OSU's Buck Is Again Clemens Award Semifinalist
HOUSTON, Tex. - Oregon State’s Dallas Buck is back for a second year and joins nine other college baseball pitchers who remain in contention to be honored as the nation’s top pitcher with The Roger Clemens Award. The Third Roger Clemens Award will be presented at the Marriott Westchase Hotel in Houston on July 12.
Buck (Newberg, Ore./Newberg HS) is 9-2 with a 3.15 earned run average for OSU this spring; over the past two seasons, the junior righthander has a 21-3 record.
Joining Buck as 2006 semifinalists are Tyler Chambliss of Florida State, Eddie Degerman of Rice, Sean Doolittle of Virginia, Tim Lincecum of Washington, Brad Lincoln of Houston, Andrew Miller of North Carolina, Brandon Morrow of California, David Price of Vanderbilt and Wes Roemer of Cal-State Fullerton. The Class of 2006 includes one senior, six juniors and two sophomores, while seven of the 10 are righthanders
The 10 were selected during the first round of voting, which ended on May 15. Voters include all Division 1 head baseball coaches, a selection of national media who cover collegiate baseball, the 16 winners of the R. E. "Bob" Smith Award, which was presented to the top player in the country here in Houston from 1988-2003, and the six previous finalists for the Clemens Award. The second round of voting will begin next Monday, with the announcement of the three finalists set for June 1. Jered Weaver of Long Beach State (2004) and Luke Hochevar of Tennessee (2005) were the first two winners of the Clemens Award.
The Roger Clemens Award was named after future Hall of Famer Roger Clemens, who began his march to stardom while leading the University of Texas to the College World Series title in 1983. As a professional, Clemens has won 341 games (9th best in history), fanned 4,502 hitters and won and seven Cy Young Awards, emblematic as the top pitcher in his league. The Roger Clemens Award is the only award of its kind, honoring the finest pitchers in college baseball. The event is administered by the Greater Houston Baseball Association, who has donated over $200,000 to the charities from the net proceeds from the first two dinners. The GHBA is a non-profit organization dedicated to the growth of amateur baseball in the Houston area.
