Jake Lemoine (Houston)

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2015 Conference Previews: American Athletic

American Athletic Projected Standings

Bold indicates projected regional team, Top 25 ranking in parentheses, and records are from 2014. Teams are listed in order of projected finish.

Conference Overall (7) Houston 14-9 48-14 Central Florida 17-7 36-23 East Carolina C-USA, 2014 33-26 Connecticut 9-14 15-32 South Florida 10-14 27-31 Tulane 9-14 27-31 Memphis 8-16 30-29 Cincinnati 6-18 22-31

Projected Regional Teams (2): Houston, UCF

Player of the Year: Ian Happ, of/inf, Cincinnati

Pitcher of the Year: Jake Lemoine, rhp, Houston

Freshman of the Year: Connor Wong, ss, Houston

NOTEBOOK

• For an in-depth report on Houston, read our Top 25 Breakdowns.

OTHER PROJECTED REGIONAL TEAM



• UCF experienced the negative part about being on the bubble when it missed out on the NCAA tournament last season despite finishing second in the AAC standings. Fortunately for the Knights, they return every positional starter from last year’s club. Motivation shouldn’t be an issue, and neither should offense. UCF averaged 5.7 runs per game and returns a nice blend of speed and middle-of-the-order power. After hitting .315/.391/.414 last year with 10 steals, 2B Dylan Moore, now a senior, carried that to the California Collegiate League, where he was named MVP. He’ll be joined in the lineup by senior James Vazquez (.340/.445/.519 with eight homers in 2014), last year’s first-team all-AAC shortstop senior Tommy Williams (.263/.350/.469 with 12 bombs), and senior Erik Barber (.284/.399/.452). Toss in emerging sophomore Matt Diorio, and UCF should have one of the conference’s best lineups. Keep an eye on toolsy sophomore OF Eugene Vazquez as well. But how well can the Knights pitch? AAC Pitcher of the Year Eric Skoglund signed after being drafted in the third round last year. Senior strike-thrower Zach Rodgers is back after posting a 1.36 ERA in 72.1 innings as a spot starter and reliever, and should slide into that Friday role. Beyond that, the Knights will have questions. Junior righty Mitchell Tripp missed last season due to Tommy John surgery, but was up to 95 mph this fall. He has a chance to boost UCF’s pitching as a weekend starter, as does freshman righthander Cre Finfrock, who was drafted in the 26th round out of high school. Like Tripp, he has the ability to sit in the low 90s and get it up near 95 mph as well. The bullpen will depend on some inconsistent arms making the jump to fill key roles this year.

THE REST OF THE PACK

• Not only is East Carolina making the move over to the AAC, but it’s also set to begin its first season under new head coach Cliff Godwin, who returns to his alma mater after a highly decorated career as an assistant coach. Everywhere Godwin has been, his teams have hit. In order to do that this season, Godwin will have to replace the losses of all-conference players Zach Houchins and Drew Reynolds, the team’s top two hitters a year ago. Keep an eye on sophomore OF Reid Love. Love is regarded as the best athlete on the team, and should hit at the top of the order when he’s not on the mound. And junior 1B Luke Lowery is back after hitting .288/.321/.400 last season with four homers. Juco transfers Jimmy Boyd and Jeff Nelson should start in the outfield, and if they help supplement a lineup that will have some pop in the middle of it, ECU could be in solid shape offensively. When Love isn’t in center, it’s probably because the righthander will be on the mound as ECU’s Friday starter thanks to a strong changeup, solid command and control. He’ll have to help the pitching staff pick up the slack now that stud righthander Jeff Hoffman is gone. Basically, the Pirates landed a potential rising star at coach in Godwin, but they’ll need newcomers to make big impacts immediately.

• Senior righthander Carson Cross returned to Connecticut, and is expected to be healthy this spring after missing last year while recovering from shoulder surgery. That’s huge for the Huskies because Cross has a three-pitch mix that includes a low-to-mid-90s heater, good change and breaking ball. Jordan Tabakman (3.40 ERA in 2014), Andrew Zapata (2.57 ERA), and Anthony Kay (3.49 ERA; maybe the best stuff on the team) give Connecticut a ton of pitching depth. Junior Bobby Melley (.359/.475/.502 in 2014) and big-time power hitter senior Blake Davey (10 homers last year) are back to give the lineup a strong nucleus. If this program can find multiple relievers to fill roles, look out.

• The strength of South Florida will be on the mound and on defense. Senior RHP Jimmy Hergert returns after an all-conference campaign highlighted by his 1.26 ERA in 107.1 innings on the mound. Veteran righty Casey Mulholland (3.65 ERA in 88.2 innings last year) gives the Bulls a strong one-two punch at the top of the rotation. And the bullpen is anchored by Jordan Strittmatter, a righty who held opponents to a .163 batting average last season. However, it appears like the pitching and defense is going to have to carry the load because South Florida’s offense is a big question mark. Sure, senior infielder Kyle Teaf returns after hitting .354/.479/.416 last year. The problem for South Florida is he was the only player who hit over .300 last year, and USF combined to hit just nine homers. The Bulls could very well have a little more pep in their step this season with the addition of new head coach Mark Kingston, who has strong Florida ties and previously did a terrific job as head coach at Illinois State.

• East Carolina isn’t the only AAC program with a new coach because former Sam Houston State coach David Pierce now leads the Tulane program. Pierce inherits a program that hit just .226/.308/.295 in 2014. Obviously, the Green Wave’s ability to hit will be a glaring question mark heading into the season. But it did sound this fall like there is hope. Junior Tim Yandel and senior Tyler Wilson really swung the bat well in the fall after just 50 combined at-bats last season. If that duo adds a spark and Tulane embraces the speed on the bases in the form of Stephen Alemais and Richard Carthon, runs might be easier to find in 2015. Tulane also has a huge arm leading its staff in junior RHP Ian Gibaut, who can run his fastball up to 97 mph and has improved his slider. Gibaut closed last year but could appear as a starter earlier in the year to earn some work after throwing just 12.1 innings last season. Sophomore RHP Corey Merrill and junior righthander Patrick Duester are two sinkerballers that should help fill out the rotation; Merrill is a highly competitive pitcher that commands well. If junior RHP Alex Massey harnesses his stuff—he can touch the mid 90s with a swing-and-miss slider—after returning from injury in 2014, that could give Tulane one of the best staffs in the conference. A thing that will help those sinkerballers is having Alemais behind them, because he could be one of the best defensive shortstops in the country.

• Memphis returns many key pieces, including the top hitting outfield duo of Kane Barrow (.319/.379/.419) and Jake Little (.308/.358/.414). Little showed signs of great promise in the Cape League last summer, flashing speed, emerging pop and arm strength, but he can be a bit streaky. If Memphis can get production on the mound to help ace lefty Caleb Wallingford (2.44 ERA in 88.2 innings last season), it has the bullpen and strong defense up the middle to emerge as a team that can finish in the top third of the conference.

• Cincinnati will be led by outfielder Ian Happ, who can run, hit, and hit for power. As one of the nation’s most advanced hitters, Happ has a chance to be the first college position player drafted this June. The Bearcats will also take advantage of his defensive flexibility, playing him in the infield or outfield depending on what is best of the team and where Happ feels most comfortable. But he’ll be one of the few returners in the lineup as Cincinnati could start four freshmen in the lineup and two in the rotation. Lefthander Dalton Lehnen is a name to follow because he could be Cincinnati’s Friday starter as a freshman.

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