BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The defending Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) champion Alabama State University baseball team was chosen as the favorite to win the East Division as voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors, announced by the conference office this morning.
Alabama State, 38-17 overall last season, advanced to the Tallahassee Regional of the NCAA Tournament after winning its first-ever SWAC championship and finished with a historic 24-0 mark in conference play. For the second consecutive season, the Hornets received seven first-place votes (64 points) and was predicted to win the Eastern Division as the Hornets return the majority of what was a dominate offense last year. Jackson State was chosen second (58 points), while Alcorn State (41 points) was selected third. Alabama A&M (35 points) and Mississippi Valley State (17 points) rounded out the projections for the Eastern Division.
Alabama State placed eight on the All-SWAC Preseason First Team, including 2016 SWAC Player of the Year
Carlos Ocasio (outfielder) and 2016 SWAC Freshman of the Year
Eriq White (second baseman).
Ocasio led the team in multi-hit games (23) and multi-RBI games (19). He batted .330 and slugged .593 in 209 at-bats. Ocasio finished with 69 hits, 62 runs scored, 60 RBI, 13 home runs 12 doubles and two triples.
White played in 54 games last season and recorded 66 hits, 47 runs scored, 41 RBI, 13 doubles and three home runs. He batted .346 in 191 at-bats.
Joining Ocasio and White on the first team was
Chris Biocic (first baseman), Ray Hernandez (third baseman), outfielder (Yamil Pagan), Hunter Allen (catcher), Diandre Amion (designated hitter) and
Tyler Howe (starting pitcher).
Biocic drove in 44 and batted .313 in 182 at-bats. He registered 57 hits, including eight doubles, one triple and one home run.
Hernandez batted .289 and slugged .597 in 201 at-bats. He finished with 58 hits, including 18 multi-hit games, 16 home runs and 14 doubles. Also he was second on the team in multi-RBI games with 17.
Pagan was tied for second in multi-hit games with 19 and finished fourth nationally in sacrifice flies. He batted .335 in 209 at-bats. Pagan registered 70 hits, 60 runs scored, 48 RBIs, 11 doubles, five triples and five home runs in 55 games played.
Allen played in 32 games and batted .319 in 119 at-bats. He recorded 38 hits, including eight doubles and seven home runs. Also, he scored 25 times and drove in 24, including four against Southern.
Amion batted .320 in 169 at-bats. He finished with 54 hits, including five home runs, five doubles and three triples last season. Also, he went 4-for-6, with four runs scored and four RBIs in a win over Southern.
Howe, ranked first in the conference and eighth nationally in earned run average, led the team on the mound with a 10-3 record and a 1.69 ERA in 12 games. He worked 80.0 innings with a team-high 82 strikeouts.
Brandon Caples (starting pitcher) and
Austin Bizzle (relief pitcher) were selected to the All-SWAC Second Team.
Caples fanned 31 batters in 40.2 innings on the rubber. He went 3-1, picking up wins over Bowling Green, Jacksonville State and Southern, and recorded a 3.76 ERA.
Bizzle pitched in 42.1 innings and went 2-2 with a pair of saves. He recorded 46 strikeouts, including five against Northwestern State and Alcorn State.
The Hornets open the 2017 season Friday, Feb. 17 in Clearwater, Fla. against Louisville. The first Alabama State home game is 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at the Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex against UAB.
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