Auburn Baseball signs 11 in early signing period!

[AUSportTalk 4]

Auburn Baseball Signs 11 In Early Signing Period

Class is the first for Coach John Pawlowski and staff at Auburn

November 25, 2008

AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn baseball program signed 11 players to

National Letters of Intent during the early signing period, head coach

John Pawlowski announced on Tuesday. The 11 players come from four

different states, eight high schools and three junior colleges and

includes two players that have played for USA Baseball and seven players

ranked nationally by either Baseball America or PGCrosschecker.com

“I thought recruiting coordinator Scott Foxhall and Matt Heath did an

outstanding job of landing future student-athletes that will represent

Auburn baseball both on and off the field. We have addressed many of our

needs in the early signing period and we will continue to put together a

quality class as we progress into the spring season,” Pawlowski said.

2009 Auburn Baseball Signees

Name            Ht.    Wt.    Pos.    B/T    Previous

School            Hometown

Luke Bailey        6-0    195    C    R/R    Troup County

HS            LaGrange, GA

Justin Bryant        5-11    175    RHP/IF    R/R    Itawamba

CC            Oneonta, AL

Garrett Bush        6-5    190    RHP/C    R/R    Stanton Prep

HS            Jacksonville, FL

Nick Franklin        6-1    175    IF    S/R    Lake Brantley

HS            Longwood, FL

Cody Martin        6-2    200    IF    L/R    Stephens County

HS        Toccoa, GA

Patrick Merkling        6-1    170    LHP    L/L    Etowah

HS            Woodstock, GA

Cole Nelson        6-7    230    LHP    L/L    Des Moines Area

CC        Edina, MN

Patrick Savage        6-2    210    IF/OF    R/R    Greater Atlanta

Christian        Suwanee, GA

Creede Simpson        6-2    180    OF/IF    R/R    Northwest

Florida State College    Auburn, AL

Slade Smith        6-2    185    RHP    R/R    Fort Payne

HS            Fort Payne, AL

Ryan Welke        6-4    195    C    R/R    Rickards

HS            Tallahassee, FL

Luke Bailey, 6-0/195, R/R, C, Troup County HS/LaGrange, GA

●    Ranked No. 7 nationally in Baseball America’s Top 100 High

School Prospects

●    Rated No. 11 player in the nation by PGCrosschecker.com

●    Member of USA Baseball’s 2007 Youth National Team that won a

gold medal at the World Youth Championships in Venezuela

●    2008 AFLAC All-American

●    2008 East Coast Pro Showcase invitee

●    Plays for Craig Garner at Troup County HS

●    Broke five Troup County HS records as a junior, hitting 17

doubles, 13 HR, driving in 61 RBIs, collecting 105 total bases and

amassing a 1.082 slugging percentage … Also hit .505

●    Named to Team Georgia in 2008

●    2008 Georgia Dugout Club All-State

●    Hit .340 with 12 home runs and 44 RBI at Troupe as a sophomore

Coach Pawlowski on Bailey: Luke is one of the top-rated high school

players in the country. He is a special talent defensively and a force

as a right-handed hitter. He has a chance to be an impact player in the

SEC.

Justin Bryant, 5-11/175, R/R, RHP/IF, Itawamba CC/Oneonta, AL

●    Hit .361 with 7 HR and 48 RBI as a freshman at Itawamba

Community College

●    Plays for Rick Collier at Itawamba CC

●    Played for Jason Russell at Oneonta HS

●    Hit .455 with 16 HR, 72 RBI and 21 doubles as a senior … Was

also 18-1 with 10 K in 87 IP

●    2007 First Team All-State (P)

●    Hit .496 with 9 HR and 28 doubles as a junior

●    2006 First Team All-State (2B)

Coach Pawlowski on Bryant: Justin is a two-way talent who will have an

immediate impact on the Plains. He has an explosive breaking ball that

complements an above-average fastball. He has been very consistent

offensively and defensively as an infielder as well.

Garret Bush, 6-5/190, R/R, RHP/C, Stanton Prep HS/Jacksonville, FL

●    Rated 661st nationally by PGCrosschecker.com

●    Plays for Joel Davis at Stanton Prep HS

●    All Gateway Conference selection as both a sophomore and junior

●    Helped led Stanton Prep to the first regional playoff appearance

in school history as a junior

●    Went 3-0 with a 2.33 ERA a save in 6 appearances as a junior,

striking out 16 and holding opponents to a .159 batting average

●    Hit .392 with 14 extra-base hits, scoring 19 runs and driving in

17

●    2008 Diamond Club Showcase participant in Lakeland, Florida

Coach Pawlowski on Bush: Garrett has been one of the best players in

the Jacksonville area as a catcher. He has huge potential as a pitcher

because of his arm strength and size. He already possesses a sharp

breaking ball and heavy sink on his fastball.

Nick Franklin, 6-1/175, S/R, IF, Lake Brantley HS/Longwood, FL

●    Ranked No. 32 nationally in Baseball America’s Top 100 High

School Prospects

●    Rated No. 37 player in the nation by PGCrosschecker.com

●    Member of USA Baseball’s 2007 Youth National Team that won a

gold medal at the World Youth Championships in Venezuela … Member of USA

Baseball’s 2008 18U National Team that won a silver medal at the

International Baseball Federation's XXIII AAA World Junior Championships

in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

●    2008 Under Armour All-America Game participant in Chicago

●    2008 Diamond Club Showcase participant in Lakeland, Florida

●    2008 invitee to the East Coast Pro Showcase in North Carolina

and the Area Code Games in California

●    Plays for Mike Smith at Lake Brantley, winning a 6A State

Championship in 2008

●    Hit .483 with 6 HR and 8 doubles as a junior

●    2007 and ‘08 All-State, All-Central Florida and All-Seminole

Athletic Conference First Team selection

Coach Pawlowski on Franklin: Nick will step in and solidify our defense

on the infield. He is a switch-hitter with outstanding speed and a

potent bat. He led Team USA in hitting this summer and he will be an

impact player as a freshman. Nick also has the potential to pitch.

Cody Martin, 6-2/200, L/R, IF, Stephens County HS/Toccoa, GA

●    Rated 20th in the state of Georgia by PGCrosschecker.com and No.

271 nationally

●    Four-year varsity player for Mike Cox at Stephens County HS

●    2009 Perfect Game National Showcase invitee

●    2008 East Coast Pro Showcase invitee

●    2008 First Team All-Region

●    Hit .410 with 9 HR as a junior

●    2007 Second Team All-Region

●    Three-year varsity letter winner in football, being named

All-Region First Team in 2008 and Second Team in 2007, leading Stephens

County in receiving yards as a senior

Coach Pawlowski on Martin: Cody is a left-handed-hitting corner

infielder who has demonstrated the ability to hit for power and play

solid defense. He has a strong throwing arm and is athletic enough to

play multiple positions.

Patrick Merkling, 6-1/170, L/L, LHP, Etowah HS/Woodstock, GA

●    Rated 33rd in the state of Georgia by PGCrosschecker.com and

470th nationally

●    Three-year letter winner for Greg Robinson at Etowah HS

●    2008 AAAAA First Team All-County

●    Had a 1.86 ERA with 76 Ks in 56 IP for Etowah in 2008

●    Had a 1.68 ERA with 77 Ks in 57 IP for the East Cobb Indians in

2008

●    2007 East Cobb Baseball MVP

Coach Pawlowski on Merkling: Patrick developed into one of the top

left-handed pitchers in the southeast over the summer. He has arm

strength, an “out pitch” curveball and good movement on all his

pitches. He will have a positive impact on our 2010 pitching staff.

Cole Nelson, 6-7/230, L/L, LHP, Des Moines Area CC/Edina, MN

●    Went 5-0 with a 3.05 ERA in 10 appearances as a freshman for Dan

Fitzgerald at Des Moines Area CC, holding opponents to a .224 batting

average

●    Struck out 25 in 41.1 IP, making 6 starts with 2 complete games

●    Helped lead Edina Legion to the state tournament for the first

time in 25 years in 2008

Coach Pawlowski on Nelson: Cole is an imposing figure on the mound with

an above-average fastball and a food feel for his offspeed pitches. He

is a good athlete who has improved steadily and will add much needed

experience to our 2010 pitching staff.

Patrick Savage, 6-2/210, R/R, IF/OF, Greater Atlanta Christian/Suwanee,

GA

●    Rated 10th in the state of Georgia by PGCrosschecker.com and

107th nationally

●    Plays for Cliff Shelton at Greater Atlanta Christian

●    Hit .422 with 26 doubles, 11 HR, 92 RBIs and 26 SB over three

year career

●    Hit .413 with 8 HR and 36 RBIs as a junior

●    2008 All-Region First Team, Gwinnett Dugout Club All-County

Second Team and Georgia Dugout Club Preseason All-State

●    2008 Perfect Game National Showcase participant in Minneapolis

●    Played for the East Cobb Braves in 2008, hitting .410

●    2007 All-Region Second Team and Gwinnett Dugout Club All-County

First Team

●    Hit .422 with 8 doubles and 26 RBI as a sophomore

●    2006 Gwinnett Daily Post All-County Second Team, Atlanta Journal

Constitution All-County honorable mention and Gwinnett Dugout Club

All-County Second Team

●    Hit .433 with 15 doubles, 3 HR and 30 RBIs as a freshman

Coach Pawlowski on Savage: Patrick is an advanced right-handed hitter

who has a chance to hit for average and power early in his career. He

has enough tools to play in the infield and outfield and his versatility

will be valuable.

Creede Simpson, 6-2/180, R/R, OF/IF, Northwest Florida State CC/Auburn,

AL

●    45th-round pick of the New York Yankees in 2008

●    Will play for Doug Martin at NWF State College this spring

●    Played for Matt Cimo at Auburn HS before enrolling at NWF State

College

●    Hit .500 with 23 RBI and 4 HR as a senior

●    2008 Alabama Sports Writers Association All-State selection

●    2008 6A All-State honorable mention

Coach Pawlowski on Simpson: Creede established himself as one of the

top junior college players in the Panhandle Conference this fall. We are

anxious to have him playing here at home in Auburn in 2010. He will be

one of our best athletes with a unique combination of speed and power.

Slade Smith, 6-2/185, R/R, RHP, Fort Payne HS/Fort Payne, AL

●    Rated 308th nationally by PGCrosschecker.com

●    Plays for Johnny Johnson at Fort Payne HS

●    2008 First Team All-State, All-Area 14 Pitcher of the Year and

DeKalb County Pitcher of the Year

●    Was 8-1 with a 1.53 ERA in 59 IP with 99 K and 13 BB, throwing 4

shutouts as a junior

●    Also hit .362 with 9 HR, 29 RBI and 10 SB

●    2007 All-County selection

●    Also played football and was the starting quarterback, being

named 2007 All-State, All-County Offensive Player of the Year and

All-Region, leading the team to a 21-1 mark from 2006-07

Coach Pawlowski on Smith: Slade is a polished pitcher who throws three

pitches to the bottom of the strike zone. He’s mentally tough and

athletically gifted, which will allow him to compete for SEC innings as

a freshman.

Ryan Welke, 6-4/195, R/R, C, Rickards HS/Tallahassee, FL

●    Three-year varsity letter winner for Brian Kelley at Rickards

●    Three-time All-State honorable mention

●    Two-time Florida Diamond Club participant

●    Career .370 hitter with 16 HR and 82 RBIs

●    Has thrown out 69 percent of baserunners over a three-year span

(50-of-72)

●    2008 First Team All-Big Ben and 2007 Second Team All-Big Bend

Coach Pawlowski on Welke: Ryan impressed our staff with his strong arm

and defensive abilities in camp. He also had a great fall offensively

and showed that he could hit with authority.