While the collegiate baseball season is well underway at all levels from NCAA Division I to NJCAA Division III, the New York Collegiate Baseball League would like to recognize nine former players and two future players who were named to 2010 preseason All-America teams.
College of Charleston senior Joey Bergman (Bennington ’08), University of Kentucky junior Chris Bisson (Amsterdam ’08) and Manhattan College senior Kevin Nieto (Amsterdam ’07) received recognition at the Division I level from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers’ Association (NCBWA), Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball News and Ping! Baseball.
The NCBWA honored Dowling College junior Gabriel Duran (Saratoga ’09), West Chester University senior Nick Spisak (Geneva ’07), Shippensburg University sophomore Cody Kulp (Amsterdam ’10) and Southwest Minnesota State University seniors Adam Kinney (Hornell ’08) and Adam Schrader (Hornell ’08) in Division II.
A trio of NYCBL players were named to D3baseball.com’s preseason All-America team in Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute senior Patrick Reardon (Saratoga ’09), Oneonta State junior Dave Filak (Amsterdam ’09) and Texas Lutheran University sophomore Brad Orosey (Cooperstown ’10).
Bergman, the reigning Southern Conference Player of the Year was part of preseason All-American squads selected by the NCBWA, Collegiate Baseball News and Ping! Baseball. Last season, the Charleston shortstop led the entire nation in total runs (88) and tied for the lead in runs per game (1.57) while finishing second in batting average (.452). He became the fifth player in College of Charleston history to record at least 100 hits and his 88 runs scored set a school and conference record. The Jacksonville, Fla., native was an NYCBL all-star in 2008 with the Bennington (Vt.) Bombers. Bergman collected a .333 batting average, five home runs, 19 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 38 starts for the Vermont-based team.
Bisson, who led the Cape Cod Baseball League with 36 stolen bases this past summer, was on preseason All-America teams chosen by Baseball America and Ping! Baseball. The Kentucky shortstop was second team All-Southeastern Conference last season after leading the Wildcats in almost every offensive category including but not limited to batting average (.360), runs (49), hits (80) and RBI (52). A slick fielder, Bisson also topped the ‘Cats with 133 assists. Last summer, Bisson helped the Cotuit Kettleers to the Cape Cod League championship series. The Orleans, Ont., native was an NYCBL all-star in 2008 for the Amsterdam Mohawks. Bisson batted .301, tallied 41 hits and stole 17 bases on a team that advanced to the Eastern Division finals.
Nieto, a three-time all-conference selection, was tapped by the Collegiate Baseball News and Ping! Baseball for their respective preseason squads. The 2009 American Baseball Coaches Association third team All-America was also selected as the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year by the league’s coaches. In addition, Nieto is one of 30 finalists for the 2010 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. Last spring, Nieto was tied for the national lead with 1.57 runs per game and he topped the MAAC in runs scored (72) and slugging percentage (.754). The Miami, Fla., native was an NYCBL all-star in 2007 with the Amsterdam Mohawks. He drove in a team-high 34 runs for the Tribe and batted .300 over 39 games.
Duran was the NCBWA Division II Pitcher of the Year in 2009 as he led the Dowling Lions to the Division II World Series. He set a school record with 10 victories and finished third nationally with a 1.30 earned run average in 14 appearances. Duran fanned 83 batters and yielded only 45 hits in 89.2 innings. He was a 2009 first team All-America as chosen by ABCA/Rawlings, the NCBWA and Daktronics. Duran closed out his spring by firing a complete game three-hitter in the World Series against top-rated UC-San Diego. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native pitched for the Saratoga Phillies last summer.
Spisak is a three-time selection to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference’s East Division all-star team. As a junior, Spisak garnered an all-region nod as well as All-ECAC and an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove as a shortstop for the West Chester Golden Rams. Spisak batted .389 last season and totaled 79 hits and 38 runs batted in to go along with 26 multi-hit games. Spisak was also chosen as West Chester’s Male Student Athlete of the Year. The Millersville, Pa., native was a member of the Geneva Red Wings in 2007. He helped the Red Wings earn their first Western Division playoff berth since 2003 and led the team with 100 assists.
Kulp enjoyed a fantastic freshmen season for the Shippensburg Raiders. He was chosen second team All-PSAC West and earned an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove award as an outfielder. The first-year topped his team with three triples, six home runs and 46 runs batted in. Kulp hit .345 as a clean-up batter and recorded a team-high .444 batting average in league play. Last summer, the Shippensburg right fielder was a Wolff Division all-star for the Kutztown (Pa.) Rockies in the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League. The Boyertown, Pa., native has signed with the defending NYCBL champion Amsterdam Mohawks for the 2010 season.
Kinney was an honorable mention All-American in 2009 for the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs. He was tabbed first team all-region by the ABCA and Daktronics. Kinney paced his club with 17 home runs, 55 runs batted in, 64 base hits and an .844 slugging percentage. He also batted .408 and helped Southwest Minnesota make its’ first ever NCAA tournament appearance. The Coon Rapids, Minn., native was a member of the 2008 Western Division regular season champion Hornell Dodgers.
Schrader, a right-handed pitcher, was one of Southwest Minnesota’s top arms in 2009. The 6-foot-3 hurler went 5-1 last season with team-best performances in innings pitched (60.2) and strikeouts (67). Schrader set a school single-game record with 15 strikeouts in a victory over WinonaState in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference postseason tournament. The Easton, Minn., native pitched for the Hornell Dodgers during the summer of 2008. He finished the regular season with two victories in seven appearances and a 1.30 earned run average. Schrader fanned 36 in 34.2 innings.
Reardon was a second team D3baseball.com All-American catcher last season for RPI. He took in Player of the Year honors in the NCBWA New York Region, ECAC Division III and the Liberty League. Reardon paced the RPI Engineers in many offensive categories including but not limited to batting average (.409), runs (61), hits (79), doubles (22), home runs (10) and on-base percentage (.491). The RPI backstop led the Liberty League in nine different offensive categories. He aided his team in a Liberty League regular season title and to an appearance in the NCAA Division III New York regional championship game. The Troy, N.Y., native was a member of the Saratoga Phillies last summer.
Filak was a third team D3baseball.com All-American in 2009 after leading the nation in strikeouts per nine innings (14.86) and hits per nine innings (5.07). The 6-foot-5 fireballer fanned 88 in 53.1 frames and went 6-1 with two saves and a 2.36 earned run average. Filak held opponents to a .134 batting average. He was an all-conference and all-region pitcher for the Red Dragons of Oneonta State. The Burnt Hills, N.Y., native was part of an NYCBL championship last summer with the Amsterdam Mohawks. Filak earned four victories in nine appearances and struck out 67 batters. He tossed a seven-inning no-hitter against Glens Falls on July 12 and struck out 13 of the 27 batters he faced. Filak was rated among the top 25 professional prospects in the league by PGCrosschecker.com.
Orosey earned All-American status as a freshman last spring at Texas Lutheran. The 2009 D3baseball.com honorable mention All-American won 10 games as a rookie and was the American Southwest Conference’s Freshman of the Year. Orosey was the only first-year player named All-West Region though he was only a second-team choice in the ASC West Division. He tossed a conference-high 92 innings and tied for the league-lead in wins. Orosey fanned 88 and racked up four complete games. The Houston, Texas, native has signed with the Cooperstown Hawkeyes for the 2010 season.