50. AUBURN

2008 RECORD. Overall: 28-28. Conference: 11-19 / 5^th in SEC (West).

Coach: John Pawlowski (1^st season at Auburn ; 338-192 overall in 9 seasons).

First Game, 2009: Feb. 20 vs. No. 45 Elon.

 

OVERVIEW: After a successful nine-year run as the coach at the College of Charleston , John Pawlowski takes over an Auburn program that has not had a winning SEC record since 2003. Pawlowski inherits a team loaded with impressive young talent. Six sophomores are expected to start in the field, including Tony Caldwell who will fill in behind the plate for injured senior Ryan Jenkins, who fractured his hand in a scrimmage game just prior to the start of the season. Jenkins, the lone senior scheduled to start, was expected to be lost for the first month of the season. Red-shirt junior Paul Burnside, who was Auburn’s ace in 2007 as a sophomore before he broke his collarbone just prior to the 2008 season and went on to pitch five ineffective innings a year ago, returns to a starting role, adding a veteran presence on the pitching staff. In the end, Auburn will go as far as its talented sophomore class takes it. 1B Hunter Morris won SEC freshman-of-the-year honors last year and 1B-turned-OF Kevin Patterson has all the raw ability to match Hunter’s performance. Both players are projected first-rounders in 2010.

 

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

C: Ryan Jenkins, Sr. (.233-1-18).

1B: Hunter Morris (3), So. (*.351-11-49).

2B: Justin Hargett, So. (.278-1-18).

3B: Joseph Sanders (4), Jr. (.348-6-*52, 12 SB).

SS: Casey McElroy, Fr. (HS—Orlando, Fla.).

LF: Brian Fletcher, So. (.324-10-42).

CF: Trent Mummey (1), So. (.305-4-23, 18 SB).

RF: Kevin Patterson, So. (.255-5-26).

DH: Tony Caldwell, So. (.270-0-10).

1/Starter: Grant Dayton , So. (*7-2, 3.89, *81 IP/*79 SO).

2/Starter: Paul Burnside, Jr. (0-0, 11.81, 5 IP/4 SO)).

3/Starter: Taylor Thompson, Jr. (3-6, 6.28, 62 IP/51 SO).

Closer: Scott Shuman, Jr. (2-2, 6.07, 0 SV, 30 IP/18 SO).

 

BEST TOOLS

Best Athlete: Trent Mummey.

Best Overall Hitter: Hunter Morris.

Best Power Hitter: Kevin Patterson.

Best Strike-Zone Discipline: Justin Hargett.

Fastest Base Runner (60 time): Trent Mummey (6.7 seconds).

Best Base Runner: Trent Mummey.

Best Defender: Ryan Jenkins.

Best Infield Arm: Joe Sanders.

Best Outfield Arm: Trent Mummey.

Best Fastball (velocity): Scott Shuman (94 mph).

Best Breaking Ball: John Luke Jacobs.

Best Changeup: Miles Morton.

Best Command: Grant Dayton.

 

TOP FRESHMAN PROSPECT: Dexter Price, rhp. A 43^rd-round pick of the Milwaukee Brewers out of a Colorado high school in 2008, Price is very projectable at 6-foot-6 and 200 pounds. He already has a good overall feel for pitching with a quality array of off-speed pitches.

TOP SOPHOMORE PROSPECT: Hunter Morris, 1b / Kevin Patterson, 1b-of. The highest unsigned high-school selection in the 2007 draft (Red Sox, second round), Morris had high expectations when he enrolled at Auburn and lived up to them as a freshman. He is a polished lefthander hitter with above-average power potential. Patterson was on par with Morris as an Alabama prep prospect, and his selection in the 24^th-round of the same draft was all about signability. He didn’t come close to matching Morris’ performance as a freshman, but he has a pure home-run swing from the left side and his true power potential began to emerge last summer in the Cape Cod League. He just needs to be more consistent at the plate, but is in line for a breakout season. Both players are most at home at first base because they have limitations defensively, but Patterson took a crash-course in right-field play in the fall and it remains to be seen how the experiment will work out.

TOP JUNIOR PROSPECT: Joseph Sanders, 3b. Sanders showed consistent gap power while posting batting averages of .333 and .348 in his first two years at Auburn . Versatile enough with the hands and arm strength to play any infield position except shortstop, Sanders will switch this season from second base to third. With the hot corner more of a traditional power position, Sanders will be expected to increase his home-run output and his ability to deliver the long ball more consistently will play a role in his chances of going in the early rounds of this year’s draft.

TOP SENIOR PROSPECT: Ryan Jenkins, c. Jenkins is known as a strong defensive catcher with good catch-and-throw ability. His steady presence behind the plate will be missed initially. Never much of an offensive threat, he added power to his game in the off-season and was expected to put up better numbers this spring, but his untimely injury may impact his ability to swing the bat when he returns.

--JEFF SIMPSON