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PA Players Begin Their Quest for a Trip to Omaha

January 31, 2013

By Jacob Gill
Philadelphia Region Director of Scouting

Pennsylvania players have made an impact on many of the premier programs in the country in recent years, most notably when Christian Walker (Kennedy-Kenrick Catholic HS) helped lead South Carolina to back-to-back National Championships in 2010 and 2011.  Below is a list of all Pennsylvanians on rosters of teams in the Top 25 of both the Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball preseason polls.

North Carolina Tar Heels
BA #1 
CB #2

Chris O'Brien, So, LHP, Malvern Prep
O'Brien's rookie campaign saw him post a 3.46 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 26.0 innings pitched, which included fourteen appearances and five starts.

Mike Zolk, So, IF, Neumann-Goretti HS
Zolk's freshman year teamed him with former Germantown Academy standout Tommy Coyle (who signed with Tampa Bay as a 16th round pick in the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft) to form the primary double-play combination for the Tar Heels.  Zolk hit .255 in 53 games (42 starts) with 20 runs scored, 26 RBI, and more walks (20) than strikeouts (19).

2013 Commitment: AJ Bogucki (RHP, Boyertown Area HS)

Vanderbilt Commodores
BA #2
CB #3

Chris Harvey, So, C, Germantown Academy
Harvey's .216 freshman year batting average appears a lot more impressive when you consider that the six-foot-five, 215-pounder graduated early in order to enroll at Vanderbilt for what would have been his senior year in high school.  Having appeared in thirty games at catcher and DH, as well as a pinch-hitter, Harvey's role is expected to grow in his sophomore year.

Louisville Cardinals
BA #4
CB #22

Ty Young, Jr, IF, Malvern Prep
Young earned 3rd-team all-Big East honors in 2012 by leading Louisville in batting average (.344), on-base percentage (.467), and slugging (.539), while finishing 19th in the nation in HBP (21).  He scored and drove in 42 runs, while adding 9 doubles, 4 triples, 6 home runs, and 15 stolen bases.

Sutton Whiting, So, IF, Wilmington Area HS
Whiting hit .575 with 46 stolen bases as a junior at Wilmington Area before transferring to a Kentucky high school his senior year, then served primarily as a pinch runner as a freshman for the Cardinals.

Danny Rosenbaum, Fr, IF, Chestnut Hill Academy & Plymouth Whitemarsh HS
In between bouncing from PW to CHA and back again, Rosenbaum found time to hit .400 with 19 extra base hits, while putting up a 2.31 ERA, in his final high school season.

2013 Commitment: Matt Rowland (IF, Springside-Chestnut Hill)

North Carolina State Wolfpack
BA #8
CB #11

Tarran Senay, Sr, OF/1B, South Park HS
Senay is expected to be a primary power source this season, as he enters his senior campaign with three-year totals of 33 doubles, 2 triples, 14 home runs, 78 RBI, and a .260 batting average.  He has appeared in nearly 80%, and started nearly 60%, of the Wolfpack's games over the course of his career.

Karl Keglovits, Fr, RHP, Nazareth Area HS
Keglovits went 5-3 with a 1.03 ERA in 47.2 IP, allowing 29 hits and 12 walks, while recording 55 strikeouts, as he helped lead Nazareth to a LVIAC championship in 2012.

Mississippi Rebels
BA #13
CB #25

Christian Helsel, Fr, IF, Altoona Area HS
Helsel enters his freshman year in Oxford after earning Class AAAA 2nd-team all-state recognition his senior year. The six-foot, 195-pounder hit .415 while also posting a 1.89 ERA.

Florida Gators
BA #17
CB #24

Keenan Kish, Jr, RHP, Germantown Academy
A premium athlete coming out of high school, Kish carries a 1.51 career ERA as a reliever into his junior year, one in which he is expected to slide into the #3 or #4 starter role.  His FB/SL combo has allowed him to rack up 40 strikeouts against 12 walks with a .203 opponents average in 41.2 career innings pitched.


Florida State Seminoles
BA #20
CB #19

John Sansone, Fr, IF, Neshannock HS
Sansone was drafted in the 39th round of the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft, but will head to Tallahassee after earning Class A 1st-team all-state honors.  He hit .597 with 34 runs scored, 40 RBI and 25 extra base hits while leading Neshannock to a WPIAL title and a PIAA Class A quarterfinal appearance.

In addition to those above, four other programs with Pennsylvania ties appear in the Collegiate Baseball Preseason Top 40.

Kent State Golden Flashes
CB #34

Eric Dorsch, R-So, RHP, North Allegheny HS
Alex Miklos, So, OF, Grove City HS
Jason Revesz, R-Fr, RHP, Grove City HS
Jeff Revesz, So, C, Grove City HS
George Roberts, Sr, IF/RHP, Forest Hills HS
Zarley Zalewski, Fr, IF, Valley HS

Roberts led the Golden Flashes in average (.364), slugging (.549) and RBI (66), while Miklos served as the primary left fielder (.250 AVG, 23 R, 21 RBI).  Dorsch posted a 3.15 ERA and finished third on the team in appearances (21), and Jeff Revesz (.265 AVG, 11 RBI) saw action as well.  Zalewski (an athletic switch-hitter with a loose swing from both sides) and Jason Revesz (coming off a red-shirt year) will look to make their mark on a program coming off its first ever College World Series appearance.

2013 Commitments: Keyshawn D'Orso (OF, Allderdice HS), Andy Ravel (RHP, Wilson HS), John Santospago (C, Archbishop Wood HS), Jared Skolnicki (LHP, Keystone Oaks HS), Zach Spangler (RHP, Seneca Valley HS)

Virginia Cavaliers
CB #35

Rob Amaro, R-Jr, IF/C, William Penn Charter
Rob Bennie, Fr, Util, Stroudsburg HS
Derek Fisher, So, OF, Cedar Crest HS
Colin Harrington, R-Jr, OF, Bishop McCort HS
John LaPrise, Fr, IF, Devon Prep
Joe McCarthy, Fr, OF/1B, Scranton HS
Mike Papi, So, OF/1B, Tunkhannock HS
David Rosenberger, Fr, LHP, Allentown Central Catholic HS
Scott Williams, Fr, C/RHP, Conestoga HS

Harrington (.305 AVG, 29 R, 28 RBI, .400 OBP) and Fisher (2nd-team Baseball America Pre-season All-American) hold the top two returning batting averages for the Cavaliers this season, while Papi hopes to flex his muscle (nine of his 30 hits went for extra bases) in a full-time role.  The freshman class shows a ton of athleticism as LaPrise and McCarthy are both plus runners, while Bennie was also the starting QB on the gridiron in high school.  Williams exhibits sub-2.0 pop times and will run it into the upper-80s on the mound as well, while Rosenberger has a loose, whippy arm that also generates upper-80s velocity.

2013 Commitment: Adam Bleday (LHP, Titusville HS)

East Carolina Pirates
CB #37

Chris Gosik, Sr, Util, Malvern Prep 
Andy Smithmyer, Sr, RHP, Altoona Area HS

Smithmyer was a key bullpen cog last season, finishing with a team-leading 1.92 ERA in 61.0 IP (most on the team for a non-starter), giving up 50 hits and 25 walks, while recording 67 strikeouts.  Gosik is a career .258 hitter with 25 runs, 8 doubles, 3 home runs, and 27 RBI.

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
CB #38


Vince Apicella, Fr, LHP, Northern HS
Alex Buccilli, Sr, OF, Franklin Regional HS
Tyler Herb, Jr, RHP, Williams Valley HS
Anthony Marks, Fr, OF, Montour HS
Dan Neff, Fr, OF, Lampeter-Strasburg HS

Herb went 9-2 with a 2.61 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 69.2 IP as a mainstay in the weekend rotation.  Buccilli was named 2nd-team all-Big South after hitting .313 with 43 RBI, 10 stolen bases, and a ridiculous ratio of 35 walks against only 15 strikeouts.  It's no surprise that speedsters such as Neff and Marks would find their way onto this roster, as the Chants are annually among the nation's leaders in stolen bases.  Apicella is a bulldog with a very good curveball who went 11-1 with 129 strikeouts in 81.1 IP as a junior before being limited his senior year due to injury.

2013 Commitment: Zac Burke (RHP, Penn Manor HS)

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