Rutgers MLB Update - July
Jul 06 | Baseball
* - through games played July 5
TODD FRAZIER
In his first season with the Chicago White Sox, Frazier is currently tied for third in the major leagues with 23 home runs. The third baseman also leads the team with 52 RBIs over 82 games. For his six-year career, Frazier has hit 131 home runs with 376 RBIs. He is the defending MLB Home Run Derby champion.
One of the most accomplished players in Rutgers history, Frazier ranks first in the RU record book with 42 career home runs and 210 runs during his three seasons (2005-07) in Piscataway. He hit .377 with 93 hits, 24 doubles, 22 home runs, 65 RBIs, 62 walks and 25 stolen bases in a memorable All-America 2007 season that saw the Scarlet Knights win the Big East regular season and tournament. Frazier batted .520 (13-for-25) with three homers and seven RBIs in the tournament held in Brooklyn to help lead Rutgers to an NCAA Regional berth. He was selected by Cincinnati as the 34th overall selection in 2007.
"You live life with no regrets," Frazier said on possible heading to the Home Run Derby again. "At the end of your playing career, you could sit back and be like, 'Oh man, I really wish I would have done that,' instead of just doing it. I enjoy it. It's a good competition, it's fun and I think it's the highlight of the All-Star week."
| AVG | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| .210 | 82 | 305 | 49 | 64 | 8 | 0 | 23 | 52 | 40 | 82 | 6 | 2 | .307 | .462 | .769 |
PATRICK KIVLEHAN
After being traded to the Texas Rangers over the offseason, Kivlehan was dealt back to the Seattle Mariners in late May and rejoined Tacoma Rainiers at Triple-A. He started off the year with 26 hits over 37 games at Round Rock before collecting 28 through 23 games at Tacoma. In addition, Kivlehan has five home runs and 30 RBIs. Over 521 games in the minor leagues, he has 75 home runs, 348 RBIs and 58 stolen bases.
After a four-year football career at safety for the Scarlet Knights, Kivlehan joined the baseball program as a walk-on for the 2012 season. Readjusting to the sport for the first time since high school, Kivlehan won the starting job at third base and won the first league triple crown in Big East history with a .402 average, 10 home runs and 36 RBIs. Overall, he batted .392 with 14 home runs and 50 RBIs overall, to go with a .693 slugging percentage and .480 on-base percentage to win Big East Player of the Year and Third Team All-America by Baseball America. The Mariners took selected him in the fourth round of the 2012 MLB Draft.
"I definitely learned a lot from the Texas experience," he said. "Definitely coming back here, knowing everyone and everyone knowing me, I was just able to relax, not worry about stats, not worry about numbers or doing this or doing that or playing here or getting there. I'm just playing baseball and relaxing and having fun."
| AVG | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| .236 | 60 | 229 | 30 | 54 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 30 | 15 | 61 | 4 | 3 | .287 | .367 | .654 |
BRIAN O'GRADY
O'Grady is currently riding a nine-game hitting streak for the Daytona Tortugas at the A level of the Cincinnati Reds organization. He is hitting 15-for-36 (.417) over that stretch to raise his season average to .249. O'Grady also has seven home runs on the year and 10 stolen bases in 59 games, leading the team with a .381 on-base percentage.
A third-team all-conference pick as a senior at Rutgers, he led or tied the team lead with 67 hits, five home runs, five triples, 104 total bases, 20 multiple-hit games and a .510 slugging percentage. O'Grady hit .328 for the season with an on-base percentage of .402, also recording 40 runs and 13 stolen bases. He hit a memorable walk-off home run in the bottom of the 14th inning against Temple to end a four hour, 10 minute game at Bainton Field. He finished his collegiate career ranked third in RU baseball history with 771 career at bats, seventh with 227 hits, ninth with 105 walks and tied for 10th with 46 doubles and 10 triples and was picked in the eighth round in 2014.
O'Grady recently had a two-homer game in a win over Lake County.
| AVG | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| .249 | 59 | 189 | 20 | 47 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 29 | 40 | 53 | 10 | 1 | .381 | .444 | .826 |
MARK MCCOY
McCoy has spent time with both the Wilmington Blue Rocks and the Lexington Legends at the A level of the Kansas City Royals system. The left-handed pitcher has appeared in 20 games out of the bullpen, working 33.2 innings. Striking out 25, McCoy has three wins for Lexington.
Arriving at Rutgers as a transfer in the fall of 2014, McCoy earned a spot in the weekend rotation in 2015 and made 12 starts on the season, including seven to begin a series. He finished second on the team with 63.0 innings pitched and 46 strikeouts (21 called). Displaying a good move to first, the lefty tied for second in the Big Ten with four pickoffs. The Royals selected him in the 29th round last year.
"The biggest thing with me is getting the fastball command up to where my breaking ball command is," McCoy said. "Most guys can control their fastball but with me, I feel like I can put me breaking stuff where I want. The fastball is what I need to continue to work on. The velocity is there, it feels good coming out of my hand, but it's just a matter of repeating my mechanics and my release point so I can put it where I want it."
| W | L | ERA | G | IP | H | R | ER | HR | HBP | BB | SO | AVG | WHIP | GO/AO | SV |
| 3 | 3 | 6.42 | 20 | 33.2 | 40 | 26 | 24 | 0 | 5 | 31 | 25 | .303 | 2.11 | 1.54 | 0 |
HOWIE BREY
After making just one appearance at with the Greeneville Astros at the rookie level with a save, Brey was promoted to the Tri-City ValleyCats at the A level. The left-handed pitcher has made two relief outings so far in the New York-Penn League, including one with 3.1 scoreless innings and four strikeouts. Opposing batters are hitting just .217 against so far at the pro level.
A Third Team All-Big Ten selection as a senior in 2016, Brey worked 100.1 in the regular season, second-most in the conference, with four complete games in league play (Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Maryland). He also placed fifth in the conference with 84 strikeouts over 14 games, a total that ranks third in a single season in school history. The left-hander pitched to a team-best 3.50 ERA, including a mark of 1.86 in five home starts. For his collegiate career, Brey sits tied for third in program history with 206 strikeouts, fourth with 291.1 innings pitched, tied for fourth with 38 starts and tied for eighth with 18 victories. He made 64 appearances for the Scarlet Knights over four years with 38 starts, earning the nod on Opening Day in each of the last three seasons.
"Everyone has said ever since I was younger that I have a bulldog mentality, and I work my butt off," Brey said. "Not much is going to change for me as a pitcher. I'm sure I'm going to learn so much. In professional baseball, there is so much to learn."
| W | L | ERA | G | IP | H | R | ER | HR | HBP | BB | SO | AVG | WHIP | GO/AO | SV |
| 0 | 0 | 4.26 | 3 | 6.1 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | .217 | 1.26 | 1.40 | 1 |
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