Miners season preview: Coaches see Mat-Su squad loaded with offensive potential

June 8, 2007

By Jeremiah Bartz/

Frontiersman

PALMER - Jeff Pritchard, the first-year head coach of the Mat-Su Miners, admits he does look at hitters first.

&#8220I am pretty offensive minded guy,” Pritchard said.

And Pritchard is excited about the offensive potential of his 2007 club, a group of athletes who boast a little bit of everything.

There is pop - Washington outfielder Ty Rasmussen hit double-digits in home runs during the college season.

There's speed - Ohlone Junior College shortstop Derek Helenihi and California Riverside center fielder Carl Uhl each stole 15 or more bases during the 2007 NCAA campaign.

And there's the ability to hit for average - six players topped the .300 mark, including Helenihi, who hit .371.

But just as there is the offensive potential, Pritchard feels he has a group of players who can play sound defensive baseball.

Anchoring that defense is a trio of catchers Pritchard is excited about.

On the squad are UC Santa Barbara sophomore Chris McMurray, Gardner-Webb sophomore Jay McConnell and Oregon State freshman Ryan Ortiz.

&#8220I always like to carry three catchers,” Pritchard said.

McMurray and McConnell each started 40 or more games for their respective clubs during the 2007 season, and Ortiz is considered one of the top Division I catching prospects on the West Coast.

&#8220We feel like we have three really good catchers,” Pritchard said. &#8220I'm very encouraged about our catching.”

Pritchard, who caught in the Independent League, said that could be a good and bad thing - it's good to have the depth, but there's also the need to get each player time behind the plate.

Regardless of playing time, Pritchard said, each catcher will be an asset, working in the bullpen or getting time in the designated hitter spot.

Leading a talented group of infielders is Helenihi, a junior college standout.

&#8220This guy is as good as it gets for the junior college level,” Pritchard said of the sophomore who hit .371 in 39 starts with Ohlone Junior College.

Helenihi also posted 59 hits, scored 27 runs and drove in 36 runs in 39 games.

Also on the roster are James and Michael Ewing, twin brothers from Beaumont, Texas.

Each Ewing brother started at least 59 games as a sophomore at Southern Mississippi this year. James hit .257, while Michael hit .284. Pritchard said he expects them to see time on the right side of the Mat-Su infield.

Rounding out the infield will be UC Riverside junior Ben Price and UC Santa Barbara freshman Gunnar Terhune.

Price hit .272 in 49 starts, and Turhune appeared in 39 games during his freshman campaign.

A pair of players from the 2006 squad - Donald Brown and Joey August - are returning to the Mat-Su outfield.

Brown hit .292 and scored 27 runs during his first summer in Palmer. He was named All-ABL following the season.

As a junior the draft-eligible prospect hit .328, scored 34 runs and recorded 25 RBI.

August finished the summer of 2006 among team leaders in hits with 32. He returned to Stanford to post career highs in several statistical categories.

He hit .343, scored 28 runs and drove in 27 more.

Also in the outfield is Uhl, who Pritchard said can, &#8220pretty much run down any ball.”

&#8220He's a guy who's going to be pretty exciting centerfield, exciting on the base paths,” Pritchard said.

Also in the outfield is Rasmussen and California sophomore Ryan Hanlon.

Rasmussen hit .308, while Hanlon scored 22 runs.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.