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Tulane Baseball Inks New Crop of Talent During Early Signing Period
Nov. 21, 2008
New Orleans- Tulane will be adding new talent and depth to its 2009-2010 roster with the signing of several area and out-of-state ball players, head coach Rick Jones announced Friday. The Green Wave has received National Letters of Intent to Play from high school seniors Cody Robinson, Garrett Cannizaro, Brennan Middleton, Kyle McKenzie, Blake Crohan, Bowen Woodson, Brandon Boudreaux, Brian Barry and Greg Miller. Gunner Wright rounds out the group as the only junior college transfer. Jones, who was tapped as the skipper of the 2009 Team USA club earlier this year, is excited about the incoming class. "This is one of the largest recruiting classes we've had since I became the head coach. This was done out of design and out of necessity," Jones said. "We have ten seniors [on this year's team] and a lot of draft eligible kids on our roster. [Associate head coach Chad] Sutter and [pitching coach Jack] Cressend have done a tremendous job recruiting for us. I have no doubt that these kids will have great success once we get them on campus." Robinson, hailing from Lamar Consolidated High School in Sugarland, Texas, was a 4A first team All-District and first team All-Area co-MVP in 2008. He led his team to the 2008 district championship and was also named to the 4A All-State team after his club finished as 4A regional finalists.
"Cody is one of the most athletic kids in this class. He can play any of the outfield positions and brings a power bat that will impact our lineup immediately," Sutter said. "He has a plus arm to go along with his 6-2 frame. Cody's hard-nosed style of play and the projection he has as a ballplayer gives him a chance to be one of the great ones at Tulane." Robinson also recorded three hits in the Texas Scout Association game, an exhibition game in which the top ball players from the state are hand-picked to participate, as well as playing for the Texas Rangers Area Code team during the summer. Joining Robinson will be Garrett Cannizaro, whose older brother Andy, is in the Tulane Hall of Fame and has seen time in the big leagues with the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. Cannizaro (6-0, 185), a three-year letterman at Mandeville High School, finished his junior season hitting .390 with five homeruns and 30 RBI. Selected as a first-team all-district and all-parish, the righty was also 5-0 with two saves on the mound with a 1.91 ERA to accompany his efforts at shortstop. Cannizaro spent his summers with the Louisiana Knights and was named MVP and also received the team's Gold Glove award last summer. Cannizaro was also selected to participate in the East Coast Professional Showcase Tournament in Lakeland, Florida.
"Garrett Cannizaro is special in every sense of the word. I like him more and more every time I see him play. He will step in and be an impact player for us immediately and he is only going to get better as he continues [to play]," Cressend said. "He has soft hands with an above average arm and has the ability to hit for power which is a big plus for a middle infielder. He is also a great teammate. I expect Garrett to have a great career at Tulane and continue the long history of great shortstops that we have had here." Brennan Middleton, a 6-1 middle infielder, was also selected to participate in the East Coast Professional Showcase Tournament with Cannizaro. He finished his junior year with a .426 average with runners in scoring position, as well as posting a .468 on base percentage. The right-handed hitting Middleton was also recognized as a 2009 Under Armor Pre-Season All-American. A product of Baton Rouge's Parkview Baptist High School, he will join the Tulane club as a middle infielder. Earning a state ranking of #4 prospect in Louisiana, Middleton's 2008 prep season included a .370 average with eight doubles, three triples, two homeruns and 46 RBI.
"We couldn't be happier that Brennan decided to join the Tulane family. He is one of those unique five-tool players that we all talk about," Sutter said. "Brennan plays with a ton of energy and that carries over to his teammates. I am looking forward to watching Brennan mature as a player and I expect big things from him." Kyle McKenzie, a 6-0 RHP from Thayer Academy (Braintree, Mass.), is the lone high school pitcher in this signing class. He is the only pitcher in Thayer Academy's history to throw a perfect game (May 14, 2008 against Roxbury Latin) in which he faced 21 batters with 14 strikeouts. He finished the 2008 season with a 6-1 record (1.10 ERA), recorded one save and struck out 100 batters in 46 innings.
"I am extremely excited about the opportunity to coach Kyle McKenzie. I knew he was our guy the first time I saw him pitch this summer," Cressend said. "He will have a huge impact on our pitching staff right away. He is a strike thrower with a low 90s fastball and has plus command of his offspeed pitches. He flat out knows how to pitch. He is also a fierce competitor and brings a toughness to the mound that will benefit our entire team." An honor student at Thayer Academy, he received Independent School League (ISL) honors as 2008 Pitcher of the Year and was also selected to the 2007 and 2008 All-League All Star teams. McKenzie, the number one prospect in Massachusetts in 2008, also earned a 37th best prospect ranking at the 2008 Team USA Tournament of Stars by Baseball America as well as participating in the Area Code games. Joining the Tulane family from out of state is Georgia-native Blake Crohan. The 6-0 Crohan was a Gold Glove recipient his junior and sophomore years while holding down the catching duties at Lassiter High School in Marietta, in addition to receiving scholar athlete honors.
"Blake is one of the best catch-and-throw guys in the country," Sutter said. "His athleticism and leadership skills will impact our ballclub immediately. He plays on Lassiter High School and East Cobb in the summer so he has been a winner everywhere he's been. I look forward to his bringing that winning attitude to Tulane." As a member of the East Cobb 17-18U team, Crohan earned the Rawlings defensive award for the 2008 season in addition to being named to the 2009 Under Armor Pre-Season All-American team. Bowen Woodson, a 6-0 infielder brings added versatility, which will lend itself to the depth of the Green Wave club. The right-handed hitting Woodson tallied 33 RBI in the 2008 season and posted a .404 average at Vicksburg High School in Mississippi.
"Bowen is another very athletic kid who can play multiple positions," Sutter said. "He has a great agility, a good arm and can really run. Bowen is a great student and that combined with his athletic ability makes him the perfect Tulane guy." Woodson was also a perfect 27-27 on the base paths, something that will lend itself to the Tulane lineup. "He has a very good short game to go along with his speed, which gives him a chance to put pressure on the defense," Sutter said. A member of the 4A North State Championship Team, Woodson was also selected as 4A First-Team All-State by the Mississippi Association of Coaches and Crossroads-Diamond Club as well as one of the state's Top 20 Underclassmen by The Clarion Ledger. Brandon Boudreaux comes to Tulane from St. Paul's High School in Covington, where he was a 7-5A All-District and All-St. Tammany Parish selection in 2007 and 2008. The 6-0 outfielder finished the 2008 season with a .350 average that included six doubles, three triples and a homerun and 21 RBI.
"Brandon is going to be a great college player. He can play all three outfield positions and his versatility will give us many options," Cressend explained. "Brandon hits from the left side and has the ability to drive the ball to all fields. He is also a plus runner. He brings an energy level to the field every day which is contagious to his teammates. He is also a great student which makes him a perfect fit at Tulane. Brandon will no doubt be a great asset to our program." Boudreaux has also excelled in the classroom, where he is in the top ten percent of his class. Brian Barry (5-9, 170) is a sure-handed middle infielder who can also play center field. Barry was named to the all-county team during his sophomore and junior years at Smithtown East High School in Nesconset, New York. He also won MVP honors in the 2007 Premier National World Series at the age of 16, making him the youngest player to receive that title.
"Brian was one of the grittiest players I saw all summer," Sutter said. "He is one of those players whose uniform is always dirty. Brian can play in the middle of the infield as well as center field. His toughness will be evident to all who watches him play. He plays for one of the best summer coaches in the country in Marc Cuseta, so he used to playing at a high level against great competition. He is a prototype leadoff hitter who is cut out of the same mold as [former Tulane outfielder] Jon Kaplan." Barry finished playing for Cuseta's Bayside Yankees this summer with a .396 average that included 16 extra base hits as well as a 17-21 performance on the base paths. At the conclusion of the summer, he played on the Milwaukee Brewers Area Code team. He recently closed out the fall season with a .403 average, .582 slugging percentage and stole 19 bases in 21 attempts. Barry isn't the only signee coming south from the New England states. Rounding out the crop of high school seniors who will be arriving at Tulane next fall is Greg Miller, a Dean's List student and Model United Nations member who led Connecticut's Bristol Central High School to the school's first state championship game during his sophomore campaign. The same year, the righty hit .386, played error-free defense at third base and earned All-Conference honors.
"Greg is a big physical kid who can play the corner outfield and infield positions," Sutter said. "He bounced back from his thumb injury and had a great summer for Coach [Mark] Holtzman. He has lots of power potential and now that he is healthy and is concentrating on baseball year-round, I think his already-great skills will take off even more." He also showed his versatility by playing eight different positions during his summer American Legion team, which went on to win the state championship that year. After transferring to Avon Old Farms High School, Miller still managed to hit .340 with nine doubles and three homeruns, despite missing the bulk of his junior season with a broken thumb. While the 2009 Under Armor All-American was predominantly a right fielder for Team Connecticut during the summer, he also saw time at third and hit .360 (11 doubles, one triple and three homeruns). Heading to Tulane next year is the sole junior college transfer and two-way standout, Gunner Wright. Wright, who is transferring from Grayson County College in Texas, will get plenty of time on the mound and as a position player. The 6-4 righty posted 12.04 strikeouts per nine innings as a freshman at Grayson, along with a .310 average that included 59 RBI with 24 extra basehits with nine of them coming via homerun.
"Gunner has a chance to be added to the great list of two-way players that Tulane is known for," Sutter said. "He has a power bat that should place him in the middle of our order and he will also see ample time on the mound. He has a fastball that will reach in the low 90s to go along with a power breaking ball. He won a national championship at Grayson so he knows how to win when it counts." Wright, who was also a four-year letterman in basketball in high school, was a North-South All-State selection, finishing his senior year with a 0.49 ERA in 56 innings, in addition to Academic All-State honors. The signees will be a welcome addition to the Tulane program, which will lose ten seniors to graduation at the end of the 2009 season. Tulane Baseball 2008 Early Signee Photo Gallery 2008 Tulane Baseball Early-Period Signees*
*based on their classification for the 2010 baseball season
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