UA baseball team picks up more honors

TUSCALOOSA | The Alabama baseball team picked up several more honors today, as SEBaseball.com editor Mark Etheridge recognized the talents of several Crimson Tide players in his “2009 SEC Baseball Year in Review.”

Senior slugger Kent Matthes was named the 2009 SEC Hitter of the Year by SEBaseball.com. The Orlando, Fla., native hit .358 with an NCAA-leading 28 home runs and 81 RBI. He led the SEC in home runs, RBI, total bases (174) and slugging percentage (.883). He was also third in runs scored (65) and sixth in hitting this season. He broke the UA single-season home run record with his 28th home run against South Carolina on May 20 at the SEC Tournament. In March, he set the Alabama record with a home run in six straight games.

Alabama assistant coaches Mitch Gaspard and Dax Norris were named SEC Assistant Coaches of the Year for their efforts in making the Crimson Tide to one of the potent offenses last season.

“No team struck fear in opposing pitching coaches like Alabama did,” Etheridge wrote in his SEC year in review column. “The Crimson Tide hit .330 as a team with 107 home runs. Ten of their top twelve batters hit .300 or better. Much of that improvement is due to new hitting coach Dax Norris and top assistant Mitch Gaspard. UA had five batters on SEBaseball.com’s All-SEC team and were widely regarded as one of the nation’s most imposing offenses.”

Joining Matthes on the All-SEC team were third baseman Jake Smith (.359, 18 HR, 54 RBI) and pitcher Austin Hyatt (8-3, 3.76 ERA).

Alabama also had three second-team All-SEC picks, including second baseman Ross Wilson (.353, 9 HR, 47 RBI), shortstop Josh Rutledge (.305, 5 HR, 44 RBI) and utility man Brandon May (.347, 12 HR, 69 RBI).