Brad Jesernig(Olympia, Wash./Capital HS), junior Keven Inman (Bakersfield, Calif./Garces HS) and sophomore Miles Silverstein (Calabasas, Calif./Bell Canyon HS), finished third in the East Division at 19-22. The Phillies later dropped their first-round playoff series vs. the Glen Falls Golden Eagles.
In the playoffs, Inman pitched a total of 3.2 innings of scoreless relief with three strikeouts.
Both Jesernig and Silverstein made the All-Star Team. Silverstein batted .250 this summer with 12 runs, five RBI and three stolen bases, while Jesernig converted eight saves with 10 strikeouts through 12.0 innings pitched and a 3.38 ERA. Jesernig, who led the Phillies with 14 appearances out of the bullpen, also complete four shutout victories. Inman finished second to Jesernig with 13 appearances.
From the Northwoods League: Sophomore Aaron Gates (Villa Park, Calif./Orange Lutheran HS) and junior Matt Bywater (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Thousand Oaks HS) were part of a La Crosse (Wis.) Loggers team that finished as the runner-ups to Rochester at the Northwoods League Championship Series. La Crosse won the South Division title at 41-27, which was the second best overall record in the league.
Gates, a Northwoods League All-Star, batted .375 (6-for-16) with two home runs and five RBI through four playoff games. During the regular season, Gates hit .283 at the plate with six round-trippers and 30 runs driven in, and on the mound, delivered a 3.50 earned-run average with 29 strikeouts.
Bywater appeared in eight games, making two starts, and struck out 21 batters in just over 20 innings of work.
Sophomore Brian Humphries (El Cajon, Calif./Granite Hills HS) played for the St. Cloud (Minn.) River Bats, where he batted .264 with 22 RBI, 10 doubles, two triples and two home runs. He finished his summer by recording at least one hit over his last 13 games as St. Cloud finished with a 19-15 record during the second half of the season.
From the Prospect League: Sophomores Nate Johnson (Camarillo, Calif./Camarillo HS), Ryan Van Amburg (Campbell, Calif./St. Francis HS) and Cody Yount (Paradise Valley, Ariz./Chaparral HS) were part of a Danville (Ill.) Dan team that finished the summer on a seven game winning streak and were winners in 9 of its last 10 games. Despite their torrid finish, the Dans finished 2.5 games behind the eventual Prospect League Champion Quincy (Ill.) Gems.
Johnson, a Prospect League All-Star, batted .256 with four home runs, 24 runs and 29 RBI through 43 games, while Van Amburg hit .257 with two home runs, 11 RBI and six stolen bases.
Yount drove in nine runs with all 24 of his base hits going for singles. He also made two appearances on the mound, totaling 1.2 innings of relief and a 0.00 ERA.
From the Southern California Collegiate Baseball Association: Sophomores Mike Hole and Casey Rhoades and senior Colin Rooney (Yorba Linda, Calif./Esperanza HS) all played for the Trombly Thunder, which tied the East L.A. Dodgers for fifth place with an overall record of 13-17. No on-line stats were provided by the Thunder.
From the Western Baseball Association: Senior Ryan Heroy (Henderson, Nev./Green Valley HS) drove in two runs on two hits for the San Diego Waves during a short three-game stay at the NBC World Series. The Waves finished the regular season with a 31-21-1 overall record and a 13-6-1 record in league play. In 21 games with the San Diego club, Heroy batted .313 with eight doubles.
From the Western Coast League: Sophomore transfer Chris Amezquita, a third baseman for the Bellingham (Wash.) Bells, was ranked as the West Coast League's No. 6 prospect by Baseball America. Amezquita hit .237 for a Bells team that finished third in the Western Division at 22-26. Amezquita last season played at UCLA, where he batted .259 with one home run and nine RBI in 58 at-bats.
