Trojans Have Big Shoes to Fill Offensively

2011 Baseball Media Guide | 2011 Season Preview

During the 2010 season, the Troy Trojans ranked as one of the top run producing teams in all of college baseball.

The Trojans averaged 8.5 runs per game thanks, in large part, to an average of 1.64 home runs per game. Those numbers ranked 20th and ninth in the nation, respectively.

As the start of the 2011 season nears, the Trojans must find a way to replace more than half of that production. Only senior All-American Adam Bryant (23) returns from the group of five players who blasted double-figure homers last year.

Gone are Ryan Ditthardt (18), Steven Felix (16), Miles Hoyle (12) and Chase Whitley (10). That quartet accounted for more than half of the Trojans' homers last year.

The new season will see the debut of an almost entirely new starting cast for Troy who will be looking for new ways to score runs. That is especially true as the result of changes to the NCAA mandated specifications placed on bat manufacturers for the coming year.

Trojans head coach Bobby Pierce, who is entering his ninth season in Troy, said the change in the lineup combined with the change in the equipment leaves many questions unanswered for the new season.

“Without the opportunity to practice with the new equipment, I think everyone across the country is asking the same questions,” Pierce said. “We may rely on the long ball and the extra-base hits more than the next guy, so the adjustment might be more severe for us, but we don't know that yet.”

With the great unknown hanging out there, the Trojans must proceed on the information they do have. What they do know is there will be new starters at all three outfield positions, both corner infield spots and at designated hitter. Most of those spots are normally occupied by run-producers.

The Trojans also know that they will be solid up the middle, both offensively and defensively. With Bryant back at short, senior T.J. Rivera back at second base and senior Todd McRae returning behind the plate, the Trojans have a solid base of experience to build around.

Bryant is the headliner, even though he did not hit at all during the fall while recovering from off-season shoulder surgery.

“We did not allow him to hit live during the fall simply from a cautionary standpoint,” Pierce said. “I was convinced he was healthy and was ready to swing live, but he is a four-year starter, a senior, an All-American and preseason All-American, why take that chance when he was going to have another couple of months to strengthen the shoulder and make sure? All indications are that he is 100 percent ready to go. He feels great.”

Bryant was a stalwart for the Trojans last spring, hitting .356 with 23 homers and 65 RBI while, at the same time, playing almost flawless defense. The fact that he did all of that with a bad shoulder, and that he played in all 61 games, makes the numbers even more remarkable.

The obvious question is, what can he possibly do better this spring?

“The only area that he could improve, because when you look at last year, across the board he was terrific, maybe stealing a bag or two,” Pierce said. “He is capable of doing that, but last year we chose not to because of the labrum issue.

“Coming off a season like last year, with the new bat in place, there is going to be a reduction of numbers. Even if we were using the old bats, I don't know that you can ask a player to repeat that type of season. Defensively, he is such a good player that I know he is going to play well at shortstop, but I don't expect him to go through another season with just three errors.”

Rivera will be back with Bryant in the middle infield. The duo got off to a great start defensively in 2010 but wound up sacrificing some of that teamwork later in the year as Rivera played more at third base. The Bronx native also struggled later in the season with some lower back problems that likely cut into his offensive production.

“T.J. has worked very hard with our athletic trainer Sean Boland, who does an outstanding job,” Pierce said. “He has also worked hard with our strength and conditioning staff, which is now headed up by J.D. Pruitt, who is outstanding. I know he has put the work in to get past those nagging problems. It is a long season, and I don't know that he will make it without any issues, but I can say he has put the work in to, hopefully, eliminate them.”

Rivera saw his batting average slip below the .300 mark late in the season as his back problems limited his production, but he finished the year hitting .295 with eight homers and 51 RBI while putting in solid work defensively at both second and third base. He'll be back at second this spring.

“T.J. is a fantastic player and is a guy we really like in our program,” Pierce said. “He is a guy who is committed to doing his work on a daily basis. You don't see T.J. going through a lot of highs and lows because he is very consistent with his approach. I thought T.J. did an outstanding job last year. He stayed focused on getting better every day and we are looking forward to that approach paying off for him this year.”

The third returning starter this spring is McRae, a senior catcher who was an offensive surprise last year. Going into last season, the Troy coaches knew what they were going to get defensively, but had no idea that McRae would hit .354 with 32 RBI.

“The more you get to know Todd the more you understand that he is at the top of the chart in terms of his work ethic and commitment,” Pierce said. “He is always around the ball park. He is a tremendous student-athlete who does all of his work in the classroom and then spends every spare minute with his gear on or a bat in his hand.”

While McRae did not produce a lot of extra-base hits, he pounded hit after hit right up the middle of the field. Late in the season his hot hitting produced a streak where he hit safely in 21 of 25 games, raising his batting average an incredible 149 points during the streak.

This year McRae will be focused on producing more doubles and driving in more runs.

“We were very impressed with the year Todd had in 2010,” Pierce said. “He is a good hitter who has worked hard to improve. I feel certain that his extra-base numbers will go up this year because of the work he has done to produce that. He is a tough out. He knows the strike zone and he competes hard. He is a winner.”

In addition to what he brings to the table offensively, McRae also gives the Troy pitching staff the confidence to throw just about any pitch in any count or in any situation. His presence behind the plate last year helped the Trojans cut their wild pitches from 59 in 2009 to just 27 last year. He also allowed just one passed ball, which came during the Sun Belt Tournament at the end of the year.

“His defensive skills get him in the talks of possibly getting an opportunity to play professionally because of what he does behind the plate,” Pierce said. “He cut our wild pitch numbers in half and our pitchers are very comfortable with him. He is one of the few guys I have coached at the college level who I would be comfortable with calling his own game.”

McRae will be backed up by senior Jacob Dixon as well as freshman Zach Siegel.

The Trojans have two other returning offensive players who are expected to take on bigger roles this spring. Junior outfielder Daniel Peterson, who has had to constantly battle pain from a leg injury in 2008, will be in the rotation in center field and junior Blake Martz will be a middle of the order bat, primarily as the designated hitter. He will also spend some time behind the plate while playing first base as well.

Peterson saw action in 38 games last spring, primarily as a late inning defensive replacement in the outfield. He hit .333 in just 72 at bats, but will be counted on to see more action this year.

“Daniel had a great fall and really made strides,” Pierce said. “He is such a great student. He took and passed the MCAT over the summer, and has been accepted into medical school. When he came back in the fall you could see there was a huge burden that had been lifted off of him, which has allowed him to focus a little more on the athlete part of student-athlete. He has always done it the right way in a tough curriculum, but now you can see that he is enjoying himself and is much more relaxed as a player.”

The key to Peterson having success is to manage the number of consecutive games he plays.

“The injury he suffered a couple of years back has left some residual pain,” Pierce said. “He is a tough kid and he battles through it, but at his position, center field, it is hard to play at 75 percent. He is pretty good at 75 percent, but we will have to keep a close eye on him to keep him at 100 percent as much as possible.”

Martz has shown flashes of the type of offensive production that was expected of him when he came to Troy. A knee injury in 2009 cut his season short and a senior laden team last spring hampered his chance to be an everyday player. Still, he batted .294 in 126 at bats with 12 doubles and three homers.

“Blake hasn't had the big year we know he is capable of,” Pierce said. “He is a guy this team really needs to be a part of the middle of the order. It is his turn and his time. He is certainly more prepared, both mentally and physically, to take over that role and produce the RBI numbers he is capable of.”

The Trojans have a pair of players who were in the program last year, but redshirted, who are expected to be every day players this year.

Junior Tyler Hannah originally signed with Tennessee out of Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, but transferred to Troy and had to sit out last year, per NCAA rule. A shortstop by trade, the Gardendale, Ala., native will play third base this year with Bryant anchored at short. Sophomore Logan Pierce, the youngest son of the Trojans' head coach, will back Hannah at third, but will also be part of a three-man platoon at first base with Martz and freshman Kyle Brown.

“Tyler is a fine defensive player at third, short or second but, with Adam and T.J. returning, we need to keep that combination in place,” Pierce said. “He played all summer and did some really good things offensively, but he had some oblique issues that kept him out some of the fall. The times he was out there he did great things both offensively and defensively. I certainly feel very good about his ability to play third base and I think he will be a fine offensive player for us this year. Looking ahead, Tyler will probably return to shortstop for his senior season.”

With Hannah limited somewhat during the fall by the oblique injury, Logan Pierce spent most of his time playing third base. The Trojans' coach said that even though first base is a relatively new position for his son, he feels good about the combination of players that will work to replace departed senior Ryan Ditthardt.

“It is always difficult to replace great players and Ryan Ditthardt certainly was a great player in our program,” the elder Pierce said. “He was a consistent run producer who did great things, both offensively and defensively. We don't think we can ask one player to take right up where Ryan left off, but the guys we do have we believe will do a good job for us over there.

“Logan had a good fall,” Bobby Pierce said. “He played well defensively at first base, although only seeing limited time there. With Tyler having the oblique problem, we had to play Logan at third to keep intra-squads rolling. I wanted Logan to get more reps at first but, when he was at first, he made good decisions and made all of the routine defensive plays. He had a good offensive fall. With our limited number of left-handed bats, that plays to his advantage.”

The Trojans coach said that having the opportunity to coach his own son is unique, but not something completely foreign in college baseball. He said he has spoken to others who have coached their sons to get an idea of what to expect.

“I'd say initially, it was more difficult than I would have thought,” the elder Pierce said. “Everyone who I talked to who has been through this said the relationship becomes more rewarding as their sons careers in college come to a close. It is more rewarding than I could have imagined because of the extra time I get to spend with him. I think both of us have settled in to the point where I am just his baseball coach when we are on the field and he is just another player on the team. That approach appears to be working well for both of us.”

Brown is a two-way player who will be a third option at first base and DH this year, but will see time on the mound in the future. Redshirt freshman Tyler Vaughn provides depth up the middle on the infield.

With the exception of Peterson, the Trojans will employ and entirely new outfield this spring. A total of nine players came out of fall practice with a chance to see playing time this spring and the battle for starting jobs at two of the three positions are still up for grabs.

Pensacola native Boone Shear, a junior from L.B. Wallace CC, came out of the fall in a solid position as a starter in left. The job in center will be shared by Peterson and junior Tyson Workman while the right field spot will be between juniors Josh McDorman and Drew Prichard. A pair of redshirt freshmen – Ali Knowles and Hayden Hillyer – along with true freshmen Clay Holcomb and Jeremy McGowan are also waiting in the wings should an opportunity arise.

The biggest issue for the Troy coaches to figure out is how to best use Workman, who is a natural middle infielder. His work with the bat in the fall showed he is ready to be a contributor on offense, which is why he has also worked in the outfield. Compounding the situation is that Workman is also a strong candidate to replace Chase Whitley as the Trojans' closer.

“Tyson is a very disciplined hitter who could leadoff if we chose to go that direction,” Pierce said. “Tyson knows how to play the game and the tougher the game gets, the better he gets. He is very versatile. When we look at Tyson, it will be hard for him not to be in the lineup, so we are looking at how best to get him into the lineup every day. It is more a matter of where he will be in the lineup versus if he will be in the lineup.”

Shear will open the season in left, if his health allows him to play.

“He had a very good fall even though he has some issues that he came in with in his shoulder and neck area,” Pierce said. “He has been seeing a physical therapist for it and it is a come and go type of thing. When it comes on, he can't play and can barely sit. He is a hard-working player, very competitive. He will be a middle of the order player for us as long as he is healthy.”

Should Shear be unable to play because of his neck problems, Knowles and McGowan are in line as his backup. Knowles, who is also a pitcher, redshirted last year after elbow surgery. He is still not ready to work on the mound, but will see playing time in the outfield.

“He is our most versatile and best defensive player in the outfield,” Pierce said of Knowles. “He is a switch-hitter who has not quite developed offensively, but he may be just opportunities away because he does compete well and he puts the ball in play. He has skills that we will utilize throughout the season.”

McGowan is also a two-way player who will eventually see action on the mound, but will likely only play in the outfield this year.

“He is a guy who really worked hard to improve his strength,” Pierce said. “He came in as a primary pitcher, secondary position player but we really didn't know which would develop. He did some things offensively in the fall that were better than we anticipated.”

The battle for the starting job in right between McDorman and Prichard will likely continue into the spring and may turn into a left/right platoon situation. Hillyer and Holcomb will provide depth, with Holcomb a potential candidate to redshirt.

“The surprise of the fall camp was Josh McDorman, who showed good power in his bat and hitting ability above and beyond what we thought coming in,” Pierce said. He has definitely put himself in position to have the opportunity to play and produce for this years' team.

“Drew Prichard is even with, or slightly behind, Josh. He is one of our few left-handed hitting options. He was a tremendous offensive player in junior college and we expect Drew to contribute in our lineup.”

Pierce said that even though there are so many new faces on the club, the coaches came out of the fall with a good idea about who will play this spring.

“It was a productive fall,” Pierce said. “I was very pleased with the way they worked in the weight room as well as on the field. With all of the new faces, there are sure to be changes and there will certainly be a larger number of people who will get opportunities during the early part of the season to see how the lineup develops.

“Several guys performed very well during the fall, and that gives us a lot of reason to be optimistic about the upcoming season. We knew we were going to have pretty heavy turnover, so we recruited the junior colleges fairly heavily. We are very comfortable with what we will put out there defensively in the infield and we will utilize several guys in the outfield until we find the right mix of players.”

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.

For more in depth previews of the 2011 Trojans, return to www.TroyTrojans.com for a complete pitching preview as well as a preview of the 2011 Sun Belt Conference race.

Troy University Athletics

Trojans Have Big Shoes to Fill Offensively

Related News

Related Videos