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Rice Baseball: Way too early look at 2021 lineup

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The 2021 Rice baseball lineup will look different without Trei Cruz. Here’s a first pass at what players might trot out for the Owls on opening weekend next season.

Rice baseball hasn’t played many games since we last projected the starting lineup. Even still, so much has happened with the canceled season at the forefront of many of the developments.

Most notably, Trei Cruz was recently drafted by the Detroit Tigers. He has since signed. Rodrigo Duluc and Tyler LaRue intend to transfer. Those are the notable changes to the roster as of mid-June.

Earlier in the spring, the NCAA announced seniors in spring sports would be granted an additional year of eligibility. How that plays out from a scholarship situation will be handled on a case-by-case basis. To that end, we don’t have a definitive answer on which seniors will (or won’t) return in 2021. For the purposes of this exercise, we’ll assume they will come back.

With that in mind. Here’s what our lineup projection looked like entering the 2020 season.

Starting lineup projection as of Jan 31

  1. Braden Comeaux, 3B
  2. Bradley Gneiting, RF
  3. Trei Cruz, SS
  4. Austin Bulman, 1B
  5. Brayden Combs, DH
  6. Cade Edwards, 2B
  7. Justin Collins, C
  8. Tyler Larue, LF
  9. Aaron Beaulaurier, CF

And here’s our projection in mid-June, taking into account the losses of Trei Cruz and Tyler LaRue.

2021 starting lineup projection

  1. Braden Comeaux, 3B
  2. Cade Edwards, 2B
  3. Bradley Gneiting, RF
  4. Austin Bulman, 1B
  5. Justin Collins, C
  6. Connor Walsh, SS
  7. Brayden Combs, DH
  8. Aaron Beaulaurier, CF
  9. Antonio Cruz, LF

The most important new addition is Ole Miss transfer Connor Walsh. His commitment in early June was huge for the Owls. He’s the likely replacement behind Trei Cruz. The third outfield spot is a mystery at this point. Antonio Cruz, Justin Dunlap and Dominic Cox are the front runners by seniority, but nobody seized the job this past spring. Incoming freshman Guy Garibay Jr is a name to watch.

What are your thoughts? Share your guesses as to who suits up for the Owls in 2021 in the comments.

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Rice Baseball: New faces give hope through tenuous season

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It’s never too early for Rice baseball to start looking toward the future. The Owls have young talent on both sides of the diamond set to return in 2021.

Every Rice baseball player will be eligible for an additional year of eligibility thanks to a recent NCAA ruling. That’s good news for the Owls’ seniors, but regardless of who returns and who doesn’t, Rice has plenty of young talent waiting in the wings.

On the mound

The Rice baseball weekend rotation was going to look different in 2020. It seemed like the losses of Matt Canterino and Evan Kravetz would thrust the relatively untested arms behind them into the brightest spotlights of their young careers. JUCO transfer Alex DeLeon seemed to be the easy name to pencil into Friday nights, but with Roel Garcia and Dalton Wood both recovering from injuries, the rest of the rotation was up in the air.

Coach Matt Bragga had a very different read on the situation. He knew the Sunday job was going to be a work-in-progress, but he never wavered on his Saturday selection: sophomore hurler Blake Brogdon.

Brogdon through 1.1 innings as a freshman, ending the year with an eye-popping (and not in a good way) 27.00 ERA. The idea of him being the No. 2 to start the season was puzzling, albeit not impossible. Rice really didn’t have any alternatives who were both healthy and clear improvements. So Brogdon was the guy. And he was excellent.

Brogdon was arguably the best in his four turns through the rotation. Bragga cited “his poise, his determination, and work ethic” as drivers for his massive year-over-year improvement. He went at least five innings, allowing three or fewer runs against Texas, UC Irvine and Missouri State. His outing against Texas Tech was shorter (3.2 IP) but he only allowed one run.

Drake Greenwood, who had emerged as the Sunday starter, also had an impressive run. He led all Rice pitchers with a 3.94 ERA in four appearances, with three starts. His 16 strikeouts trailed only Brogdon’s 18. Greenwood’s 1.77 strikeout-t0-walk ratio was superb.

And then there was Brandon Deskins, who outside of a rough inning against Texas State was near lights out when he was on the bump. Deskins was one Bragga named as someone who had “made a big jump” in this abridged season.

At the plate

The bulk of the Rice baseball lineup was steered by upperclassmen. That left only a few rotational spots, mostly in the outfield and at DH, to be exchanged from day to day.

Newcomer Austin Bulman proved to be a mainstay in the Rice lineup, producing six multi-hit games. He was one of three hitters to appear in all 16 contests this season. He brought some power to a lineup that was more doubles-bent than one that aimed for the fences. Bulman’s two home runs represented a quarter of the Owls’ eight long balls on the season.

Daniel Hernandez went two-for-three on opening day but managed two hits in his next 21 plate appearances. Reserve catchers Eric Benitez and Cullen Hannigan both faired well in limited action from the batter’s box, going 1-for-2 and 2-for-6, respectively.

The most puzzling fizzled bat belonged to freshman Tyler LaRue, who earned the start at DH on Opening Day. LaRue had a hot bat throughout the fall but went 3-for-21 this season. Bragga doubled-down on LaRue’s ability. “I will go to my grave some day saying this kid is going to hit at an elite level,” the coach said about the young hitter. Bragga then recalled the 1-for-9 start of his college career.

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Rice Baseball 2020: Previewing the Owls’ starting lineup

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It’s time to head back to Reckling Park for the beginning of the 2020 Rice Baseball season. Here’s a preview of the potential starting lineup.

The 2020 Rice baseball season is fast approaching. This year’s squad is composed of an intriguing combination of familiar faces, potent junior college additions and a host of younger players hoping to make a name for themselves.

First, a projected Opening Day lineup when Rice hosts Texas on February 14 at 7:00 p.m.

Projected Lineup

  1. Braden Comeaux, 3B
  2. Bradley Gneiting, RF
  3. Trei Cruz, SS
  4. Austin Bulman, 1B
  5. Brayden Combs, DH
  6. Cade Edwards, 2B
  7. Justin Collins, C
  8. Tyler Larue, LF
  9. Aaron Beaulaurier, CF

The Infield

Led by Preseason Conference USA Player of the Year Trei Cruz, the Owls have the makings of an explosive offense — at least on paper. Cruz was a late-round draft pick last year and should parlay himself into a much more lucrative selection at the end of this season. He slashed .305/.393/.519 in 2019 and was named a Cape Cod League All-Star during the summer. “It’s not normal and I mean that in a good way,” Coach Matt Bragga remarked of Cruz’s dedication to improvement. “It’s fun to watch. He’s going to have a great year.”

Joining Cruz in the field will be Braden Comeaux at third base and Cade Edwards at second base. They were two of the most reliable bats in the Rice lineup a year ago and should be fixtures in the starting nine this season. Both are .300 hitters with power to the gaps.

First base is a bit of a wildcard. JUCO transfer Austin Bulman is a third baseman by trade, but he’s been working hard to learn the other side of the diamond. The coaching staff is optimistic he’ll be ready to go by Opening Day. If he doesn’t start in the field, he’ll be the designated hitter. Bulman hit .381 with 16 doubles and 18 steals last season.

Designated Hitter and Catcher

Braden Combs will be the man platooning with him at first base, at least early on in the season. Another JUCO addition, Combs brings plenty of pop. He smashed 17 home runs and 17 doubles while batting .366 with 83 RBI last season. It’s hard to put one beyond the fence at Reckling Park, but if someone besides Cruz is going to threaten for 20+ dingers, it’s probably going to be Combs.

Catcher Justin Collins is another potential power bat. He hit seven home runs and 12 doubles last season. He led the team with 41 walks and scored 32 times, fifth-most on the team and the only hitter who spent most of his time outside the top four spots in the order to reach that high of a mark. Collins has plenty of upside.

The Outfield

While the infield (plus designated hitter) is more or less locked down, the outfield rotation is much less certain. The one certainty seems to be Bradley Gneiting. The senior filled in all over the diamond last year, seeing time at first and third base in addition to his usual spot in right field. He led the team in hits in 2019 and was one of two Owls (along with Edwards) to appear in all 59 games.

Beyond that, there are options, but few definitive answers. Aaron Beaulaurier and Dominic Cox are back. So are Antonio Cruz and Justin Dunlap. Those four known quantities will battle it out with newcomers Daniel Hernandez and Tyler Larue.

Hernandez has impressed with his versatility early on. He could play just about every infield spot minus first base and all three outfield slots. He has a good shot to see some of the field early.

Tyler Larue is the most likely freshman to start out of the gate. Coach Bragga called him “a special hitter”, speaking incredibly highly of his strength and ability to battle at the plate. He came into the program as a catcher, but the staff is going to make a concerted effort to get his bat into the lineup however they can.

That’s a lot of names for three spots. Assuming Gneiting is already on the top tier, that leaves six guys fighting for two spots. Ideally, a pair will rise up quickly. Bragga has indicated he’d love to keep the lineup card the same if the guys penciled in continue to play well.

More on the pitching staff next week…
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