MTSU Baseball Returns from Summer Ball

8/29/2024 3:00:00 PM | Baseball

By: Jayce Standridge, MTSU Athletic Communications

MURFREESBORO, TENN - Summer break is officially over for Middle Tennessee students, and so has summer ball for many Blue Raider baseball players. MTSU sent 18 returning/incoming players off to their respective teams throughout the country, and each of them came back with more experience than when they left.

Coastal Plain League
Clay Badylak, Bryant Beranek, and Cooper Clapp took their talents to the Coastal Plain League (CPL). The CPL is a wood-bat collegiate baseball league that takes place in four states, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. Both Blue Raiders resided in North Carolina for their respective teams. The CPL has had over 1,750 alumni drafted by Major League Baseball teams in their 28 years of ball.

Some of their most notable alumni include former AL MVP, Cy Young winner and 2017 World Series champion Justin Verlander, Ryan Zimmerman, Kevin Youkilis, Alec Bohm, Nicky Lopez, Jake Cave and NFL Super Bowl XLVIII champion quarterback Russell Wilson.

Clay Badylak, SR, INF - Forest City Owls

G     AB     R     H     2B    HR     RBI     BB     SO     SB     AVG
20     56     14   17     4 1        11     16         10       4 .304

Bryant Beranek, JR, RHP - Asheboro ZooKeepers

G     GS     IP     SO     BB
8 3 25 24        9

Cooper Clapp, R-SO, INF - Tri-City Chili Peppers

G     AB     R     H     2B     HR     RBI
17    70     10    15     2 4         13

New England Collegiate Baseball League

Blue Raider newcomers Tyler Minnick and Hayden Miller played in the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL). Minnick is transferring from Georgia Tech, while Miller is coming from the College of Charleston.

The NECBL is a wooden-bat baseball league that takes place in six states in the New England area. It is widely considered to be a premiere summer ball league and is a part of the National Alliance of College Summer Ball. Notable alumni include Chris Taylor, Austin Slater, Will Smith (Dodgers), Tommy Edman, James Karinchak, and JJ Bleday.

Tyler Minnick, JR, C - Newport Gulls - 2024 NECBL Champions

G     AB     R     H     2B     HR     RBI     BB     AVG
24     78    17 21     3 3 13 14    .269

Hayden Miller, R-SO, INF - Danbury Westerners

G     AB     R     H     2B     HR     RBI     AVG
13     40     8     10     2 4 11 .250

Old North State League - Tarboro River Bandits
Four Blue Raiders were made a part of the Tarboro River Bandits in the Old State North League (ONSL). Collin Kerrigan, Brady Holloway, Brett Rogers, and Ollie Akens each played a part in making it all the way to the Semi-Finals in the ONSL. The league is fairly new starting in 2019, but has quickly become one of the largest summer ball leagues in the country.

Collin Kerrigan, SO, LHP

G     W     L     IP     SO     ERA
15     4 0     33.1 48     1.08

Brady Holloway, SR, 1B

G     AB     R     H     2B     BB     RBI     AVG
25     75     19   22     4 17     16 .293

Brett Rogers, R-FR, OF

G     AB     R     H     2B     SB     RBI     AVG
34   138 39    45     9 25     22 .326

Ollie Akens, JR, RHP

G     IP     SO     ERA     WHIP     BB
8     18.1 16 3.93     1.09         3

Prospect League Baseball
The Prospect League is a premier wood-bat collegiate summer ball league in the midwest in eight states. Brett Vondohlen and Matt Wolfe are the only Blue Raiders to compete in the Prospect League, but they made their mark known. Vondohlen ranked seventh in the league in RBIs (42) and eighth in HRs (6). Notable Alumni in the league include Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt, and Kirby Puckett along with numerous active MLB players and managers.

Brett Vondohlen, R-SO, INF - Full Count Rhythm

G     AB     R     H     2B     HR     RBI     AVG
46   176    22   45     7 6 42 .256

Matt Wolfe, R-SO, INF - Chillicothe Paints

G     AB     R     H     2B     RBI
6     22 5 4     1 2

Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League - Southern Maryland Senators
The Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League was founded in 2005 and named after the late Baltimore Oriole, Cal Ripken Sr.. Blue Raider returner Nathan Brewer and newcomer Braeden Purser-Eber were a part of the Southern Maryland Senators. Brewer made the All-Star team during his summer with the Senators. Notable alumni include active MLB players such as Nolan Schauel, Hunter Brown, Ty France, Brandon Lowe, and Jordan Westburg.

Nathan Brewer, R-SO, OF, South All Star

G     AB     R     H     2B     HR     RBI     AVG     SB
39   146    27   45     11 5 27      .308 14

Braeden Purser-Eber, FR, UTL

LCS Stats - G     AB     R     H     2B     RBI     AVG
2     7 1   3 2 3 .429

Sunbelt Baseball League
Returning southpaw Walker Shaw and incoming leftie Logan Bogue both pitched for the Alpharetta Aviators in the Sunbelt Baseball League (SBL). The SBL is a wood-bat summer baseball league that has all but one team in Georgia. The SBL says they are dedicated to developing players' skills, sportsmanship, and teamwork, empowering them to reach their full potential on and off the field.

Walker Shaw, R-FR, LHP, Alpharetta Aviators

G     GS     IP     SO
10     8     29.2    30

Logan Bogue, R-SO, LHP, Gainesville GolDiggers

G     W     L     IP         S     SO     ERA
10     2     1     15.2     2     24 2.93

Appalachian League
The Appalachian League (Appy League) is a wood-bat summer ball team located in four states in the Appalachian Mountain Area. Returner Cole Torbett and new Blue Raider Johnny Stevens made their mark on the league this season. Torbett has strictly been a pitcher for the past two seasons as a Blue Raider, however the Elizabethton River Riders used him primarily as a DH.

Cole Torbett, R-SO, LHP/DH - Elizabethtown River Riders

G     AB     R     H     2B     RBI     AVG     OBP
24    83     14   26 3 13 .313     .398

Johnny Stevens, R-JR, RHP - Tri State Col Cats

G     GS     IP     H     SO     WHIP
4 2 10 26 5 2.20

These players will use the momentum of summer ball to keep it going through the fall, and into the next season. The Blue Raiders start practice this week, and look to grow chemistry with the newcomers this semester.