7:32 am | January 30, 2019 | Go to Source | Author:
A trio from Texas Tech and a pitcher from Baylor headlined the 2019 preseason All-Big 12 Baseball awards.
Red Raider Josh Jung was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year, while Baylor lefty Cody Bradford earned the nod for Preseason Pitcher of the Year. TTU’s Bryce Bonnin and Max Marusak were named Preseason Newcomer of the Year and Preseason Freshman of the Year, respectively. The honorees were selected in a vote of the league’s head coaches. Coaches could not vote for their own players.
Eighteen individuals were selected to the preseason ledger and all nine league teams were represented on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team. Nine of the 18 preseason selections were All-Big 12 First Team performers a year ago. Texas Tech led the way with five selections, followed by Baylor’s four. Oklahoma and Texas each had two honorees apiece, while the remaining institutions had one representative.
Baylor’s Shea Langeliers and Texas Tech’s Josh Jung were unanimous selections. Additionally, Jung was a unanimous pick for Preseason Player of the Year.
Jung, a preseason All-Big 12 First Team pick in 2018, led the Big 12 in batting average last season with a .392 on 103-for-263, which ranked 12th in the NCAA and paced the league in hits (103) for a No. 3 ranking in the nation.
BU’s Bradford led the league with a 2.51 ERA through 96.2 innings pitched in 14 games. The 2018 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and Co-Most Outstanding Player of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship became the first pitcher in program history to throw back-to-back complete game shutouts vs. TCU (4/20) and at Kansas State (4/27).
Bonnin, a transfer from Arkansas, produced a 1-0 record in 11 appearances while registering a 4.26 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 19 innings pitched.
Marusak comes to Tech as the No. 1 ranked outfielder in the state of Texas and the No. 88 overall prospect. He led Amarillo High with a .439 batting average, 61 runs, five homers and 54 stolen bases en route to multiple honors including a first team 5-A All-State selection.
The Big 12 preseason poll will be announced on Thursday, January 31. All nine league teams open the season on Friday, February 15.
2019 PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 BASEBALL AWARDS
Player of the Year: Josh Jung, Texas Tech, Jr., INF, San Antonio, Texas/MacArthur*
Pitcher of the Year: Cody Bradford, Baylor, Jr., LHP, Aledo, Texas/Aledo
Newcomer of the Year: Bryce Bonnin, Texas Tech, RHP/INF, Mont Belvieu, Texas/Arkansas
Freshman of the Year: Max Marusak, Texas Tech, OF, Amarillo, Texas/Amarillo
PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 TEAM
| Name | School | Pos. | Cl. | Hometown/Previous School |
| Shea Langeliers* | Baylor | C | Jr. | Keller, Texas/Keller |
| Nick Loftin | Baylor | INF | So. | Corpus Christi, Texas/W.B. Ray |
| Davis Wendzel | Baylor | INF | Jr. | San Clemente, Calif./Jeserra Catholic |
| Brylie Ware | Oklahoma | INF | Sr. | Sedgwick, Kan./Neosho County Community College |
| Josh Jung* | Texas Tech | INF | Jr. | San Antonio, Texas/MacArthur |
| Cameron Warren | Texas Tech | INF | Sr. | Midwest City, Okla./Carl Albert |
| Duke Ellis | Texas | OF | Jr. | Nacogdoches, Texas/Panola College |
| Gabe Holt | Texas Tech | OF | So. | Bonaire, Ga./Veterans |
| Darius Hill | West Virginia | OF | Sr. | Dallas, Texas/Dallas Jesuit |
| Colin Simpson | Oklahoma State | DH | Sr. | Edmond, Okla./Memorial |
| Zach Zubia | Texas | DH | So. | Richmond, Texas/Strake Jesuit |
| Will Brennan | K-State | UTL | Jr. | Stilwell, Kan./Blue Valley |
| Cody Bradford | Baylor | LHP | Jr. | Aledo, Texas/Aledo |
| Ryan Zeferjahn | Kansas | RHP | Jr. | Topeka, Kan./Seaman |
| Nick Lodolo | TCU | LHP | Jr. | LaVerne, Calif./Damien |
| Caleb Kilian | Texas Tech | RHP | Jr. | Flower Mound, Texas/Flower Mound |
| Levi Prater | Oklahoma | LHP | So. | Ada, Okla./Byng |
| Caleb Freeman | Texas Tech | RHP | Jr. | Abilene, Texas/Cooper |
* – Unanimous Selection
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