Post by elp525 on Apr 14, 2010 4:44:13 GMT -5
Tuesday April 13, 2010
Mountaineers face Eastern Kentucky today at Power Park
by Mike Casazza
Daily Mail sports writer
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The story for Matt Frazer could be different than the homecoming he'll enjoy tonight as the Nitro High School graduate and the West Virginia baseball team hosts Eastern Kentucky.
The Mountaineer Diamond Classic begins at 6 p.m. at Appalachian Power Park.
For starters, Frazer missed five games earlier this month with a pulled muscle in his back. He returned as a substitute in the weekend series against St. John's and started Sunday's victory. Frazer, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound freshman, was 3-for-4 with two doubles in a 13-inning, 10-8 win.
"I made sure I wasn't going to push myself to come back too soon where it would cause any worse damage," Frazer said. "I was happy to get the start (Sunday) and I hope I get the start (today).
"Every game is a big game, especially when you come back home to your hometown and get to see a lot of people who know you. It's good to get a chance to play in front of them."
The Colonels (17-14) have won five in a row. The Mountaineers (15-17) lost two of three last weekend at St. John's.
Frazer, from Alum Creek, was an All-State pick as a senior at Nitro, the 2009 Kanawha Valley Player of the Year and a star for Kanawha Valley American Legion Post 94's state championship team last summer. He said he almost didn't attend WVU.
His first urge was to play at the University of Kentucky after the two sides got to know one another and discuss scholarship possibilities.
The Mountaineers stayed close and involved after getting a lot of looks at Frazer as they recruited former state Player of the Year Chase Pickering, a pitcher a year ahead of Frazer with the Wildcats and now with WVU.
"It ended up playing out where I felt more comfortable here and felt I'd have the best results here," Frazer said. "Playing for my home state and not real far away from home was a factor.
"We've got a good program here. I like the coaches. I like the program. Everyone had a lot of good things to say and we're doing a lot of good things. It all came down to liking everything about the environment here."
The decisions didn't end there. Last June, Frazer was drafted in the 26th round by the Kansas City Royals. He figured he would be selected and was prepared to deal with the dilemma it would pose.
"I felt like I was going to have a better chance to come to school with the opportunity to play college baseball," he said. "I've always wanted to play college baseball."
Professional baseball was always the next step and it was there for the taking. He saw past that, though, and understood that while it was available, it wasn't guaranteed.
"This gives me a chance to do baseball, plus a chance to get an education on top of that in case the professional route didn't work out," he said.
Frazer didn't have a career beyond baseball in mind when he picked college over the pros and he's still enrolled in general studies today, but it was the chance to find a future that intrigued him most.
He'll have time. Frazer can't be drafted again until after his third year of college - and that's not guaranteed.
"That was a big part of it," he said. "It brings you back down to reality that you have to have other things to do besides baseball. If baseball doesn't work out, you have to have a degree to get a job."
Frazer is fourth among regulars for WVU with a .293 average. He has four doubles and nine RBI and batted cleanup for 18 consecutive games before his injury, but also has struck out 20 times in 93 plate appearances.
"You've got some pitchers on some teams that have not-so-good stuff, but when you face the real competition you can definitely tell they know what they're doing," he said.
"Things are still going good. You always wish you could do better, but there are some things I'm trying to figure out and some things I'm adjusting to, but I feel like everything will work out."
Frazer and Pickering are joined by one other Kanawha Valley high school product on the WVU squad. Right fielder Grant Buckner of Elkview, a former Herbert Hoover star, is hitting .307 with two homers, 21 RBI and four steals. He's started 28 of WVU's 32 games.
Mountaineers face Eastern Kentucky today at Power Park
by Mike Casazza
Daily Mail sports writer
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The story for Matt Frazer could be different than the homecoming he'll enjoy tonight as the Nitro High School graduate and the West Virginia baseball team hosts Eastern Kentucky.
The Mountaineer Diamond Classic begins at 6 p.m. at Appalachian Power Park.
For starters, Frazer missed five games earlier this month with a pulled muscle in his back. He returned as a substitute in the weekend series against St. John's and started Sunday's victory. Frazer, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound freshman, was 3-for-4 with two doubles in a 13-inning, 10-8 win.
"I made sure I wasn't going to push myself to come back too soon where it would cause any worse damage," Frazer said. "I was happy to get the start (Sunday) and I hope I get the start (today).
"Every game is a big game, especially when you come back home to your hometown and get to see a lot of people who know you. It's good to get a chance to play in front of them."
The Colonels (17-14) have won five in a row. The Mountaineers (15-17) lost two of three last weekend at St. John's.
Frazer, from Alum Creek, was an All-State pick as a senior at Nitro, the 2009 Kanawha Valley Player of the Year and a star for Kanawha Valley American Legion Post 94's state championship team last summer. He said he almost didn't attend WVU.
His first urge was to play at the University of Kentucky after the two sides got to know one another and discuss scholarship possibilities.
The Mountaineers stayed close and involved after getting a lot of looks at Frazer as they recruited former state Player of the Year Chase Pickering, a pitcher a year ahead of Frazer with the Wildcats and now with WVU.
"It ended up playing out where I felt more comfortable here and felt I'd have the best results here," Frazer said. "Playing for my home state and not real far away from home was a factor.
"We've got a good program here. I like the coaches. I like the program. Everyone had a lot of good things to say and we're doing a lot of good things. It all came down to liking everything about the environment here."
The decisions didn't end there. Last June, Frazer was drafted in the 26th round by the Kansas City Royals. He figured he would be selected and was prepared to deal with the dilemma it would pose.
"I felt like I was going to have a better chance to come to school with the opportunity to play college baseball," he said. "I've always wanted to play college baseball."
Professional baseball was always the next step and it was there for the taking. He saw past that, though, and understood that while it was available, it wasn't guaranteed.
"This gives me a chance to do baseball, plus a chance to get an education on top of that in case the professional route didn't work out," he said.
Frazer didn't have a career beyond baseball in mind when he picked college over the pros and he's still enrolled in general studies today, but it was the chance to find a future that intrigued him most.
He'll have time. Frazer can't be drafted again until after his third year of college - and that's not guaranteed.
"That was a big part of it," he said. "It brings you back down to reality that you have to have other things to do besides baseball. If baseball doesn't work out, you have to have a degree to get a job."
Frazer is fourth among regulars for WVU with a .293 average. He has four doubles and nine RBI and batted cleanup for 18 consecutive games before his injury, but also has struck out 20 times in 93 plate appearances.
"You've got some pitchers on some teams that have not-so-good stuff, but when you face the real competition you can definitely tell they know what they're doing," he said.
"Things are still going good. You always wish you could do better, but there are some things I'm trying to figure out and some things I'm adjusting to, but I feel like everything will work out."
Frazer and Pickering are joined by one other Kanawha Valley high school product on the WVU squad. Right fielder Grant Buckner of Elkview, a former Herbert Hoover star, is hitting .307 with two homers, 21 RBI and four steals. He's started 28 of WVU's 32 games.
