Rutgers Baseball Announces 2009 Recruiting Class
Nov 26 | Baseball
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers head baseball coach Fred Hill announced the signing of five high school standouts to National Letters of Intent on Wednesday.
The 2008 signing class includes four pitchers – Tyler Gebler (Toms River, N.J.), Jerry Elsing (Montville, N.J.), Dan O’Neill (Garfield, N.J.) and Rob Smorol (Clarke, N.J.) – and shortstop Steve Nyisztor (Toms River, N.J.).
First baseman Billy Hoerman (Toms River, N.J.) will also enroll at Rutgers next fall and has committed to the baseball program.
“We are very excited about this class,” Hill said. “We have a strong group of pitchers and infielders that I believe will help us continue to be successful. We take pride in keeping New Jersey’s best student-athletes home and I think this class exemplifies that.”
Gebler, a right-handed pitcher, was the 2008 Asbury Park Press Player of the Year and a Second Team All-State selection by the Star Ledger. The Toms River South product, who also earned First Team All-Shore honors by the Asbury Park Press, led the Indians to the Shore Conference and Ocean County tournament titles last spring en route to a 25-6 record. Gebler batted .446 with 21 RBI as a junior shortstop and finished 9-2 with three saves and a 1.46 ERA that included 83 strikeouts in 57.2 innings of work on the mound. Toms River South finished eighth in the state in the final Gannett poll. A three-year varsity starter, Gebler is a three-year Asbury Park Press All-Shore honoree, earning Second Team accolades as a sophomore and honorable mention laurels as a freshman. He owns a 19-8 career record with a 2.46 career ERA on the mound for the Indians. Gebler is also a four-year varsity starter for the Toms River South basketball team where the shooting guard has scored 870 points in three seasons. Gebler has also played with fellow Rutgers recruits Nyisztor, Smorol and Hoerman on the New Jersey Terminators summer team.
Elsing, a product of Montville High School, was a First Team All-Area selection by the Daily Record and a First Team All-Group III, All-Morris County and All-Northern Hills Conference pick as a junior. The right-handed pitcher posted a 9-1 record with a 0.97 ERA for the Mustangs last spring where he recorded 66 strikeouts in 56 innings of work. Elsing earned Honorable Mention All-Area honors by the Daily Record as a sophomore after registering seven saves and a 1.20 ERA as a reliever. A three-year varsity player, Elsing was a closer his first two seasons before moving into a starting role last spring.
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Dan O'Neill sign his lettor of intent.
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Nyisztor earned First Team All-Shore honors by the Asbury Park Press and Third Team All-State accolades by the Star Ledger after hitting .435 with nine doubles and five home runs as a shortstop for Toms River North. The First Team All-Division honoree finished second in the Shore Conference in hits (40), third in runs scored (25) and sixth in RBI (29) last spring. He also hit five home runs and stole six bases as a junior. Nyisztor has 71 hits, including 13 doubles and has driven in 41 runs in his three-year varsity career with the Mariners. He hit for the cycle and had six RBI in a contest and hit a two-run triple in the eighth inning in a 3-1 win over Lacey to lead Toms River North to the Class A South title. Nyisztor led the Mariners to the South Jersey Group IV state championship last spring. He also plays on the Toms River North basketball team where the shooting guard averages 15 points per game. A teammate of fellow Rutgers recruit Hoerman, Nyisztor also played with Gebler and Smorol on the New Jersey Terminators summer team.
Smorol posted a 1.20 ERA with 64 strikeouts in 45.1 innings as a junior at Arthur L. Johnson High School. The left-handed hurler finished the year 5-2 on the mound. Smorol, who also hit .420 with 26 hits, seven doubles and two home runs, earned First Team All-Union County and Second Team Group II All-State honors by the Star Ledger last spring. He was also a First Team All-Mountain Valley Conference selection as a junior. A three-year varsity starter entering his senior season, Smorol was 4-4 on the mound for the Crusaders his sophomore season with 60 strikeouts in 50.0 innings and a 3.00 ERA. He also hit .375 with 26 hits en route to All-Mountain Valley Conference accolades in 2007. Smorol has also played with fellow Rutgers recruits Gebler, Nyisztor and Hoerman on the New Jersey Terminators summer team.
Hoermanis a three-year varsity letterwinner at first base. He hit .406 with four home runs and drove in 23 runs as a sophomore in 2007. Hoerman missed half of last season while recovering from injury, but returned to play in the final 15 games and helped guide the Mariners to a state title. Toms River finished 23-5. Hoerman earned Second Team All-Shore honors by the Asbury Park Press and was a First Team All-County selection and Third Team All-Division pick his junior season. The 6-7 Hoerman is also a three-year varsity player on the Toms River North basketball team. He was selected for the Carpenter Cup team following his junior season. A teammate of fellow Rutgers recruit Nyisztor, Hoerman has also played with Gebler and Smorol on the New Jersey Terminators summer team.
Rutgers opens its 2009 season with a four-game series against Miami in Florida Feb. 20-23.
