2013 preview: Winthrop

Sixth in a series
This is Winthrop's 2013 prospectus

Winthrop will open the 2013 baseball season with a roster of 21 returning players and 14 newcomers as third-year head coach Tom Riginos looks to get the Eagles back in contention for a Big South Conference title.

Riginos says he is excited about the prospects for 2013 and believes the Eagles can be a very good baseball team in the coming months. He says there is still a lot of hard work to perform and a lot of decisions that will have to be made as he and his staff strive to turn around last year’s 17-35 campaign.

He is confident about this year’s squad and believes it will take advantage of the opportunities that are set forth and the result will be a very successful season.

“We are returning 14 position players and seven pitchers from a year ago and have added 14 talented newcomers,” said Riginos. “Our roster has good depth in all areas, and as we head to February every position is open. We will give our guys chance to prove themselves in the opening three weeks of the season.”

On the mound, the Eagles return all three of their weekend starters in right-handed seniors Tyler Klitsch (4-7, 3.32 ERA), Matt Pierpont (4-8, 5.00 ERA), and Eric Ruth (3-3, 5.02 ERA). “All three of these young men put up solid numbers last year and had a good fall. All three are great leaders, especially Matt Pierpont,” said the Eagles’ coach.

Riginos is considering the possible move of Ruth back to the bullpen where he would serve as the closer, but that decision had not been made as fall practice concluded. One of the keys in that decision will be the development of a quartet of right handed newcomers in Michael Green (Jr., Brunswick Community College), Joey Strain (Fr., Prince Frederick, MD), Kaden Hepler (Fr., York, PA), and Zach Sightler (Fr., Lexington). “All four of those young men could be in the mix for a spot in the weekend rotation some point this season if Ruth is used as the closer,” said Riginos.

The biggest area in which the Eagles are looking to make improvement is at the plate where last year’s squad had trouble in scoring runs. Winthrop’s hitters had a .231 team batting average, scored just 3.4 runs per game, and connected for only 15 home runs. Riginos sees big advances on the offensive side with the return of senior centerfielder T.J. Olesczuk, who led Winthrop with a .279 average. The Winthrop coach is also looking for big contributions from senior first baseman Matt Lobacz (.263 avg., 31 RBI). “They give us experience. Olesczuk has started since his freshman year and Lobacz has started since his first year here as a red-shirt sophomore season,” said Riginos.

“I think the influx of new talent from an offensive standpoint is going to really help us,” he said.

Riginos believes 6-3 outfielder/first baseman Cody Dolan, a transfer from USC Sumter, has swung the bat very well during the fall and should make an immediate impact in the middle of the order. “Freshman infielder Kyle Edwards has made an impact both from an offensive and defensive perspective and will be competing for a starting job in the middle infield.”

Riginos also says the year of experience has really helped sophomore Left handed hitter Jace Whitley and sophomore catcher Tony Brandner. “They have put themselves into a position to gain quite a few at bats in the spring,” he said.

The Winthrop coach expects the trio of Olesczuk, Lobacz and Dolan to provide the power that was lacking last season. With those three expected to hold down the middle of the lineup, Riginos says the team has shown in the fall that it has some guys who can run and some guys who can handle the bat.

“I believe one of the characteristics of this year’s team is that we will run the bases well, steal some bases, play small ball, and at times hit the ball out of the ballpark. Once we get into the spring, we will be able to tell exactly what kind of offensive team that we are going to have and that will dictate how we are going to play,” said Riginos.

Defensively, it all starts behind the plate for the Eagles as they have three of last year’s four catchers returning. The one loss was Tyler Donovan, who started half of the games in 2012, but knee problems have ended his college career. That leaves Riginos to choose from among senior Austen Barber, junior Reid Langdale, sophomore Tony Brandner, and freshman Devin Walker. “All four are competing for the starting position and that will probably go right up to the first game.” Sophomore Clay Altman, the fifth catcher, is coming off Tommy John surgery and his ability to throw is still questionable.

“We are going to have some depth in the infield with veterans Jason Driver (Sr., SS) and Leighton Daniels (Jr., 3B), and newcomers Kyle Edwards (Fr, 2B/SS), Luke Maldonado (Fr., INF), Stephen Wallace (Fr., INF). It is wide open heading into the season. No position has been determined and that is indicative of our depth,” said the Winthrop coach. “We are going to play a lot of guys early, and hopefully the three weeks of preseason practice will separate some of these guys from one another.”

In the outfield, Olesczuk appears to have the best shot of earning a starting spot since he started all 52 games in centerfield last season. Max Vogel had a solid fall, according to Riginos and has put himself in good position. Jace Whitley was moved from third base to the outfield in the fall and turned in a good performance. Riginos says Dolan made a big impression in left field during the fall, and a pair of freshmen in Nick Bateman and Michael Patrick along with senior Drew Hardee will be competing for playing time. “With seven outfielders, we feel we are in good shape,” he said.

After playing a rugged schedule last year, Riginos sees the 2013 slate as a real solid schedule that features five opponents (Clemson, North Carolina, Central Florida, Army, and Coastal Carolina) who played in a NCAA Regional a year ago. “We feel good about the schedule and believe it will be very competitive. The Big South Conference will be strong again and there has been a lot of parity shown over the last few years and I believe that will be the case once again in 2013,” he said.

Wednesday: USC Upstate