JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The second installment of the Carson-Newman baseball position previews shines a spotlight on the infield as the athletic communications group speaks with senior shortstop Jimmy Rice.
With seven of nine returning batters back from the 2016 team that finished the regular season second in the South Atlantic Conference, the biggest vacancy in the field comes at third base. First-year assistant Brandon Roberts was a four-year starter at the hot corner. The second-team all-region selection became the third C-N third baseman to earn a first-team All-South Atlantic Conference nod and the first since Derrick Lankford in 1996 while ranking in the top-10 in the conference in hits (71 – 5th), batting average (.368 - 9th), RBIs (54 – 6th), slugging percentage (.622 – 9th) and total bases (120 – 8th).
"The expectations are tremendously high," Rice said. "Losing Brandon Roberts over at third base is a huge loss for us. He was a Gold Glove winner and offensively as well. Like Coach Griff always said he was the epitome of this program. Not having him out in the field really hurts. Brett coming in here from Tennessee is definitely going to help us out a lot. We have a lot of returners. Our entire infield is the same so I have very high expectations for this group this year."
Despite the loss of Roberts to the lineup, the unit expects to be one of the best in the league. Kirby, a native of Goodlettsville, Tenn., was one of two players on the team, along with Roberts, to start all 52 games in 2016. The first sacker finished the season with a .280 batting average, six home runs and 37 RBIs to finish fourth on the team with 14 multi-hit games and third on the roster with 11 multi-RBI outings.
The battle for the second base spot is between a pair of seniors in Eric Lynch (Boonton, N.J.) and Joey Selitto (Newton, N.J.). Lynch got the call at second base 33 times in 2016 notching a .256 batting average with one homer and 17 RBIs and piling up six multi-hit efforts and three multi-RBI days. Selitto has been known for his slick fielding after not committing an error as a junior.
At shortstop Jimmy Rice (Middlesex, N.J.) started 51 games and missed one game due to an injury as he tallying a .299 batting average with five home runs and 36 RBIs. He stroked 14 multi-hit games (10 two-hit and four three-hit) while racking up eight multi-RBI days.
"I got to keep working," Rice said of his improvement for 2017. "I have to keep hitting off of the tee and trying to get better every day. I want to change what I did last year and keep improving into this year. I want the whole team to be better this year so hopefully the whole team put in as much work so we can continue from last year."
The third base position is open for Tennessee transfer Brett Langhorne who spent the last two seasons in the Southeastern Conference playing for the Volunteers. In high school, the six-foot-three left-handed hitter was a preseason All-American entering his senior year by Perfect Game and played in a total of 29 contests for the Vols.
Providing depth and speed on the bench will be freshman Dom Leo (Knoxville, Tenn.) and senior Jordan Hinshaw who appeared in 18 games a year ago. Redshirt-freshman Mark Treadway (Friendsville, Tenn.) adds to the options for coach Tom Griffin.
The final part of the position previews will be released on Saturday as senior catcher Gooch Greer (Dickson, Tenn.) stops by for a chat to break down the pitchers and catchers for the 2017 Eagles.
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