Matt Winn will be one of the redshirt juniors looked to as a leader for VMI offensively this season, coming off a very strong year last season. Winn was one of 15 catchers to be named a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award, and the first Keydet backstop to reach that round for the nationally recognized honor, given annually to the best catcher in Division I.
He also was named Second Team All-Big South after hitting .333 with an on-base percentage of .449, a figure that ranked him fourth in the Big South. Winn also threw out 41.2% of the runners trying to steal against him.
The Keydet leader should be backed up by sophomore Red Dowdell, who comes off a freshman year in which he hit .267 with 20 RBI. The Yorktown native was the VMI starter in 12 games behind the plate, and the Keydets had a winning 7-5 record in those contests.
Other catchers will include senior Eric Mayers, who saw limited duty behind the plate last year after converting from the outfield, and redshirt junior Will Connerley, who is likely to play a bigger role elsewhere in the field. |
