2006 university at buffalo baseball prospectus - Buffalo Athletics

2006 SEASON PREVIEWLefthandedsophomore ShaneWolf posted a 2.40ERA in 30 innings ofwork as a freshmanto lead the Bulls’pitching staff.Senior James Kingsley tied the school-record for home runs (12)and set the school-mark for RBIs (50) in a season in 2005.Blair, a converted catcher, hoisted a .495 batting average, four triples,31 RBIs and 10 stolen bases in his senior year of high school. He earnedsecont team All-State honors twice in his career.Nowak and freshmen Charlie Karstedt (Eden, NY/Eden) and JamesPiazza (Amherst, NY/Williamsville North) will also see time in the outfield.Karstedt hit .469 as a senior to earn a slot on the Buffalo News All-WesternNew York team, as he set school records for career runs, hits, RBIs and triples.Piazza, another All-Western New York selection, hit .480 with 17 runs, ninedoubles, 20 RBIs and six stolen bases in his final year of high school ball.“All eight of them will factor into the mix at sometime or anotherthroughout the season,” Breene said.CATCHERSQuinn had a breakthrough year for the Bulls in 2005, as the junior hit.256 with seven home runs and 30 RBIs. He became Buffalo’s first MAC EastDivision Player of the Week after hitting .448 with four home runs and 10RBIs during the week of March 21. Behind the plate, Quinn also excelled, gunningdown 41 runners in 70 stolen base attempts (58.6 percent).He followed the collegiate performace by earning a slot on theNorthwoods League’s All-Star team during the summer, batting .276 with 16doubles, five home runs and 27 RBIs for the Brainerd Blue Thunder.“There’s no question that Dan is going to get the primary load behindthe plate,” Breene said. “He’s coming off a great summer. I think his attitude issuch that he wants to come out and have a monster season for us.”Also available to fill time behind the plate are sophomores Rick Oliveri(Tonawanda, NY/Canisius) and E.J. Folli, as well as Amaro.Oliveri went 4-for-8 in limited action during his freshman season,scoring twice and adding two RBIs for the Bulls.“He’s recovered well from his surgery,” Breene said of Oliveri. “He’sthrowing the ball the best since he’s been here and so if we need to spellDan, we can go to Ricky.”Freshman Adam Durfee (Amherst, NY/Williamsville North), the2005 Buffalo News Western New York Player of the Year, will redshirt in hisfirst year with the Bulls as he recovers from surgery on both his knee and hisshoulder.PITCHERSWith the loss of sophomore Mark Tourangeau (Oakville, Ontario/Queen Elizabeth Park), a 2003 Major League Baseball draft pick, to TommyJohn surgery and the questionable status of sophomore Tony Kurtz (Newfane,NY/Newfane), a six-game winner in 2005, thanks to a forearm injury,the Bulls will look to a core of four pitchers who tossed 30 or more innings in2005 along with the addition of four freshmen to pick up the slack.McWilliams, a 6-2, 185-pound senior, had a breakthrough season asa junior, becoming the first UB pitcher since the program was reinstated totoss 40 innings and have an ERA lower than 3.00, as he tossed 49.1 inningsand had a 2.92 ERA. Used mostly out of the bullpen, McWilliams appearedin 20 games and started three accumulating three saves to tie the school’scareer record of six.“Sean is a leader on the team on the field and off the field,” pitchingcoach Ed Marko said. “He’s going to be counted on to start some games andrelieve some games for us. He’s the type of kid with his attitude that he cancome in and get three guys out and save a game for us.”Sophomore Shane Wolf (Freeville, NY/Lansing) had a breakthroughshowing in 2005, as the finesse-tossing southpaw pitched 30 innings andposted a 2.40 ERA. He went 0-1, thanks to a hard-luck 2-0 decision at Toledo.He struck out 22 batters and walked only 10.“He’s gotten bigger and stronger,” Marko said. “His velocity hasjumped. He is always around the plate and he got a lot of groundballs in thefall. I think he will do a good job for us.”The Bulls also have a pair of weekend starters back in senior MattJohnson (Montague, MI/Montague/Grand Rapids CC) and junior AdamRuszkowski (Utica, NY/Proctor).Johnson, who pitched a team-high 66 innings in 2005, posted a 3-6record with a 5.86 ERA. He struck out 29 and walked 29, as he completedthree games and tossed a shutout.Ruszkowski pitched 52 innings, going 4-3 with a 7.62 ERA, as he struckout 14 and walked 21. He started the year 4-1 before losing his final twodecisions.Sophomore Chris Ciesla (Endicott, NY/Union-Endicott) will alsolook to make more of an impact this season after going 0-1 with a 9.00 ERAin 24 innings last season.“His mechanics from last year to this year, I feel have gotten better,”Marko said. “All fall, all winter, he’s been around the plate. I am going to counton him to be a starter.”The Bulls will also be given a lift from the additions of sophomoresouthpaws Joe Rosenbeck (Medina, NY/Medina), who has had surgeryinterruptedyears in both of his seasons in Buffalo, and Joe Welch (Endicott,NY/Union-Endicott), who was academically ineligible in 2005.The staff will also benefit from the addition of All-Western New Yorkpitchers Piazza and Steve Geltz (Ransomville, NY/Wilson) as well as DanFrancis (East Amherst, NY/Clarence), James Flatley (Elma, NY/Iroquois)and Zack Anderson (Williamsville, NY/Williamsville East).“Danny Francis has some good stuff,” Marko said. “I am going to counton him to throw a lot of innings as well. He’s got some good breaking stuffand he’s around the plate with some good velocity and movement. He givesa lot of depth because he can come out of the bullpen or he could be astarter.”Geltz, who went 7-0 with a 0.61 ERA as a senior, could earn the closer’sjob immediately, while Francis, an honorable mention All-Western New Yorkpick, Flatley, who went 6-1 with a 1.67 ERA as a senior, Piazza, who went 7-1as a senior, and Anderson, another honorable mention All-Western NewYorker, could also see spot starting duty.“Steve Geltz is a little guy who can bring it pretty good,” Marko said.“We’re going to count on him and Sean [McWilliams] to come in at the endof the game as well.”2006 UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO BASEBALL PROSPECTUS 8