HPU baseball 2016 season preview
Senior Scot Hoffman throws out a pitch during an opening season game. Photo by: HighPointPanthers.com
By Collin Giuliani // Staff Writer
After finishing last season with a 29-26 record (fifth in the Big South), the High Point University baseball team enters the 2016 season as one of the favorites to win the conference.
The team came in fourth place in the preseason polls, finishing behind Liberty, Winthrop and Coastal Carolina; the near-unanimous favorite to win the conference.
For the Panthers, junior outfielder Josh Greene was voted the Big South Preseason Player of the Year and he returns after leading the Panthers in batting average (.355), home runs (7), hits (66), RBI (37) and stolen bases (13). Greene has become the first player in HPU history to be named Big South Preseason Player of the Year.
With regards to batting, the Panthers have undergone a major roster turnover and will be fielding a somewhat inexperienced side this year. Of the 10 players last season with over 100 at bats, only four players return this year; including Greene, sophomore outfielder Carson Jackson, sophomore infielder Hunter Lee and junior infielder Chris Clare.
This inexperience is highlighted at the catcher. After Josh Spano graduated, there is some uncertainty as to who will be behind the plate. Three of the catchers on the roster are freshmen and the three that aren’t did not receive a significant number of plate appearances last season.
Last season, HPU finished with a team earned run average (ERA) of 3.65, the second best total in the Big South. The Panthers return much of the rotation that helped contribute to that total. Three of the four pitchers that pitched 45 or more innings last season (John McGillicuddy, Andre Scrubb and Scot Hoffman) return for the 2016 season.
Additionally, redshirt-senior Joe Goodman, who led the Panthers in saves last season with six, returns as well.
The Panthers started the season off this past weekend with a three-game series against UNCG. The first game in the Big South is on March 18, when the Panthers begin a three-game series on the road at UNC Asheville.
The Big South Tournament will take place from May 24-28 in Lexington, South Carolina, making it the first Big South Tournament to ever take place at a true neutral site.
After being eliminated from last year’s tournament by Coastal Carolina, the Panthers will be looking to win the Big South for the first time in school history this year.