Baseball Finalizes 2011 Recruiting Class

[Bogus Smith]

Baseball Finalizes 2011 Recruiting Class

TULSA—Oral Roberts baseball head coach Rob Walton has announced the signing of four student-athletes, completing the Golden Eagles’ 2011 recruiting class.

The new additions are: INF T.J. Bennett (Mesa (Ariz.) Red Mountain HS), RHP Matt Rush (Cypress College), RHP Tyler Sparks (Eastern (Okla.) State College) and RHP/C Joe Spring (Eastern (Okla.) State College). Those four join six student-athletes who signed last fall.

“Overall I’m pretty pleased with our recruiting efforts,” said Walton. “We lost a couple of guys to the draft and one to grades but we were able to plug some holes late in the spring and over the summer with some good players. Our recruiting class will help us compete and continue to better and grow the program.”

Two early signees – RHP Aaron Kurcz and 1B/LHP Art Charles – signed professional contracts after being drafted by the Chicago Cubs and Toronto, respectively. Additionally, draft-eligible sophomore RHP Dallas Beeler recently signed with Cubs after being selected in the 41st round in June.

Two other recruits, RHP Alexander Gonzalez (Boca Raton (Fla.) Community HS) and OF Brandon King (Fresno City College), were both drafted by Baltimore and have yet to sign. Players have until midnight on August 16 to sign with Major League clubs.

Here is a look at ORU’s four spring/summer signees:

T.J. Bennett * 6-2 * 200 * INF * Mesa, Ariz. (Red Mountain HS)

Three-year varsity letterwinner … left-handed hitting middle infielder batted .463 with 15 home runs and 46 RBI as senior in 33 games, earning second-team All-State honors … also named first-team all-region … named first-team all-region and honorable mention All-State as a junior after batting .488-4-13 in 24 games … hit .343 as a sophomore … comes from a strong baseball background … his father, Jim, has been a player and coach on the professional level for over 20 years while his grandfather, Bob, played in the Chicago White Sox system … chose ORU over Arizona, Arizona State, UC-Irvine and St. Mary’s ... says Walton: “T.J. is a really good young player with lots of upside. He can play second base, and third base, and could even fill in at shortstop in a pinch. He’s a good left-handed hitter with some power. It’s a plus for us to get young players like T.J., especially when you can surround him with the veterans we have returning next year.”

Matt Rush *6-2 * 220 * RHP * LaMirada, Calif. (Cypress College)

Played last two seasons at Cypress College in Cypress, Calif. … named first-team All-Orange Empire Conference in 2010 after going 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA in 19 appearances (3 starts) … tossed 37.1 innings and allowed 38 hits and 15 walks while striking out 47 batters … appeared in 20 games as a freshman, going 1-3 with five saves and a 3.82 ERA … allowed 35 hits and struck out 39 batters in 35.1 innings … played briefly this summer for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod League, allowing just one run and seven hits in 9.0 innings over two appearances … a 2008 graduate of LaMirada High School … was 2-4 with three saves and a 2.19 ERA as a senior for the Matadores … struck out 50 batters in 38.1 innings … also a standout football player as a wide receiver/linebacker, earning invitations to several Southern California all-star events … chose ORU over … says Walton: “Matt has a really good arm. He reminds me a lot of another Cypress product we had a few years ago: Erik Crichton. Matt could fill a number of roles for us, everything from starting to closing out games. He has a chance to make a big impact on our pitching staff.”

Tyler Sparks * 6-0 * 200 * RHP *Owasso, Okla. (Eastern (Okla.) State College)

Comes to ORU as a sophomore and with three seasons of eligibility remaining … spent 2010 playing for Aric Thomas at Eastern State College in Wilburton, Okla. … helped the Mountaineers to a No. 9 national ranking, a Region 2 championship and a 37-22 overall record … earned first-team all-region honors after going 9-4 with a 3.15 ERA … appeared in 16 games with 13 starts and tossed 80.0 innings … allowed 79 hits and 32 walks while striking out 69 batters … also named to the South Central District team … high school and junior college teammate of fellow signee Joe Spring … 2009 graduate of Owasso High School … helped lead the Rams to the 6A state championship, their third straight title … chose ORU over … says Walton: “Tyler gives us another quality arm. He’s coming off a really strong season at a very good junior college program. His fastball works at 90-91 miles per hour, and he’s a good breaking ball away from being an excellent pitcher. Losing Dallas Beeler hurt, but it opened the door for us to sign Tyler and we’re very pleased.”

Joe Spring * 6-1 * 200 * RHP * Owasso, Okla. (Eastern (Okla.) State College)

Played two seasons for Aric Thomas at Eastern State College in Wilburton, Okla. … helped the Mountaineers to a No. 9 national ranking, a Region 2 championship and a 37-22 overall record … served as the Mountaineers’ closer in 2010, going 4-0 with four saves and a 1.35 ERA in 15 relief appearances … struck out 27 batters and walked just seven in 33.1 innings … earned second-team all-region honors as a pitcher … also started 33 games at catcher, batting just .202-1-13 but was named Rawlings Region 2 Defensive Player of the Year and to the Rawlings Gold Glove team as the region’s top defensive catcher … high school and junior college teammate of fellow signee Tyler Sparks … 2008 graduate of state baseball power Owasso … helped lead the Rams to 6A state titles in 2007 and 2008 … selected to play in the 2008 Oklahoma Coaches Association All-State games … batted .324 as a senior … chose ORU over Oklahoma State, Coastal Carolina and Temple … says Walton: “Joe is fairly new to pitching but I think he has a great future. He’s 90-92 right now and could get better. He’s one of the most interesting guys I’ve seen in a while. He’s pretty good now but could be draftable by the end of his senior year. I know he doesn’t have a lot of experience but my gut tells me he’s going to be a good one. Once Joe’s able to focus all of his time on pitching, he’s going to get better and better.”

2011 ORU Baseball Recruiting Class

T.J. Bennett * INF *6-2 * 200 * Mesa, Ariz. (Red Mountain HS)

Brad Fisher * RHP * 6-6 * 230 * Tulsa, Okla. (Jenks HS)

Alex Gonzalez * RHP * 6-2 * 190 * Delray Beach, Fla. (Boca Raton Community HS)

Brandon King * OF * 5-11 * 190 * Hanford, Calif. (Fresno City College)

Joey Perez * RHP * 6-3 * 210 * Portland, Texas (John Paul II HS)

Matt Rush * RHP * 6-2 * 220 * LaMirada, Calif. (Cypress College)

Cam Schiller * INF * 6-1 * 180 * Prescott, Ariz. (Yavapai College)

Tyler Sparks * RHP * 6-0 * 200 * Owasso, Okla. (Eastern State College)

Joe Spring * C/RHP * 6-1 * 200 * Owasso, Okla. (Eastern State College)

[Bogus Smith]

From the Orioles Insider about Alexander Gonzalez (just sounds like a baseball name):

11th round: Alexander Gonzalez, RHP, Boca Raton Community (Fla.) H.S.

• The South Florida Sun Sentinel's Christy Cabrera Chirinos talks about Gonzalez's connection to another 2010 draft pick of the Orioles.

Gonzalez went 4-6 with a 2.48 ERA this season. But he struck out 69 batters in 65 innings pitched and performed well during summer ball, earning the attention of Orioles scouts who came to watch one of his teammates -- highly touted Miami Brito shortstop and FIU signee Manny Machado.

Machado was selected by the Orioles with the third overall pick.

"The Orioles had their whole staff come to watch him and I pitched that game and they saw me," Gonzalez said. "I'm happy and I knew something good was going to come out of the draft."

• Cristina Ledra of The Palm Beach Post discusses Gonzalez's expected timetable for a decision on whether to sign with the Orioles or play in college at Oral Roberts.

Gonzalez said the Orioles called him before the 10th round but ended up taking him in the 11th, which is about where he was hoping to go. He added that he would take the summer to weigh his options before making a decision on whether to sign or go to college.

[MrsSmith]

so who didn't make grades?

[Former SID]

One of the fall signees...

[ORUTerry]

I like the local flavor of this recruiting class.....

[tmh8286]

I like the local flavor of this recruiting class.....

There also is a freshman walk-on from Jenks that will be on the team - the son or a good friend of ours, Terry.

[TrueBlue82]

And in a separate thread, it certainly sounded like Brandon King was a strong candidate to show up in Tulsa to enroll at ORU. Classes start next Thursday (8/12), so we should know for sure very soon.