Southeastern Lions have arms, power, speed to make baseball postseason run in 2021

HAMMOND, La. – With a pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Southeastern Louisiana head baseball coach had plenty of time to contemplate how to improve the program heading into his eighth season.

Early on, he and his coaching staff identified the bullpen and depth at catcher as two key needs to help propel the club back to the NCAA postseason.

Riser feels they went out and got the right pieces, but the biggest pickup came in mid-June when junior pitchers Trey Shaffer and Will Warren announced they had turned down overtures from Major League teams and return to Southeastern for another season.

“We were fortunate enough, with everyone getting a year back, that Trey and Will feel there is some unfinished business they need to take care of – helping us get back to the postseason and advance past the Regional for the first time in school history,” Riser said. “That played a big part in them coming back and has been evident in the type of leadership they’ve shown since this team reported back.”

Both were Preseason All-Conference selections and rated as two of the Top 5 pro prospects in the Southland Conference by D1Baseball. With both back in the fold, the weekend rotation – which logged more than half of the team’s innings last season while combining for a 6-2 record, a 1.54 ERA and a .177 opponent batting average – returns intact.

“The rotation, with Shaffer, Warren and Upton, was fantastic in the shortened season,” Riser said. “Then we added Will Kinzeler in this. He’s about as ready as a freshman could possibly be to contribute in year one. He does a fantastic job of knowing who he is and what he is. He has the pitchability and the stuff, can control the running game and field his position. He is as advanced and ready as any freshman we’ve ever had.”

Named D1Baseball’s Preseason Conference Freshman of the year, the third-straight year a Lion has earned that honor, Kinzeler will have the chance to play a critical role in Southeastern’s bid for a Southland title while navigating the new schedule format agreed to for this season.

And he’s not the only freshman factoring into the mix. Expect to also see contributions from first-year hurlers Kyle Bartley, Andrew Landry and Brennan Stuprich.

“It’s going to be a little bit of a different look,” Riser said. “We have four-game weekends and sporadic midweeks. When we hit those, you’ll see a guy like Bartley. He’s seasoned for a freshman, knows what he’s doing on the bump and mature beyond his years.”

Backing up the rotation, Riser felt a key piece was missing in the bullpen. He believes he found what he’s been looking for in a sidearming grad transfer out of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).

“We added a piece with Cole Hoskins, a transfer out of Grand Canyon,” Riser said “He has plenty of experience, logging more than 30 games for them. Hoskins will come out of the bullpen a lot and face some tough situations for us. We’re really excited to add him to the back end of our pen.”

Hoskins, who picked up a pair of wins and five saves while compiling a 4.10 ERA in 37 games at GCU, fits in nicely with a pair of returners who helped shoulder the load last season.

“We return some key pieces out of the bullpen in Kyle Flettrich and Noah Hughes,” Riser said. “Both guys have experience and had success for us last year.”

Beyond the big three, there is plenty of depth.

“There are still plenty of guys vying for spots,” Riser said. “Stuprich will see some time in the bullpen. He has elite stuff and is trending toward better command of it. If he fills the zone up with the stuff he has, he’ll be a key piece for us. We also have a couple of transfers, Hunter O’Toole and Gage Trahan, that we’re counting on for some help as well as returners Dalton Aspholm and Ryan Keeley.”

When it comes to working with the pitching staff, the Lions will be missing the steadying influence that is two-year starter Connor Manola behind the plate.

“We saw two key pieces that we needed to add this past summer, one was in the bullpen and the other was catcher to provide us some depth,” Riser said. “Thank goodness we did. Unfortunately, Manola will be out for the year but when one man goes down, another one has to step up.”

Riser added a power bat and veteran presence in grad transfer Gaby Cruz. The native of Miami, Florida was a four-year starter for Northeast Conference-power Bryant. A career .293 hitter with 21 doubles, 13 home runs and 90 RBIs, Cruz earned All-Conference honors multiple times in addition to ABCA All-Region honors as a junior.

He gives Riser someone to pair behind the plate with freshman Bryce Grizzaffi and provide a solid option at designated hitter.

“Grizzaffi has matured in the last year,” Riser said. “We knew he was extremely talented even though he had some freshman moments for us last year. COVID helped reset some things, so he’s a freshman on the books but seasoned and more ready to play this year. He and Gaby, the transfer we needed to add, will split time behind the dish.”

Cruz’ power bat behind the dish adds to Southeastern’s mix on the corners. Preston Faulkner, who earned All-Southland honors after smashing 11 homers as a sophomore, earned Preseason All-Conference honors this year and after spending his debut season primarily as the DH, Jacob Burke moves to third base.

“They emulate what we want,” Riser said. “We want big, strong, fast guys on the corners, ones who are athletic and can move. Faulkner and Burke are both built that way. We also return a lot of experience. Eli Johnson is in his third year with us and Trey Harrington is in year four. They’re guys you can never count out.”

Southeastern’s pitching is only as strong as the defense behind it and, as usual, the Lions have the right mix.

“Up the middle we’re solid with our returners, Evan Keller and Champ Artigues,” Riser said. “We’re excited to see what both can do with a full year. Rhett Rosevear is a freshman, left-handed bat with a seasoned approach at the plate. He’ll get some playing time as well. He reminds me a lot of former shortstop Ben Hernandez. He’s not the biggest, fastest or strongest guy on the field, but he winds up being one of the better players on the field because he knows how to use his game.

“Then we have Mr. Utility, Tyler Finke,” Riser said. “He can play second or short or go roam center field. I feel like we’re in really good shape up the middle.”

Another COVID freshman who has a chance to make an impact this season is outfielder Christian Garcia. The converted infielder wowed fans with several acrobatic catches in the outfield this past summer with the Great Lakes Resorters.

“These guys had a year to get better and they took the step we needed them to take,” Riser said. “Garcia is another one that needed to mature a little bit and he has in his approach at the plate. He went out this past summer in the Northwoods League and came back a better player because he continued to learn the game. We knew he had the tools and the talent, but now he’s starting to tap into being a ballplayer.”

Garcia hit .261 with a wood bat, but also chalked up 14 walks for a .400 on-base percentage. He will take one corner outfield spot and redshirt sophomore Nick Ray, who led the Lions in RBIs during a fall full of intrasquad action, mans the other.

“This could be the most athletic outfield we’ve ever had in program history, with Garcia in left, Finke in center and Nick Ray in right field,” Riser said. “They’ve got a balance of strength and power. They can run. They can run the ball out of the yard. They’ve got good arms and really do some things to help us out.

“Then you look up and you’ll see guys like Joe Delaney and Kenneth Bell, two talented freshmen that will find their way into some games because they have elite speed and are good defenders. And we have some great role players in Matt Taylor and Brandon Hale, bringing back starting experience for us.”

UP NEXT

Southeastern opens the 2021 season Friday at home as part of the Hammond, America Classic at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field. The Lions are slated to face Mississippi Valley State in the opener at 6 p.m., South Alabama at 6 p.m. Saturday and Mississippi Valley State once again at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Mississippi Valley State and South Alabama are also slated to face each other twice during the weekend, Saturday at 1 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m., to round out the Hammond, America Classic.

TICKET INFORMATION

Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance to minimize ticket lines on game days. Baseball single-game tickets, for games during February and March, are currently on sale.

For the most up-to-date ticket information visit www.LionSports.net or contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466. Currently closed for the Mardi Gras holiday, the university will reopen Wednesday. Normal ticket office hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Fridays.

MOBILE TICKETING
Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary method for securing tickets during the 2020-21 school year. Tickets will be available via text message or email in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.

PARKING

Gameday parking during the 2021 season is $5 per day for Southeastern baseball, while football parking is $25 per day for most vehicles and $85 for RVs.

Fans can purchase a season pass ($105), individual reserved ($185) or RV parking spots ($225), good for all baseball and football games, by completing the form at www.LionSports.net/Parking and submitting it to the Lion Athletics Association.

CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics enforces a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. The policy mirrors safety precautions required for entrance to professional and collegiate sporting venues throughout the country. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/Clear.

LIONS GAMEDAY EXPERIENCE APP
The Lions Gameday Experience app puts audio, stats, video, social media and more in the hands of fans. Those in attendance can also check in to earn reward points redeemable for Southeastern-related prizes. Available for both Android and iOS devices, it can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play or by following the link www.LionSports.net/App.

DIAMOND CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the baseball program are encouraged to join the Diamond Club. Lion baseball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.

All membership fees and donations to both the Diamond Club and S Club (baseball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern baseball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.

SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lions Baseball, follow @LionUpBaseball or @MattRiser17 on Twitter, @LionUpBaseball on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.