Courtesy Gonzaga Athletics
Gonzaga University baseball sophomore Marco Gonzales was named one of 10 players on the newest watch list for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award, as announced late Wednesday by the College Baseball Hall of Fame.
A left-handed pitcher and first baseman from Fort Collins, Colo., Gonzales has started 39 games this season, 11 on the mound. As a pitcher, he is 7-2 with a 1.70 ERA, which ranks in 15th-best in the nation. He has also punched out 80 batters in 84 2/3 innings of work. At the plate, Gonzales is hitting .312 with eight doubles, two home runs and 23 RBI.
Gonzales has also been asked to do both hitting and pitching six times this season. When he is inked in as the pitcher in head coach Mark Machtolf's batting order, Gonzales is 5-for-24 with two runs, a double and a RBI at the plate while on the mound he is 3-2 with a 1.57 ERA. He's tossed 51 2/3 innings and has 48 strikeouts.
Gonzales threw one of the best pitching performances in his collegiate career against Loyola Marymount University April 28. Although he went 0-for-5 in the leadoff spot, he set career-marks of 11 shutout innings and 15 strikeouts, including six straight between the eighth-10 innings, to lead Gonzaga to a 1-0 win over the Lions in 12 innings in front of a record crowd of 2,011 and on national television. Gonzales also limited the Lions to five hits and did not issue a walk on 139 pitches. He was named Rawlings West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Week April 30 for his brilliant performance.
The John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award, named for the Washington State University star who achieved success as both a first baseman and a right-handed pitcher, will be presented as part of the annual College Baseball Night of Champions on June 30 in Lubbock, Texas. The event features the presentation of numerous awards and the induction ceremony for this year's Hall of Fame class.
Joining Gonzales in the top 10 are five sophomores, a freshman, two juniors and a senior from seven different conferences.
