Despite the transition of Tarsovich to the infield, the Keydet outfield is in good hands, led by two-year starter Brandon Angus. Angus will take over in center field this year, following the graduation of Rob Dickinson, and does so after hitting .282 and starting all 55 VMI games last season. The junior also stole 22 bases, good for seventh in Keydet single-season history and third in the Big South, and hit his first two career home runs during the season as well.
Playing to Angus’ left will be redshirt junior Will Connerley, the likely starter in right field. Connerley saw some time at that position last year, starting six games in right field, but is expected to move there full-time in 2014. His 2013, the first full year he spent in a Keydet uniform, saw him hit .250 in 42 games with time primarily spent as VMI’s starting first baseman.
VMI’s new starting left fielder is a familiar face in redshirt sophomore Gary LeClair. LeClair returns after taking a redshirt year in 2013, in large part due to a shoulder issue, and looks to build upon a 2012 season in which he hit .245 in 41 games as a true freshman.
Youth is served among the outfield reserves, as freshmen Josh Worthley and Will Malbon are among that group. Malbon, a left-handed hitting center fielder out of Virginia Beach’s Cox HS, is a former All-Beach District honoree, while Worthley is a left-handed hitting corner outfielder who led that district in home runs last season. Junior Sheldon Shifflett may also see time at the corner outfield spots. |
