Harrison Highlights Pac-12 Postseason Honors
SAN FRANCISCO – KJ Harrison was named the Pac-12 Conference’s Freshman of the Year Wednesday, highlighting a postseason honor list that also saw Andrew Moore, Jeff Hendrix and Drew Rasmussen honored as first-team all-league selections.
The three, along with Harrison, who was also named a first teamer, gives the Beavers at least four for the third consecutive season. Additionally sophomore Kyle Nobach was named an honorable mention selection.
Harrison and Rasmussen, meanwhile, are the only freshmen across the 11 team Pac-12 to be named to the first team.
Moore and Hendrix were also named to the nine-man all-defensive team.
Harrison’s selection as the top freshman ensures that the Beavers can claim at least one major league award for the fourth consecutive year, following Michael Conforto (freshman) in 2012, Conforto (Player) and Moore (pitcher) in 2013 and Conforto (player) and Jace Fry in 2014.
Harrison took home the honor with good reason. He enters postseason play with a Pac-12 leading 58 runs batted in, while batting .314 with 12 doubles and three triples. His 10 home runs ranks him third in the league. His 58 RBI ranks third in the nation amongst freshmen.
Moore earns his second all-league honor and his first since 2013. The junior is 7-2 with a 1.73 earned run average this season. He’s racked up three Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week honors and is one of 21 players who was named a Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist last week. The righty punctuated his regular season with a 13-strikeout performance against California.
Hendrix makes a repeat visit to the all-league team. The junior outfielder is one of just two Beavers to start all 55 games – Harrison the other – en route to a .341 batting average with 15 doubles, five triples, six home runs and 34 RBI, which is second on the club to Harrison’s 55. Hendrix has also played a flawless center field, taking a 1.000 fielding percentage in 138 chances to Dallas.
Rasmussen joins Harrison on the first team after a sparkling regular season on the mound. The Spokane, Wash., native is 7-3 with a 2.48 ERA in 18 appearances, 13 of which are starts. The right-hander has struck out 79 to 30 walks in 101 2/3 innings while opponents are hitting just .215 against him.
Nobach earns honorable mention status in his first season with the club. He’s batting .307 with 13 doubles, two home runs and 25 RBI. He has made just one error while starting primarily in left, tallying a .990 fielding percentage.
The Beavers open play at the Dallas Baptist Regional Friday morning with an 11:30 a.m. PT start (1:30 p.m. in Dallas) against Big 12 Conference foe Texas. The game will air live on ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN application. Fans can also catch the game live over the radio via the Beaver Sports Radio Network and the TuneIn application.
For more information on the Oregon State baseball team, follow the club’s official Twitter account at Twitter.com/Beaver_Baseball or by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateBaseball.
