Trojans Pin 2011 Hopes on Improved Pitching

2011 MEDIA GUIDE | GENERAL PREVIEW | OFFENSIVE PREVIEW | ALL-SBC RELEASE

Like most college baseball teams, the 2011 Troy Trojans will go as far this spring as their pitching staff takes them. With a new pitching coach in place, as well as a full stable of new arms, expectations for the season are very high – for both the pitching staff and the team.

Over the last two seasons the Trojans struggled at times on the mound. Major injuries to key components of the staff were major culprits to the clubs' pitching woes. While there is no way to avoid injuries, the Trojans have taken steps to reduce the devastating affect they can have.

“We went into the previous recruiting classes trying to build depth on our pitching staff,” head coach Bobby Pierce said. “We had thought we had done that in prior seasons, but some key injuries in places hurt us. We addressed that and then the injury bug hit us with some of our signees before they ever reported to Troy. We are still kind of working through some of that but, overall, I feel like our pitching depth has improved. We'll see how it all works out.”

One of the major steps toward improving the Trojans' pitching staff, which has posted a combined ERA of 5.90 over the four seasons since winning the Sun Belt title in 2006, was the hiring of Brad Phillips as the teams' pitching coach. Phillips, who served as a volunteer assistant coach at Troy in 2002-03, has been a successful high school coach over the past six seasons.

“Brad is a guy I have had my eye on for a long time,” Pierce said. “I watched him develop as a coach and, when the opportunity came along, I was happy to give that opportunity to him. It was a very smooth transition to Brad, which I thought it would be since he had been in our program before. He has a calming demeanor for the pitching staff and I really like the way the staff has made a quick and easy transition.”

Phillips will have a mixture of veteran hurlers and newcomers to the program to work with this spring. He will also have a pitching staff that is much more balanced in terms of right-handers and left-handers. Of the 16 players expected to see time on the mound this spring, six are left-handed.

“We set out to create more depth on the mound and more left-handed depth, and we think that we accomplished both,” Pierce said.

The Trojans return a pair of veteran right-handers who have been through the battles in the Sun Belt Conference. Both junior Tyler Ray and senior Drew Hull will be among the teams' top hurlers again this year, even though both players sat out fall practice.

“Obviously, when we start talking pitching we start with Tyler Ray and Drew Hull,” Pierce said. “Tyler just needed to rest from a long summer, but I think that rest, and just coming out and soaking it in every day is going to be very good for him. I expect him to push his game to another level and I think he is prepared to do that.

“Drew is a lot like Tyler in that he has plenty of experience and has upped his work ethic. He is prepared, both mentally and physically, to take his game to a new level. Now, with the nagging ankle injury issue solved, I think Drew is primed to have a very good year.”

Ray was given the fall off after having worked more than 90 innings in posting an 8-4 record for the Trojans in 16 starts last spring. He followed that up during the summer by pitching in the Cape Cod League, where he logged almost 48 innings in nine games while posting a 4-4 record, including a victory in the league's All-Star game at Fenway Park, with a 3.78 ERA pitching against some of the top collegiate players from across the country.

Pierce said the experience of pitching in the Cape League was not only good for Ray from a competitive standpoint, but was also beneficial in terms of exposing him to those other top players.

“I think his summer showed him a lot,” Pierce said. “He played with a lot of top prospects, and he saw how hard they worked. I think that sent him a message about what he needs to be doing. It is not that he wasn't a hard worker before, but he has taken his work to a new level.

“We have been calling Tyler's name for a long time, but he is still just a junior and, a lot of times, it is that junior season when some guys really take off. He has the experience and has had the opportunities to go to the Cape and to pitch on Friday night. The combination of work and experience makes us believe Tyler will have another great year.”

Hull has pitched in a number of different roles for the Trojans during his career – starter, long relief, short relief – and he may be asked to do some of all three again during his senior season. He did miss the fall after having surgery for a nagging ankle injury but will be at full strength for the spring.

“I believe Drew will be ready and we have high expectations for him,” Pierce said. “He is so versatile that I have talked closing with him, we have talked about moving him around and we have talked weekend with him. He is okay with whatever helps the team the most. I have to believe that, if he takes his game to the level I think he will, we'll probably either go weekend or close. I also believe Drew is ready to elevate his performance to another level. When he is right, he is very good.”

The Trojans have two other veteran hurlers back this spring. Senior right-hander Nick Ward served last year in much the same role as Hull has in the past. He made 20 appearances during the season, seven of which were mid-week starts. Because of his versatility, he'll probably serve in multiple roles again. Junior left-hander A.J. Howard is still trying to battle back from an injury that cost him the entire 2009 season.

“Nick adjusted his arm slot to more of a three-quarter angle and his command has improved with that adjustment,” Pierce said. “He is throwing a really nice slider from that arm slot. He is a very versatile guy who is all about the team. He can do a lot of things to help us win games. He can spot start, he can work in middle relief and I wouldn't be afraid to close a game with him now that he is commanding the ball better. He will be a valuable member of the pitching staff.

“A.J. is a hard-working kid, who is continuing to work his way back. His velocity is beginning to return. He has improved his secondary stuff because he needed to. When his velocity does return and he has the power that he has relied on in his career, he has a chance to be really good.”

In addition to the veteran returners, the Trojans also have three sophomores back this year who saw action as true freshmen last spring.

Right-handers Thomas Austin and Cass Abercrombie became regulars out of the bullpen for the Trojans last year. Austin was second on the team, behind Whitley, with 23 appearances, all but one in relief. He posted a 4-1 record, but tired down the stretch, inflating his ERA to 7.11.

Abercrombie worked in 13 games, three as a starter, and showed flashes of brilliance. He had a 2-0 record, but posted a 9.16 ERA.

“Thomas Austin was truly remarkable for a stretch last year as a true freshman,” Pierce said. “He was coming off an arm angle adjustment that he did not make until January. It was a fairly natural adjustment for him, producing late sink on his fastball, that resulted in a high number of ground balls. Then he lost it, probably due to us over-using him, and we will take the blame for that. We believe Tom will continue to progress with his stamina and be a valuable middle reliever again this year.

“Cass Abercrombie has made a lot of progress and we have a lot of confidence in him. He also made a slight arm adjustment that looks to be paying off for him. He has a good arm and is a good athlete on the mound. He should have an opportunity to see more time on the mound and, as a sophomore, he should be prepared to take advantage of those opportunities.”

Both Austin and Abercrombie will likely serve in similar roles to what they did in 2010.

The other returning sophomore is left-hander Shane McCain, who opened last season as a member of the weekend starting rotation. In his fourth start of the year he started having elbow problems. After taking a month off to rest, he came back and was dominant against UAB in a tightly controlled pitch-count game. He made just one more appearance before surgery ended his season.

“Shane threw late in the fall and threw very well,” Pierce said. “He showed again why we liked him so much as a true freshman, prior to his elbow getting aggravated. He has poise, a lot of know-how and a lot of competitiveness. Now that he is healthy, I believe he will continue getting better with each opportunity.”

The rest of the Trojans' hurlers this spring are new to the program. Four of the nine others – Ryan Sorce, Jimmy Hodgskin, Garrett McHenry and Nathan Hill – are left-handers, giving the Trojans their best and deepest set of southpaws in years.

Sorce, the younger brother of former Troy closer Chris – now working as a starter in the Seattle Mariners organization – had a spectacular fall and is in position to be one of the weekend starters. His overall development and pitchability, after getting a medical redshirt last year, came as somewhat of a surprise.

“We were going to recruit Ryan out of high school but, in his senior year, he had to have a rib removed. My only experience with that particular surgery, the guy that had it never returned. So, we really didn't know what to do. He went to UWF and then transferred to Pensacola Junior College so that he could get to Troy. Last year, while at PJC, he had issues with tendonitis, resulting in a medical redshirt.”

With all of that in the past, Sorce is poised to have a breakout season for the Trojans.

“Ryan is also very competitive with a lot of know-how and has a lot of intent to succeed,” Pierce said. “I believe he will be a huge part of our pitching staff, a front of the rotation kind of guy. He could close for us and I would be very comfortable with that. He has weapons and he is fearless. Those guys find a way to get on the mound.”

With Sorce and Ray penciled into the weekend rotation, the Trojans have numerous options to fill the third spot. Both Hull and McCain are candidates, as is Hodgskin, who was one of the highest rated signees ever for the Troy program.

“You really don't like for a freshman to come in with those type of expectations, but Jimmy has handled it well,” Pierce said. “Like any young player coming in, he has experienced good things and also had a few outings he probably hasn't experienced before.

“We don't plan to start the season in a rush. We want to try to develop Jimmy at the right pace and I think we are fortunate to have enough pitching depth to do that. I would like to see Jimmy get involved early like Tyler and Shane did, progressing at the right pace. Jimmy has a very bright future because he is made of all the right stuff. He is a hard worker and is very committed to becoming the best that he can be. That will probably be sooner rather than later.”

The Trojans' weekend rotation will be determined in great part by the mix of right and left-handers who end up starting. If Ray and Sorce are joined by McCain or Hodgskin, then Sorce would likely go on Friday, to break up the rotation into a left-right-left combination. If Hull is the third starter, then Ray would be the Friday guy, for the same reason.

With a pair of four-game weekends early in the season, there will be plenty of chances to experiment with the rotation before Sun Belt play begins.

Besides the battle for starting jobs, the other big question for the Trojans is at closer, which is a spot Troy has enjoyed a lot of success with. Starting with Nate Moore in 2004, the Trojans have had a remarkable run of success at the end of games. Mike Felix (2006), Josh Dew (2006-07), Josh Storm (2008-09), Sorce (2009) and Whitley (2010) have allowed Troy to dominate the relief pitcher spot on the All-Sun Belt team.

That group is a big reason why Troy is 217-4 under Pierce when taking a lead into the ninth inning of games.

“With Chase Whitley out, and our tradition of being really good at the end of the game, that is the number one area of concern,” Pierce said.

Both Hull and Sorce could transition from starter to closer if the need arises, and Ward has experience at the end of games, but the leading candidate to fill that role could be junior Tyson Workman. In addition to potentially filling the closer role, Workman will also be in the lineup as an everyday starter.

“Tyson has end of the game experience and mentality,” Pierce said. “He could do more than that but, as an every day position player, we tend to go toward the back of the game with those guys.”

Several other newcomers to the Troy pitching staff will be expected to make significant contributions this spring. Sophomore right-handers William Teal, a Troy native, and Chris Fisher, along with freshmen Ivan Carter, who redshirted last spring, and Hunter Warren will be looking to find roles. Junior left-hander Garrett McHenry and sophomore lefty Nathan Hill will also be vying for spots.

“Teal and Fisher are both coming off Tommy John surgery,” Pierce said. “They were recruited to be a part of this years' pitching staff, but they had problems last year and wound up having surgery. Both of them are ahead of schedule on their rehab and are throwing very well in the bullpen. We expect them to be healthy and contribute at some point this year.

“McHenry was another pleasant surprise. He is a left-hander with good arm strength, a nice slider, is very competitive and is a good athlete. He can fill a lot of roles. He got better and better as the fall went on and has earned the right for his opportunities. There are a lot of roles open right now and there are a lot of guys who are going to be fighting for those roles. It is going to be very interesting to see how it all shakes out.”

Carter redshirted last year and has made strides and will be able to help the Trojans down the line. Warren and junior college transfer Josh Dozier, who had Tommy John surgery in the fall, will likely both redshirt this year.

Several other players were recruited as two-way players – Clay Holcomb, Jeremy McGowan, Kyle Brown, Ali Knowles and Josh McDorman – will focus on playing in the field and contributing offensively this year, but returns to the mound are not out of the question down the road.

The Trojans will open the 2011 season on Friday, February 18, against High Point. Season tickets are on sale now through the Troy University Athletics Ticket Office. Call 877-878-9467 for information on season tickets.

Troy University Athletics

Trojans Pin 2011 Hopes on Improved Pitching

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