The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Baseball Summer Report
7/26/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Bell was invited to play in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League for the summer with the Hyannis Mets. The outfielder is currently batting .255 in the wooden bat league and has driven in 10 runs, while stealing seven bases. Having played in 28 games thus far, Bell has made just one error in the outfield and holds a .324 on-base percentage at the plate. His Mets club is 14-19-2 on the season and in third place in the league's Western Division.
Oliver is competing in the Texas Collegiate League and was an all-star selection for the Rogers Hornsby Division. For the season, the right-handed hurler is 2-3 with a 4.46 ERA in six starts. After leading the Blazers in relief appearances in 2007 with 22, Oliver has slid into a starting role with the Mineral Wells Steam, holding opponents to a dismal .249 batting average. His Steam club is currently 9-24 and in 5th place in the division.
Following a stellar freshman season with the Blazers that earned him Conference USA All-Freshman honors, Merritt has six stolen bases, six RBI and five doubles for the Eau Claire (Wisc.) Express. Merritt is joined on the Express by his UAB teammate Wodson. A left-handed pitcher, Wodson is 0-1 on the season despite holding opponents to a .231 batting average. The Express club competes in the Northwoods League and is currently 13-3 and in first place.
Crawford, another Conference USA All-Freshman Team pick in 2007, has put up impressive numbers on the mound despite getting little run support. The southpaw is 1-3 with a 2.91 ERA with the Delaware Cows of the Great Lakes Baseball League. He has given up just two extra base hits and held opponents to a .215 batting average.
Manning was an all-star selection in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. The infielder out of LaGrange, Ga, holds an on-base percentage of .430, while playing with the Sanford River Cats who are 12-30 on the season. He has 17 walks, eight RBI and three stolen bases to aid his offensive output.
Three newcomers on the UAB roster for 2008 are also taking part in summer ball. Digger Towe, a catcher from Indian Hills (Iowa) Community College, is playing with the Chillicothe Mud Cats of the M.I.N.K. Baseball League and Austin Taylor, an outfielder from Holmes (Miss.) Community College, is playing with the Liberal Bee Jays of the Jayhawk Baseball League. Junior Benji Waite, a transfer pitcher/designated hitter from Samford, is a teammate of Manning on the Sanford River Cats in the Florida Collegiate Summer League. Waite is boasting a 2.59 ERA on the mound, while striking out 27 batters and holding the opposition to a .258 batting average. At the plate, Waite has also excelled, hitting .247 with two home runs and 10 RBI.
