The SJU baseball team begins its 2010 season with a pair of games this Wednesday, Feb. 24, against NCAA Division II Concordia-St. Paul. The doubleheader is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. - Live Stats | Listen Live (CSP)
Preview Video:
-Head Coach Jerry Haugen (3:13)
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Optimism. That is what the 2010 Saint John's University baseball team is full of as it begins its season with nine returning starters and six freshmen that earned All-State or Lions All-Star honors last spring.
The Johnnies had a “rebuilding” year in 2009 as they replaced 12 graduated seniors with the help of six underclassmen, four of whom made their collegiate debuts. SJU finished 7-13 in the MIAC and 12-20 overall, including eight losses by three runs or less.
Head coach Jerry Haugen enters his 33rd season four wins shy of 600 with a 596-519-5 (.534) career record.
The Johnnies are also optimistic in regards to their 2010 schedule, as they are guaranteed to play 38 games this season (barring weather during their spring trip to Arizona); a far cry from the 65 games over the last two seasons.
Here's a pre-season look at the Johnnies, by position:
Outfielders
The Johnnies return senior Andrew Gurbada (Royalton, Minn.), junior Aaron Traut (St. Cloud, Minn./Rocori) and sophomore Matt Boys (Eden Prairie, Minn./Minnetonka) to the outfield this season. Gurbada started 28 games for the Johnnies and ended the season with a .305 batting average with 21 RBI. Traut saw action in 22 games and posted a .258 batting average with eight RBI. Boys started 29 games for the Johnnies and finished the season with 15 RBI and an on-base percentage of .398. He also stole 10 bases and had a perfect fielding percentage.
Senior Nathaniel Jimenez (Trinidad, Colo./Holy Trinity) and sophomores Jimmy Loonan (Waseca, Minn.) and Luke Sweeter (Sartell, Minn./Sartell-St. Stephen) will add depth to the outfield in 2010. Jimenez batted .290 in eight starts, while Loonan played in 18 games for the Johnnies and finished with eight RBI, two home runs and a .472 slugging percentage last spring.
The Johnnies also add some more depth to the outfield with Lions All-Star Ian Goldsmith (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) and All-State selection Alex Powell (Hopkins, Minn.), both freshman.
Infielders
The infielders will be led by junior shortstop Matt Butorac (Maple Grove, Minn.), who returns after leading the Johnnies in eight batting categories as a sophomore last spring. He finished with a .398 batting average (39-for-98), 28 RBI, 12 doubles, four home runs, 65 total bases and a .663 slugging percentage.
Junior first baseman Kyle Henkemeyer (Sauk Rapids, Minn./Sauk Rapids-Rice) returns at first base after starting all 30 games in 2009. He batted .326 with 11 RBI.
Senior second baseman Joe Eiden (Maple Grove, Minn./Totino-Grace) and sophomore third baseman Bert Marsnik (Annandale, Minn.) also return for SJU. Eiden batted .284 with 15 RBI and five stolen bases while playing second base in 2009, while Marsnik (Annandale, Minn.) finished second on the team with a .361 batting average and 15 RBI as a freshman.
Senior Mitch Faust (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) and juniors Andrew Hengel (Bemidji, Minn.), Jack Ries (Shoreview, Minn./Totino-Grace and Eric Smith (Rogers, Minn.) will provide depth throughout the infield.
Freshman Max Forster (Hopkins, Minn.), a 2009 Lions All-Star, will also be in the mix at shortstop, giving Haugen options at third base and DH with Butorac and Marsnik.
As a whole, the Johnnies will need to improve their overall fielding percentage from last season. The .934 mark was the lowest in recent memory and the .941 percentage in MIAC play was the lowest since 2001 (.939).
Catchers
Junior Brian Skluzacek (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori) returns behind the plate after batting .258 with four doubles, one triple and two home runs in 31 games last spring. He also led SJU with a .425 on-base percentage and threw out 14 potential base stealers (62.1 percent, 23-37).
Sophomore Ben Kelsey (Savage, Minn./Holy Angels) and All-State freshman Mitch Oakes (Minnetonka, Minn.) will provide depth for the Johnnies at catcher. Kelsey batted .667 in three appearances last season.
Pitchers
Seniors Andrew Aebly (Madison, Wis./Edgewood) and Matt Johnson (Eagan, Minn.), as well as junior Brett Kramer (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd) return to the starting rotation this season. Aebly led the staff with a 2.77 ERA in 39 innings of work (2-0 record), while Johnson pitched 48 innings for the Johnnies and finished with a 7.31 ERA and 21 strikeouts (2-3 record). Kramer, meanwhile, led the Johnnies with 26 strikeouts in 43.1 innings of work (2-6 record) as a sophomore.
Senior spot-starter Aaron Hellem (Lincoln, Neb./Pius X), who recorded one win in three starts, will also see time on the mound for SJU.
Junior southpaw Dan Beste (Freeport, Minn./Melrose Area) and sophomore Hayden Zimmerman (New Richmond, Wis.) return in the bullpen after making six and three appearances, respectively, in 2009. Junior Kyle Green (Shakopee, Minn.) will also be in contention for innings, specifically in the later innings, after serving as the closer on the 2009 Minnesota State Amateur Class B state-champion Shakopee squad.
Freshmen Lions All-Stars Connor Cline (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) and Adam Wenker (Sartell, Minn./Sartell-St. Stephen), as well as St. Cloud Times All-Area selection Ryan Spengler (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech), will also be in contention for innings this spring.
The Johnnies need to replace starting pitcher Alex Wahl, who graduated last spring. He led SJU with a 3-5 record and 48 innings pitched (3-5 record) in '09.
The Johnnies travel to Chandler, Ariz., for eight games during their annual spring break trip March 1-7. Unlike last season, in which the Johnnies played 12 games in 12 days and then waited 19 days for their next competition, SJU will play four doubleheaders at the Metrodome between spring break and the MIAC opener against Bethel on April 3 in Collegeville.
