Game 4 • Murray State • Tomlinson Stadium and Kell Field • Jonesboro, Ark.
Game 5 • @ Ole Miss • Swayze Field • Oxford, Miss.
vs. Murray State (0-3, 0-0 OVC) - Tuesday, Feb. 22, 3 p.m.
Sr. RHP Brad Allen (5-2, 6.85 ERA*) vs. Jr. RHP Tyler Beers (0-0, 12.00 ERA)
at Ole Miss (3-0, 0-0 SEC) - Wednesday, Feb. 23, 3 p.m.
TBA vs. Jr. RHP R.J. Hively (0-0, 81.00 ERA)
*2010 totals
GAME TIME: The Red Wolves open their home slate on Tuesday when they host Ohio Valley Conference opponent Murray State in the two team's 95th meeting at Tomlinson Stadium and Kell Field then travel to Ole Miss for its second midweek game of the week at Swayze Field in Oxford, Miss.
THE TEAMS: Murray State is 0-3 after opening the season at UNC Asheville over the weekend. Centerfielder Elliot Frey leads the Thoroughbreds with a .333 batting average logging three hits and three runs scored over the opening weekend. Second baseman Travis Isaak leads the squad with five RBI and also has three hits for a .231 batting average. Junior RHP Tyler Beers will make his second start for Murray State on the hill. Beers started the first game of the season for the Thoroughbreds giving up six hits and four earned runs in three innings of work while striking out three batters.
Ole Miss is 3-0 on the season after sweeping their opening series against Wright State. Tanner Mathis leads the Rebels with a .462 batting average and six hits including two doubles, while ranking second with five RBI. Preston Overbey logged five hits and leads the squad with six RBI and a home run in the opening weekend with a .385 batting average. R.J. Hively will make his second appearance for the Rebels after giving up four hits and three earned runs in one appearance over the weekend. Hively struck out one batter in 0.1 innings pitched against Wright State.
THE SERIES: This will be the 95th meeting between ASU and Murray State. MSU owns a 49-44-1 series lead over the Red Wolves. ASU captured the last meeting 17-8 over Murray State on March 9, 2010. This will be the 83rd meeting between Arkansas State and Ole Miss with the Rebels holding a 62-20 advantage over the Red Wolves. Ole Miss narrowly escaped the last meeting in Oxford 3-2 over ASU on Feb. 23, 2010 and won the meeting last season in Jonesboro 5-2 in 10 innings on May 12, 2010.
BATTING LEADERS: After opening weekend action senior catcher Tyler Smith leads the Red Wolves with a .429 batting average. Three Red Wolves had four hits during the opening weekend in Jordan Castaldo, Logan Uxa and Claude Johnson. Smith also plated two runs this past weekend along with Johnson and Michael Faulkner. Johnson had one stolen base for the weekend for the Red Wolves while Uxa, Fulkner and Baumgartner each had two RBI for the Red Wolves.
PITCHING LEADERS: Junior RHP Jacob Lee (1.50 ERA) had the most successful outing for the Red Wolves over the weekend striking out five batters in 6.0 innings pitched. He had only one earned run on five surrendered hits. Cory Kyle and Todd Baumgartner maintained 0.00 ERA's among relievers in 2.0 IP and 1.2 IP, respectively.
BAUMGARTNER ON THE HILL: Senior Todd Baumgartner has been viewed as a utility man throughout most of his career, but something he has never done has been pitch, well that changed over the weekend when the 6-1 right-hander took the mound for ASU pitching 1.2 innings to close out the game against No. 13 Virginia. Baumgartner held his own, facing seven batters allowing just two hits and no earned runs.
LEE PRESEASON SBC PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Arkansas State junior starting pitcher Jacob Lee was named the Sun Belt Conference Preseason Pitcher of the Year announced the league last week. Lee also earned a Preseason All-Conference nod.
Lee is the top returning pitcher for the Red Wolves from last season whose pitching staff ranked third in the Sun Belt Conference. Lee had a team-best 3.80 ERA and worked to a 8-3 record including 92.1 innings pitched. Lee struck out a team-best 83 batters and held opponents to a .246 batting average. He owned a 6-2 record in league play and helped the Red Wolves to a 12-2 victory against Troy in the 2010 Sun Belt Conference tournament for which he earned all-tournament honors.
BAUMGARTNER EARNS ALL-CONFERENCE NOD: Senior outfielder Todd Baumgartner was named to the Sun Belt Conference preseason all-conference team. Baumgartner has one of the top returning bats for the Red Wolves and was a 2010 All-Sun Belt Conference selection. Last season, Baumgartner ranked second on the team with 42 RBI and had a .336 batting average. He also had 74 hits, 49 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. In the field, he was nearly perfect committing just one error in 112 chances for a .991 fielding percentage.
BASEBALL AMERICA ALL-SBC PRESEASON: Sophomore outfielder and junior RHP Jacob Lee earned preseason all-SBC honors by Baseball America. The Red Wolves were tabbed to finish sixth in the standings while Faulkner was called the best leadoff hitter in the league by Baseball America and Lee was tabbed as the second best pro prospect in the conference.
TOP RETURNERS: Although the Red Wolves lost its top bat from last year to the Kansas City Royals organization, ASU returns three of its top four batters from last year. Senior infielder Jordan Castaldo has ASU's top returning bat with a .363 batting average from last season. Castaldo had 74 hits with 30 runs scored and 39 RBI. Castaldo led ASU with 20 doubles and two home runs.
Todd Baumgartner was named preseason all-conference and ranks second among ASU returners with a .336 batting average with 84 hits, 49 runs scored and 10 stolen bases. He also was nearly perfect in the field with a .991 fielding percentage.
Michael Faulkner earned all-tournament honors last season after posting a .336 batting average which ranks second among returners and was third last year as a true freshman in 2010. Faulkner has 23 stolen bases last year and 55 runs scored on 81 hits. He also had 25 RBI.
On the hill, ASU gets a pair of hot starters back in senior Andy Ferguson and junior Jacob Lee, who was named SBC Preseason Pitcher of the Year. Ferguson started in 15 games for the Red Wolves and made 16 appearances overall as the Red Wolves usual Friday night starter, he led the Red Wolves starters with 101.1 innings pitched surrendering just 118 hits and 53 earned runs for a 4.71 ERA and is one of the Red Wolves top returning pitchers from last year. He pitched one complete game and shared a shutout. Walked just 30 batters on the year and held opposing batters to just .291 batting average while recording 74 strikeouts
DICKINSON NAMED ASSISTANT COACH: Dickinson brings 10 years of coaching experience to the Red Wolves including four years at the Division I level working as a pitching coach at the University of Washington. During his career, Dickinson has worked with numerous Major League Baseball prospects including 2010 MLB All-Stars Tim Lincecum, John Lester and Evan Meek.
Overall, Dickinson coached 13 drafted pitchers including a first and second round pick while at Washington. Dickinson served as an assistant coach at Montesano High School in 2009-10 where he led the squad to a 21-4 first-place league finish and an appearance in the state playoffs.
Prior to his appointment at Washington, Dickinson served as head coach at Edmonds Community College where he led the squad to a third-place finish in the NWAACC Tournament and a 75-16 record as head coach, including a 40-8 conference mark.
Dickinson also served as head coach at Skyline High School in Issaquah in 2003, guiding the team to a 14-7 overall mark and a 13-5 conference record. He also served as pitching coach at Edmonds CC in 2000 and 2001.
Aside from his work at Edmonds and Skyline, Dickinson has also served as pitching coach at Taylor Baseball, a top youth summer program, since 2001. Taylor took third place in the national AAU tournament in 2001 and in 2002, finished second at the USA Baseball Federation national tournament. During the 2005 summer season, Taylor finished second at the USABF World Series and completed the season with a 59-7-1 record.
A native of Aberdeen, Wash., Dickinson graduated from Montesano High in 1994. After one year at Green River CC, he played three seasons of college baseball as a pitcher at Alabama-Birmingham, lettering in 1996, 1997 and 1998. In 1999, he earned a bachelor's degree in secondary education from UAB.
WREN NAMED VOLUNTEER ASSISTANT COACH: A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Wren joins the ASU staff after spending the last six years as owner and instructor of Wren Baseball and Softball Academy in Hattiesburg. Prior to that, he was an assistant coach at Petal (Miss.) High School, where he coached the school's hitters to the highest team batting average in school history during the 2003-04 season. Following his time at Petal High School, Wren was the offensive manager and hitting coach for the Baton Rouge River Bats, an independent professional team in Baton Rouge, La.
Wren began his collegiate baseball career at Southern Mississippi, where he was named a freshman All-American following the 1996 season and first-team All-Conference USA following the 1997 season. He transferred to Mississippi State prior to his senior season and earned first-team All-SEC honors and third-team All-America honors as a first baseman following the 1999 season.
Following his career at Mississippi State, Wren was drafted in the 33rd round by the Los Angeles Dodgers and spent three seasons in the Dodgers organization, playing for the Yakima Bears, the Vero Beach Dodgers and the Los Angeles Dodgers during 2001 spring training.
