Terps Start Fall Practice; Recruiting Class Ranked 40th
9/22/2010 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
Sept. 22, 2010
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland baseball team opened fall practice on Tuesday, ready to integrate 22 newcomers along with the returning players from last season's squad.
Head coach Erik Bakich will lead the team through 36 practices over the next six weeks with the team scrimmaging three times a week.
Fans will have the chance to see the team in action when fall practice culminates with the second annual Red and Black World Series, scheduled for Oct. 29-31.
The practices will serve as an important evaluation period in addition to solidifying fundamentals before the 2011 season.
"We have a good group of incoming players along with our key returnees from last season, and we are excited to begin developing this group so they can reach their maximum potential," said Bakich.
Terps have top-40 recruiting class
Collegiate Baseball released its recruiting rankings on Tuesday and listed Maryland as having the 40th best class in the nation. The Terps have 13 prep players and nine junior college transfers among the 22 newcomers.
First baseman Tim Kiene and right-handed pitcher Chuck Ghysels were both selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Kiene was taken in the 30th round by the Washington Nationals while Ghysels was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 36th round.
The Terrapins were one of seven Atlantic Coast Conference schools to appear in the Collegiate Baseball rankings. Georgia Tech's class was ranked sixth, Florida State was 17th, Miami was 23rd, North Carolina was 25th, Clemson was 30th and Virginia was 34th.
Bakich, who made recruiting locally a top priority and signed six players from Maryland, said the program expects to bring in ranked classes on an annual basis.
"We expect to recruit the best players in Maryland and in the country, and we expect our class to be ranked every year," said Bakich. "That's what the best teams in the ACC do, and that's who we want to be."
