Although it is the offseason for the MSU baseball team, a number of Spartans have spent their summers on the diamond playing for teams in various college leagues.
Four Spartans — sophomore infielder and outfielder Jared Hook, sophomore infielder Ryan Jones, junior pitcher Trey Popp and sophomore pitcher Andrew Waszak — are playing with the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League’s Southern Ohio Copperheads.
Waszak leads the Copperheads with a 1.64 ERA to go along with his 2-1 record, and Popp, a left-handed reliever, has more relief appearances (16) than any other pitcher on the roster.
At the plate, Jones has been one of the best in the league. His .364 batting average is best on the team and fifth among all league batters. Hook also has done well at the dish, hitting .279 with eight RBIs.
Meanwhile, senior first baseman Jeff Holm and infielder Torsten Boss are playing in the Prospect League with the Chillicothe Paints. After 45 games, Holm is leading the race for the Triple Crown, as he is first in the league in batting average (.368), RBIs (52) and home runs (9).
Both Holm and Boss — who has hit for a .311 average and 25 RBIs in 43 games — played in the Prospect League All-Star Game in early July.
Sophomore pitcher Tony Bucciferro leads the New England Collegiate Baseball League with a 0.82 ERA and sits in fifth with 42 strikeouts with the Newport Gulls.
Senior pitcher A.J. Achter ranked fifth in the Cape Cod Baseball League with a 1.00 ERA as of July 22 with the Cotuit Kettleers. Achter also played in the league’s All-Star Game on Wednesday.
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