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UConn Baseball 2020

I might be alone in this but I’m excited to see Wink in CF this spring....
 
I might be alone in this but I’m excited to see Wink in CF this spring....


It's an interesting move. He was an outstanding defensive 1B. I'd love to know if this was about him being the best candidate to fill the hole in CF, or whether this was to get Crawford's bat in the lineup without removing Winkel's or Gazzo's.
 
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It's an interesting move. He was an outstanding defensive 1B. I'd love to know if this was about him being the best candidate to fill the hole in CF, or whether this was to get Crawford's bat in the lineup without removing Winkel's or Gazzo's.
Agree, he is an outstanding defensive 1B. I think it’s a combination of Wink’s ridiculous athleticism and Crawford’s potential in the lineup. I love the move and think the transition will be smooth. Wink did play some outfield at Amity when he was coming back from a basketball injury his senior year.
 
It's an interesting move. He was an outstanding defensive 1B. I'd love to know if this was about him being the best candidate to fill the hole in CF, or whether this was to get Crawford's bat in the lineup without removing Winkel's or Gazzo's.

Agree, he is an outstanding defensive 1B. I think it’s a combination of Wink’s ridiculous athleticism and Crawford’s potential in the lineup. I love the move and think the transition will be smooth. Wink did play some outfield at Amity when he was coming back from a basketball injury his senior year.

Chris Winkel played some outfield as a freshman at UConn. I recall interviews with Penders and the coaching staff from early on in Winkel’s time at UConn where they talked about the possibility of Winkel eventually playing center field, so in a way this move has been a long time coming. Helping to keep Winkel at 1B were Troy Stefanski and Mike Woodworth and their excellent play in CF. Now that those guys are gone and now that UConn baseball has a very talented freshman candidate for the 1B job, the Winkel move to CF is happening. I would say the move to CF for Winkel is due to not only to his speed and athleticism, but also is a testament to how highly the coaching staff thinks of Reggie Crawford and his potential. The UConn coaching staff has always tried to get young talented players and pitchers established in the lineup as quickly as possible, and Crawford is no exception.
 
Crawford's arm is so tempting to develop him into a starter.
 
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Don't have time to listen to this now, but I'll probably get around to it sometime today.

 
Don't have time to listen to this now, but I'll probably get around to it sometime today.



Biggest news out of this interview is that Justin Willis suffered a fall season ending ACL injury. Sounds like there is a hope that he will be able to pitch in the 2020 season, and possibly be the closer out of the bullpen. We'll have to see about that. Both Casparius and Stock have impressed the coaching staff especially with their fall pitching. Still don't know if either of these guys will be eligible to play in the spring. Sounds like Austin Peterson is not yet on campus, Penders could not talk about him yet. Nick Krauth is drawing comparisons as a Jeffrey Kersten type pitcher. Zach Bushling has impressed Penders with his versatility in the infield, has a Woodworth quality that way. As for returning players, Paul Gozzo is going to be the backup to Pat Winkel behind the plate, but his bat is going to get him more time in the lineup than just being a back up catcher. As you may expect, big expectations for Reggie Crawford at 1B, and possibly on the mound at some point.
 
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If the past is any guide, the UConn baseball team usually conclude their fall workouts in the UConn cemetery at the gravesite of the Storrs brothers, Charles and Augustus, on the Friday before Thanksgiving. It is also traditionally the time and place where the team captains for the upcoming season are named. I have no idea if a ouija board is used to get the input of the long dead university founders. At any rate, this is one of the highlights of the fall season. I would guess that Chris Winkel will repeat his role as one of the captains.
 
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A preliminary 2020 season baseball roster has been posted on the UConn athletics website. This is a bit of a surprise, as UConn baseball the last several years hasn’t posted any rosters until shortly before the spring season started. It seems to be a bit of a work in progress, as Anthony Prato is still listed on the roster. I call that gremlins at work, and no doubt it will be corrected at some point.

2020 Baseball Roster - University of Connecticut Athletics

As for the rest of the roster, it had been reported earlier that Karl Johnson had left the team, so he is not listed on this roster. Others not listed on this roster are Gavin Kee and Sam Favieri. Everyone else who was reported earlier on the fall ball roster is listed on this roster. Obviously several cuts still have to be made to reduce the 2020 roster to the 35 player limit. I also expect to see about 4 extra players beyond the 35 player roster to be listed as redshirts, as was done the last couple of years.

By the way, recent transfers Austin Peterson and Devin Kirby are not listed on the 2020 roster. Neither of them were UConn students during the fall of 2019, so that could be one reason.
 


"Blue Collar Huskies". One of the things that Coach Penders touched on in the recent interview with UCTV Sports is that with the new baseball facility coming to fruition, he expects it will make recruiting easier. Still, he says he wants to be careful and keep on having a blue collar work ethic mentality with the players he recruits into the program. The blue collar work ethic is at the core of the UConn baseball program, and it is one that he wants to maintain.
 
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Coach Penders doesn't say it outright, but in this speech snippet he basically describes the blue collar work ethic that he looks for in his players.

Two UConn coaches that I love listening to are Penders and Geno. They always have something interesting to say.

By the way, the baseball and softball teams were involved in the cemetery workout. I saw or heard a reference to five total teams. Anyone know who the other three teams are?
 
A preliminary 2020 season baseball roster has been posted on the UConn athletics website. This is a bit of a surprise, as UConn baseball the last several years hasn’t posted any rosters until shortly before the spring season started. It seems to be a bit of a work in progress, as Anthony Prato is still listed on the roster. I call that gremlins at work, and no doubt it will be corrected at some point.

2020 Baseball Roster - University of Connecticut Athletics

As for the rest of the roster, it had been reported earlier that Karl Johnson had left the team, so he is not listed on this roster. Others not listed on this roster are Gavin Kee and Sam Favieri. Everyone else who was reported earlier on the fall ball roster is listed on this roster. Obviously several cuts still have to be made to reduce the 2020 roster to the 35 player limit. I also expect to see about 4 extra players beyond the 35 player roster to be listed as redshirts, as was done the last couple of years.

By the way, recent transfers Austin Peterson and Devin Kirby are not listed on the 2020 roster. Neither of them were UConn students during the fall of 2019, so that could be one reason.

The 2020 roster has disappeared from the website. Oh well.
 
By the way, the baseball and softball teams were involved in the cemetery workout. I saw or heard a reference to five total teams. Anyone know who the other three teams are?

Found it... list of all participating teams.


Thanks. Ok, five teams in addition to baseball.
 
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