Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Overall Rank: #32
Conference Rank: #8 ACC
After a year off from the NCAA Tournament, Georgia Tech came back strong in 2016, reaching the Regional Final of the Gainesville Regional where they fell to Florida. That was a nice step for the Yellow Jackets, but they do have some big holes to fill on the mound. Starting pitchers Brandon Gold and Cole Pitts are gone and so is closer Matthew Gorst. Gold went 9-3 last season with a 2.48 ERA. Pitts was second on the team with 14 starts. Gorst made 28 appearances out of the bullpen and struck out 55 batters in 49.0 innings of work. He also tallied 12 saves. Georgia Tech will have to rely quite heavily on Ben Parr and young players like Bailey Combs, Keyton Gibson, Garrett Gooden and Jonathan Hughes to pick up the slack.
2016: 38-25, 13-16
2016 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Danny Hall
Key Departed Players:
Matthew Gorst, P, 0.55 ERA, 49.0 IP, 55 SO, 12 SV
Brandon Gold, P, 2.45 ERA, 105.1 IP, 81 SO
Cole Pitts, P, 6.56 ERA, 60.1 IP, 54 SO
Matt Gonzalez, .378 BA, 11 HR, 54 RBI
Connor Justus, .324 BA, 6 HR, 37 RBI
Key Returning Players:
Ben Parr, P, 4.18 ERA, 60.1 IP, 54 SO
Trevor Craport, UTL, .352 BA, 7 HR, 31 RBI
Kel Johnson, OF, .319 BA, 11 HR, 54 RBI
Tristin English, .315 BA, 5 HR, 44 RBI
Wade Bailey, IF, .310 BA, 4 HR, 25 RBI
Brandt Stallings, OF, .299 BA, 7 HR, 33 RBI
Projection:
The pitching was very good last season, but so was the hitting and most of those pieces are back. Matt Gonzalez is not one of the returning players though after batting .378 with 11 homeruns and 54 RBIs. Those are some impressive numbers to replace. However, this group has more than enough talent to make Georgia Tech fans quickly forget about Gonzalez. Kel Johnson will be the team’s top power hitter. Like Gonzalez, Kel hit 11 homeruns and totaled 54 RBIs. With Trevor Craport, Tristin English, Wade Bailey and Brandt Stallings also returning, the Yellow Jackets have plenty of batters who can hit for power and average. As long as the pitching staff can adequately replace Gold and Gorst, this is a Georgia Tech squad that should make it back to the NCAA Tournament.
Projected Postseason: NCAA Baseball Tournament
Madness 2017 Baseball Recruit Rankings:
#56 Garrett Gooden
