O’Connor gets his trip home
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: June 10, 2009

A Hollywood screenwriter would love to get his hands on this one.

Brian O’Connor’s return to his roots is the feel good story of the College World Series, and while the Virginia coach prefers that this journey be all about his players, his own odyssey is even more improbable.

The Cavaliers’ skipper took a program that was on the verge of being demoted to nonscholarship status and in six years time brought it to the brink of greatness. Virginia heads to Omaha today to meet top-ranked LSU on Saturday.

You couldn’t make it up

O’Connor’s storyline is something you would expect from Disney.

“It’s like the perfect storm,” O’Connor said Tuesday morning. “The University of Virginia is going to its first College World Series appearance in its history. You have a coach that is going to coach against his mentor (LSU’s Paul Mainieri) in game one, and you have a coach that grew up there.”

O’Connor was raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa, just across the Nebraska state from Omaha. His family and his in-laws still live there. He played at nearby Creighton, where he once pitched in the College World Series in ancient Rosenblatt Stadium.

One could say that no one in college baseball is more ingrained in the Rosenblatt scene than O’Connor. The recognizable statue that sits outside the stadium is even more recognizable to O’Connor’s family and friends.

A work of art

Omaha sculptor John Lajba, who created the statue that shows players celebrating a CWS championship, used O’Connor’s likeness on the player featured to the far right of the creation.

O’Connor’s father owns a company in Omaha that manufactures marble and granite, and the sculpture commissioned to carve the statue works with the elder O’Connor. Some photographs were collected from the family scrapbook and so the face of one of the players was made in the image of the now UVa coach.

“For me personally, going back there and having the opportunity to coach in Rosenblatt Stadium in the second-to-last year before it’s demolished is really special to me,” O’Connor said. “Having pitched in that stadium [in 1991], there was nothing like it. For me and my family this is really special.”

The past few days have been a whirlwind for the Cavaliers’ manager.

Sunday afternoon he watched his team eliminate Ole Miss on its home field to catapult UVa into the College World Series. The team flew home that night but O’Connor said he couldn’t sleep because of the excitement.

Ever since the final out in Oxford, his messages have runneth over.

“After I took a post-game shower, I had 350 e-mails and text messages on my phone,” O’Connor said. “My Blackberry couldn’t handle them. At least 20 messages all came in at exactly 6:11 p.m.”

Virginia fans, Omaha/Council Bluffs friends and family and people all over the country that have known him couldn’t wait to shower congratulatory imports.

His phone may explode if they keep coming in.

The one special conversation he had was with his old college coach Jim Hendry, now general manager of the Chicago Cubs.

“It was right after we won,” O’Connor related. “I called Jim. He has meant so much to me, playing for him and him recruiting me. Just getting a chance to talk to him about it was very special.”

A lot has been made about the Virginia coach growing up in the Omaha area and playing for Creighton in the CWS, then returning to Rosenblatt as an assistant for Mainieri with Notre Dame in 2002.

Today’s trip is an undeniable link to his past, but O’Connor would prefer the focus to be on his players.

“This is their opportunity to go to Omaha,” he said. “Guys like Andrew Carraway and Robert Poutier (two of UVa’s few seniors), this is their last chance to go. This is something they have never experienced before.”

In typical O’Connor fashion, he said he was just as proud of his five former Cavalier teams as he is this current crop and thanked those players for their contributions.

“This wasn’t possible without the Sean Doolittles, the Ryan Zimmermans, the Paul Gilliespies, the Mike Mitchells, and people who have worn this uniform before us because had they not done their job in establishing this program, this team would have never had this opportunity,” the skipper said. “This is a great time for everybody that has worn our uniform.”

And, no doubt, a great time for a guy whose image adorns “The Road to Omaha” sculpture sitting out front of Rosenblatt Stadium, home of the College World Series since 1950.

If he wins it, will they commission another statue?
 

Arico cleans up the mess
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 10, 2009

Minutes from midnight and long after a game had finished, Karl Kuhn peered into a dugout during a recruiting trip to see one youngster cleaning up cups.

Virginia’s pitching coach watched with bated breath, hoping the ultimate teammate could compliment his off-field antics with stuff needed at a major program.

Kuhn waited and waited. Sitting in the stands for a third day, he waited again. Finally, Kevin Arico pitched.

He delivered and, after an official visit, an offer followed.

Now with a fine-tuned slider suddenly in his arsenal, Arico has emerged as the Cavaliers’ closer, a role that he will assume Saturday at 7 p.m. as No. 6 Virginia (48-13-1) opens play at the College World Series against top-ranked Louisiana State in Omaha, Neb.

Arico, however, is the first to admit that his surge to greatness, which has included two wins and 11 saves, did not come with ease.

“It takes a lot of time to come from high school to learn something at such a high level,” said Arico, a native of baseball-rich Flemington, N.J. “It is a tough transition that works for some guys and for it doesn’t. It is not easy to go from the No. 1 pitcher on you high school team to here where everybody is more developed that you, older than you and much more mature than you.

“It is a big learning curve. You pick up as much as you can as a freshman and you hope that you can show the coaches something in the fall to where they can’t complain.”

Arico did anything but shine during the fall, being terrorized late in Orange & Blue World Series games as he failed to assume the role of closer, with sophomore Jarrett Parker playing spoiler with the bat.

Once winter break hit, however, Arico raced home to the hometown facility that he credits for making him the player that he is — the Jack Cust Baseball Academy — for sincere advice.

While promised nothing upon return to Virginia, including the closer role, Arico brainstormed with former minor-league standout Justin Jensen and facility president Keith Dilgard.

Combined with life lessons learned from former Cavalier closer Michael Schwimer, something stuck.

It was noticeable to those miles from Central Virginia on Sunday as Virginia won the Oxford Super Regional with a 5-1 win.

“You have to have that mentality just like he did in Game 1 against Ole Miss where he gave up the home run but came back after that,” said Dilgard, who pitched in the College World Series at Mississippi State. “You can’t get too high, you can’t get too low. He has done a great job with it.”

Credit the slider.

It was a pitch that had Kuhn torn. As a rookie, the right-hander possessed an average curve and slider. One of the pitches needed to be developed in a major way.

Pitching for the Delaware Cows last summer, Arico landed with a pitching coach that worried solely about the slider.

“It was the release point and he had this whole philosophy behind it,” said Arico, who built up strength as a starter. “It made perfect sense to me.”

Kuhn hoped for that from the youngster.

“The summer is a great time to find yourself,” he said. “That’s what Kevin did. Coming out of the pen in Division I baseball is a hard thing to do.

“There is not a lot of wiggle room most of the time. Starting gave him more time to develop himself.”

It helped that Arico was what teammates referred as a “strange bird.”

Arico, in fact, would beg Schwimer last year to record NASCAR races that fell during Sunday games.

“We all knew that he was crazy for watching cars go in a circle,” Virginia catcher Franco Valdes said. “They only take left-hand turns. It is weird, but he loves it.”

But Schwimer, known as “Stein,” taped every race, allowing his dorm-confined teammate to watch lap after lap in his apartment with brotherly love.

That open-arms approach that the 2008 team shared has carried on.

“We learned a lot from those veterans and that is exactly what it is this year too,” Arico said. “Everybody is so tightly-knit on and off the field. No one is excluded from anything.

“There is no stereotypical positions players are divided from pitchers. That has brought us this far.”

With a plane leaving Charlottesville today, it will also bring them to Omaha.
 

The art of the steal
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 11, 2009

It is perhaps the most important stopwatch in Virginia baseball history.

It resides in the back pocket of third-base coach Kevin McMullan, the Cavaliers’ associate head coach.

On Sunday, as Virginia attempted to defy odds and upset Mississippi in the Oxford Super Regional, McMullan glanced at the time on the watch.

It showed the number that corresponded with the opposing pitcher’s delivery time to the plate.

McMullan pounced. Ole Miss bent and broke. Virginia stole six bases en route to a 5-1 regional-clinching win and a ticket to Omaha, Neb.

Wednesday evening, that stopwatch arrived at Rosenblatt Stadium, the home of the College World Series. Virginia (48-13-1) opens plays there against top-ranked LSU on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Against the Rebels and anyone else, Virginia uses its speed and athleticism to its advantage. The Cavaliers have swiped 116 bases, ranking 13th in the nation and tops among ACC schools.

There have been times, however, that McMullan has hesitated to put the wheels in motion.

“The game dictates what you can do,” he said. “What’s available, you take. If it is not available, you don’t take it.”

That was apparent during the ACC tournament and the Irvine Regional, both of which were won by the Cavaliers as they leaned on pitching over antics on the bathpaths.

“The last 15 games we have hardly ran at all,” McMullan said. “That’s mainly because people were going out of their way to stop us.”

Even that has its advantages for a batting order that enters the College World Series batting .327, which ranks No. 33 in the nation.

“It is such an extra advantage for the batters when pitchers are paying that kind of attention,” McMullan added. “The pitchers try to rush their delivery at times and it takes away from their stuff. Guys that don’t take their time and get a guy on, we will take advantage of it.

“It is not rocket science.”

Virginia’s players — young and old — have enjoyed the style immensely.

“That is the best way to play,” Virginia third baseman Steven Proscia said. “We love being aggressive and forcing the issue.”

Extra bases

LSU announced Wednesday that it would start RHP Anthony Ranaudo (10-3, 2.95 ERA) in Saturday’s game against the Cavaliers. Virginia coach Brian O’Connor is leaning towards LHP Danny Hultzen, but left the door open that RHP Robert Morey would go against the Tigers.
 

Trio of Virginia players chosen
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 11, 2009

One learned before grabbing frequent flyer miles. The other learned the instant that his cell phone at the airport chirped in Omaha, Neb.

A pair of right-handed senior pitchers, Andrew Carraway and Robert Poutier, were drafted Wednesday during the second day of the Major League Baseball draft.

Carraway was selected in the 12th round by the Seattle Mariners and Poutier was picked in the 29th round by the San Diego Padres. Virginia junior LHP Jeff Lorick was also picked in the 20th round of the draft, but has not traveled with the team the past three weeks.

“I am so proud of those young men,” Virginia coach Brian O’Connor said. “They have meant a lot to our program and it is great that they have this chance afforded to them.”

Carraway, a mainstay on Virginia’s pitching staff the past three years, was eligible to taken last year but had a price tag over $500,000 and was bypassed.

“It was awesome to know that I was taken by the Mariners,” said Carraway, a Braves fan growing up in Georgia. “I am focused on what is at stake with the College World Series, but it is nice to know that a team thought that highly of me.”

Lorick landed on the radar of many teams after pitching in the Cape Cod League the past two summers but struggled in mid-week starts for Virginia and lost a non-conference game against Stony Brook.

Poutier, a fifth-year senior, said he was excited about the opportunity to pitch beyond college.

“It is an unbelievable feeling,” Poutier said. “We were sitting on the runway at the airport and I saw the messages rolling in. It was shock and awe.”

A host of third-year players that were eligible to be drafted have not been selected thus far. The signing bonuses asked by shortstop Tyler Cannon, left-handed pitcher Matt Packer and catcher Franco Valdes showed the value of an education at Virginia, according to O’Connor.

Virginia’s top pitching recruit, Brandon Kline of Frederick, Md., was selected in the sixth round by the Boston Red Sox. It is believed that Kline is demanding a signing bonus of $5 million and should spurn slot money. Another UVa recruit, shortstop Reed Gragnani from Mills Godwin High in Richmond, went to the Red Sox in the 27th round.
 

Virginia's O'Connor Has Come Full Circle
By Zach Berman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, June 11, 2009

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- There will be a moment once the first pitch is thrown in Virginia's first-ever College World Series game on Saturday that will reveal the arc that led Coach Brian O'Connor to this point. In the stands, the beginning. In the opposite dugout, the middle. On the field, the end.

As a child, O'Connor accompanied his father and two brothers through the gates of Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha to watch the College World Series, the event O'Connor considers the greatest in college sports. He played in the ballpark and can recall with vivid detail taking the mound for hometown Creighton University against Wichita State 18 Junes ago. And he once coached at the ballpark as an assistant to Paul Mainieri, his mentor who will coach Louisiana State in the opposing dugout on Saturday.

O'Connor has tried to play down his story -- he wants the spotlight to shine on his players, who have gone further than any other Virginia baseball team. But O'Connor knows his story will not fade away, because he knows it is rare that one's life can come full circle, when the climax serendipitously occurs right where the foundation was laid.

"It's like the perfect storm," O'Connor said.

Virginia defied distance, odds and the right arm of No. 1 draft pick Stephen Strasburg to improbably reach the College World Series. The Cavaliers' bid has caused a stir along Interstate 80, where baseball fans in Omaha and neighboring Council Bluffs, Iowa, have awaited the return of the native son who married a Council Bluffs girl and whose father maintains a 402 area code.

"My entire family, my wife's family still lives there," O'Connor said. "All the friends that I went to high school with, all the people I went to college with. I held a number of jobs in the Omaha and Council Bluffs area. You know, all the people I had contacts with. For me, personally, going back there and having the opportunity to coach in Rosenblatt Stadium in the second-to-last year before it's demolished, is really special for me."

O'Connor was born in Omaha and raised just across the Missouri River in Council Bluffs. He lived a 10-minute drive from Rosenblatt Stadium, which will be demolished after next season in favor of a new venue, and started attending college baseball's annual showcase when he was 4 years old, because there is little else a Midwest-bred boy who loves baseball would do on June afternoons.

O'Connor stayed in Omaha to attend Creighton, playing a part in the Blue Jays' ride to the College World Series in 1991. His father, John, is reminded each June when he enters the ballpark of Creighton's 3-2, 12-inning loss to rival Wichita State, a game that is considered among the greatest in College World Series history, and one in which O'Connor pitched the 11th and 12th innings.

Eleven years later, O'Connor again reached the College World Series as a Notre Dame assistant coach under Mainieri, his best friend in the industry. Mainieri had taken a chance on O'Connor as a 23-year-old. He prepared O'Connor so much that Virginia Athletic Director Craig Littlepage offered the job to O'Connor, who did not have any head coaching experience, when he was only 32.

O'Connor could barely sleep on Sunday night, rolling over in bed at the thought of coaching against his mentor. The two will meet for a steak dinner sometime before Saturday's 7 p.m. game. They will shake hands or hug at home plate before the game begins -- O'Connor did not know which -- and they promised not to look at each other through the entire nine innings.

"It's probably going to be the most emotional thing that I've had to go through as a player or a coach -- without question," O'Connor said. "This guy, Paul Mainieri, means everything to me."

O'Connor played at Creighton for Jim Hendry, who is now vice president and general manager of the Chicago Cubs. Hendry recommended O'Connor to Mainieri, who later recommended O'Connor to Littlepage.

Virginia's baseball program was on the brink of extinction before O'Connor arrived. The administration started to support the program by raising money to expand Davenport Field -- a process that recently was aided by a $250,000 donation from Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, who played three seasons at Virginia -- and fund a full allotment of scholarships. But O'Connor brought a vision developed while observing Hendry and Mainieri.

"It's all about how you treat the player and how you handle them," said O'Connor, who recommends a curfew on the road but does not conduct room checks. "When you're 18 to 22 years old, and you're growing up, and this is the most important time of your life, I think you want to be treated that way. That's the way my college manager treated me, and we loved it as players."

Hendry consistently keeps in touch with O'Connor and will attend Saturday's game. He could not think of anywhere else he would rather be, and could not articulate what O'Connor will feel when Virginia's coach experiences the validation of a program he built.

"It's going to be a euphoric situation," Hendry said. "I don't think he'll even comprehend until he gets there."

O'Connor met with his players on Tuesday and explained the gravity of the College World Series. He told them about the people who will applaud their arrival in restaurants and disembarkation from the team bus. He wanted to explain how families in Omaha pass College World Series tickets down from generation to generation, and how some of the same fans who kept score in the 11th inning of O'Connor's game against Wichita State will carry a scorebook into Saturday's game against LSU.

As they enter the ballpark, they will pass by statues of four college baseball players. One will bear a likeness to O'Connor, whose face was used in 1999 when the NCAA wanted to commemorate 50 years of College World Series play at Rosenblatt Stadium.

The statue reveals a depiction of O'Connor as a player in the city and the ballpark that he loves. And he wants his players to revel in a similar experience, even though it is O'Connor's shadow that will loom in front of Rosenblatt Stadium.

"I have such fond memories of playing in that city and stadium," O'Connor said. "I want our players to have the same memories."
 

'Loud Cuban' catcher plays with unmasked energy during U.Va.'s road to Omaha
Dave Fairbank
June 11, 2009
CHARLOTTESVILLE

Like all good college coaches, Virginia baseball's Brian O'Connor operates from a set of principles and blueprints, but he appreciates the value of serendipity in teams and seasons.

As the Cavaliers marched through the postseason and earned the program's first trip to the College World Series, O'Connor has talked about embracing the unexpected and riding the wave.

He understands that where plans might not always work out, sometimes people do.

Which brings us to Franco Valdes.

A self-described "loud Cuban" from south Florida, Virginia's junior catcher has been money this postseason. He has deftly handled a pitching staff that's on a remarkable roll and has delivered clutch hit after clutch hit during the NCAA tournament.

"Let me tell you," O'Connor said the other day, "this guy, Franco Valdes, this time of the year, there's nobody that I'd want to have our back (other) than this kid. He's got a ton of energy, he's our emotional leader out there, he's got a lot of pride. He's not going to come through every time, but this time of the year, this kid's proven for us that he's going to come through most of the time."

Valdes was named Most Outstanding Player of the Irvine, Calif., regional, where he batted .455 and drove in two runs each day in back-to-back wins against No. 1-ranked UC Irvine.

In last weekend's Super Regional in Oxford, Miss., he drove in the tying run in Game 2 and the go-ahead run in Game 3 as Virginia defeated Ole Miss to advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

Valdes has handled a pitching staff that has a 1.45 ERA in the NCAA tournament and has allowed just nine earned runs in 56 innings.

"Franco, what he's done this postseason has just been unbelievable," senior pitcher Andrew Carraway said. "It seems like every time we're out there at the end of the game, he ends up batting and he gets a hit.

"The fact that he's able to raise his game to that level when it counts, one, it's an obvious benefit to the team, and two, it shows that he's a leader on this team. When his number is called, he's going to do it because he wants the ball in that situation where he's got to throw a guy out, or he wants to be at the plate because he knows he can help this team in that way."

Not bad for a guy who landed in Charlottesville by chance, as the result of a last-minute recruiting scramble.

Two years ago, the Cavaliers lost catcher prospect Devin Mesoraco from Pennsylvania when the Cincinnati Reds drafted him in the first round with the 15th overall pick.

Needing a catcher, Virginia assistant Karl Kuhn talked to his friend, Broward (Fla.) Community College coach Bob Deutschman, who recommended Valdes and was willing to let him go after just one year.

Valdes was at Broward only because his original college choice, Florida International, underwent a coaching change following his senior year in high school in Miami, so he went to his own Plan B.

Valdes visited Virginia and fell in love with the place, he said. The Cavaliers generally don't recruit junior-college players, for academic reasons and because the best players are often gone after three years, which would create a rapidly spinning revolving door that runs counter to O'Connor's methods of program-building.

But because Valdes is a good student — he is majoring in Spanish and minoring in urban planning — and the Cavs would have him for at least two years, he was a good fit.

He always has been a good fit as catcher. He began playing baseball at age 4, and donned catcher's gear as soon as he was permitted.

"It's what I love to do," Valdes said. "I'm very interactive. I can't imagine being out in the outfield waiting for balls to get hit to me. I can't do it. I'm interactive. I'm loud. It just fits my role. I'm a loud guy; I'm going to lead my guys. When you're playing, you need a loud person to communicate and rally the troops, because everyone is looking at you. It's the only position where you're facing everyone, so it's great to be there."

Valdes, a thickly built 5-foot-9 and 205 pounds, caught nearly all of the Cavaliers' games last year as a sophomore. He learned Virginia's complicated pitching signals and studied video, to the point where he and Kuhn, the pitching coach, are nearly always on the same page.

He improved his batting average 50 points from last season (he is currently hitting .288), and his clutch-hitting performance is off the charts. His late surge is due in part to the addition of freshman John Hicks, who caught a handful of games this spring and relieved Valdes of everyday catching duties.

"My gas tank has no 'empty' sign," Valdes said. "I'm ready to go whenever. Whatever it takes. Having John Hicks this year to help me out behind the plate was great. He's a great kid. He hits the ball, he's a good catcher."

Virginia's trip to the Series provides Valdes with all of the energy and motivation necessary.

"Now, I have gas in the tank as long as we need it," he said. "Until we have the dogpile in Omaha."

 

COLLEGE BASEBALL
June 11, 2009 12:35 am
By HANK KURZ Jr.
AP Sports Writer
CHARLOTTESVILLE

--Franco Valdes' numbers are not glossy. His .288 batting average is the lowest among Virginia's starters, and his 41 RBIs are fifth on the team.

Look through the Cavaliers' postseason performance as they prepare to head to Omaha and their first appearance in the College World Series, though, and Valdes' influence is everywhere.

He was the most outstanding player of the Irvine Regional when Virginia handed pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg of San Diego State his first loss in 14 decisions and then beat top-ranked UC-Irvine twice on its home field. Valdes had only three hits in the super regional at Ole Miss, but all three drove in runs, including the go-ahead single in the decisive third game.

Oh, and he's also guided a young pitching staff to remarkable highs. Virginia allowed just two runs in three games at Irvine, and then just eight runs in three games in Mississippi.

When Virginia (48-13-1) opens the CWS on Saturday night against LSU (51-16) at Rosenblatt Stadium, the Cavaliers will look to Valdes for his leadership once again.

"He's the spark," senior captain Andrew Carraway said of his 5-foot-11 batterymate. "And then it just moves throughout the dugout."

Teammates describe Valdes, in his second season at Virginia, as the guy who keeps everyone on the team loose before a game with his antics or odd mix of music in the locker room. But when it comes to his role as field general, he is all business.

Carraway, for example, was facing a tight spot in Virginia's third game at Irvine. The Anteaters trailed 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth, but had runners on second and third with just one out when Valdes asked for time and trotted out to speak with the righthander.

"I came up to him and I said, 'You get these two guys out, we win the game,'" Valdes said of the visit. "And then I left."

Carraway chuckles at the memory, but not the result.

"He might have thrown a couple of extra words in there that can't go in an interview, and he walked back to home plate," he said. "A guy says that to you that confidently, you believe him and whatever my focus might have been--'It's a close game. If I give up this run '--that all shuts itself off and you just listen to the guy behind the plate."

Carraway struck out the next batter, got the next to ground out and Virginia scored two more runs in the top of the ninth to win a regional for the first time in its history.

What Valdes didn't say is that the Cavaliers' 2-1 lead at the time of the visit to the mound was courtesy of Valdes' RBI-double in the fourth and his RBI-triple in the sixth.

"The guy's clutch," said freshman Will Roberts.

Parker leads Virginia into World Series
By: Kevin Dunleavy
Examiner Staff Writer
06/10/09 10:00 PM EDT

How does a college baseball player go from zero home runs one year to 16 the next?

In the case of Virginia center fielder Jarrett Parker, the answer was to take a vacation from the sport.

While many teammates retreated to summer league outposts last year, Parker stayed in Charlottesville, working baseball camps, taking a few classes, pumping iron and eating. A year later, Parker, a sophomore from Colonial Forge High in Stafford County, has gone from batting No. 9 in the lineup to No. 1, literally leading Virginia to its first College World Series berth.

After hitting .264 with seven extra-base hits as a freshman, Parker leads the Cavaliers in home runs (16), triples (7), RBIs (65), runs (75), and slugging percentage (.684) and is second in doubles (19), steals (19), and batting average (.364). The numbers sound more like those of a middle-of-the-lineup hitter, not a leadoff man, but Parker relishes the chance to be unique.

"I like to start things off," said Parker. "Whether its home runs or base hits, it's something I can do. I love being that spark, that guy that gets us going."

That will be Parker's mission Saturday night when Virginia (48-13-1) takes on one of college baseball's blueblood programs, LSU (51-16), in the Cavaliers' World Series opener at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha.

Last year at this time, Parker was working with Virginia strength coach Ed Nordenschild and nutritionist Rob Skinner. Parker increased his bench press from 240 pounds to 290 and his squat from 265 to 365. When fall practice started, Parker, now 6-foot-4, 210 pounds, impressed his teammates with his new body and the sudden pop in his bat.

"I have never had a player from one year to the next make as big strides as he has," said Virginia coach Brian O'Connor. "We practice all fall and the [spring] season is long. If you don't take a two- or three-month period and just concentrate on weight training, it's hard to put on strength and muscle. I wish I had done it with other players."

But Parker insists that weight training is only part of the equation. He believes he was due for a breakout season. His power numbers are not so surprising considering he hit 25 home runs in high school. He credits the year of experience as much as his new muscles.

"I played a year of college baseball. It was overwhelming," said Parker. "I came back this year, knew what to expect, knew what it was going to take to play a season of college baseball."

To improve further and enhance his stock for the 2010 draft, Parker needs to learn more plate discipline. His 71 strikeouts are 23 more than any Cavalier. But O'Connor isn't in any hurry to reign in a slugger with a rare blend of power and speed.

"He plays with a lot of emotion," said O'Connor. "I love that about him. I think that brings excitement to our team."

 

Possible basketball recruit bumps UVa to top of the list
By Whitey Reid
Published: June 10, 2009

After coming to Virginia over the weekend, checking out the grounds, talking with players, coaches, and the program’s academic coordinator, Derrick Williams has moved UVa to the top of his college list.

The 6-foot-7, 255-pounder from St. Anthony’s High in Jersey City, N.J. loved everything about his unofficial visit.

“I had heard so many things about the campus and stuff like that. I just had to see it myself - and the campus was just beautiful,” Williams said. “It’s in a great location. I like the environment. I like the people and overall everything about it.”

Really, the only thing left is for Virginia to feel the same way about Williams. Because only one of UVa’s coaches - Ron Sanchez - has ever seen Williams play, Virginia has yet to offer him a scholarship.

Eric Harrield, Williams’ AAU coach and also the freshmen coach at St. Anthony’s, expects the staff to give Williams a strong look in the coming weeks.

Williams says he already has offers from Miami, Seton Hall, Providence and Richmond. Williams and AAU teammate Eli Carter both received offers from Richmond, right on the spot, after playing in the Spiders’ Elite Camp shortly after their visit to Charlottesville.

Williams, who would like to make his college decision before his senior year at St. Anthony’s begins, said he enjoyed talking with new Virginia coach Tony Bennett.

“He was very upbeat,” said Williams, who also chatted with Virginia players Jamil Tucker and Calvin Baker. “He’s an upbeat person. He was very excited. I can understand his excitement in being in that facility that they have.”

Harrield, who graduated from Virginia in 1994, concurred.

“That new arena might be the best in the country, if not the best,” he said. “I was blown away. I was there when they had U-Hall. This thing is just…great.”

Harrield, who had previously dealt with former Virginia coach Dave Leitao, enjoyed meeting Bennett for the first time.

“He’s a great guy,” Harrield said. “He just has a lot of passion. It seems like he’s ready to turn Virginia around and get it back to where it used to be and deserves to be. As an alum, that’s how I feel.

“He just seems like a really genuine guy. He’s the kind of guy you just want to be around.”

Bennett told Williams that he doesn’t get caught up with size and that he puts higher value on skills and effort. That could bode well for Williams, who some say might be a little small to play power forward in the ACC (he is generously listed at 6-foot-7).

Bennett also showed Williams and Harrield video from his days at Washington State.

“A lot of the rumors are that he slows the ball down and plays really slow,” Harrield said. “From what I saw, that’s definitely not the case.

“It looks like a fun system to play in - a system Derrick could actually thrive in with his size and skill set.”

Williams thinks he could fit in very well.

“I’m an outside-in player,” he said. “I like to face up and take people off the dribble. I finish well around the basket.

“I like getting dirty. I like contact.”


 

U.Va. notes
By Staff Reports
Published: June 11, 2009

Unsung heroes
Throughout Brian O'Connor's six seasons as Virginia's baseball coach, his top assistants have been Kevin McMullan and Karl Kuhn. To O'Connor, they don't get enough credit for the program's success.

Virginia plays its opening game in the College World Series on Saturday night against LSU in Omaha, Neb.

"We would not be in the position that we're in right now without those two gentlemen," O'Connor said. "They do all the work. They're the ones that go out and find the players. They coach the players. They spend endless hours in this baseball program, and every player that's played here in the last six years, and myself as the head coach, are forever indebted to those two men, because they are tireless workers, and they do the real work."

McMullan, whose title is associate head coach, serves as the team's recruiting coordinator and hitting coach. Kuhn is the Cavaliers' pitching coach.

"It would have been very easy for them to take another opportunity, to move on or make more money," O'Connor said, "but they've been completely committed to this program, and that really says a lot. It really says a lot about the type of people they are. They came here to coach with me because they wanted to get to Omaha. I've been there as a player and as a coach, and they have not. As excited as I am for the players, I'm equally excited for those two men, that they get a chance to coach our team in Omaha."

Bittersweet memory
O'Connor attended Creighton, which is in Omaha, his birthplace. In 1991, with O'Connor as their closer, the Bluejays advanced to the College World Series.

"As a player, it's something I'll never forget," O'Connor said. "It's the high point in my playing career. I was fortunate to play for Jim Hendry, who's now the general manager of the Chicago Cubs, and just had an unbelievable experience playing for him. And then to be a hometown kid playing for the hometown school in the College World Series was just an incredible experience and feeling."

In his only CWS appearance, before a then-record crowd of 18,206 at Rosenblatt Stadium, O'Connor pitched the 11th and 12th innings against Wichita State.

"You're going to make me bring that up?" O'Connor, in mock anger, asked a reporter Monday. "I gave up the third run to lose the ballgame. I wish I could have it back. There was a chopper hit over my head that was about a foot over my glove. The second baseman and shortstop ended up colliding behind the bag, and we couldn't make the play. I was the only one that could have made the play. If I was a foot taller, I probably would have."

Future stars
For the third consecutive year, the NBA players association's Top 100 camp will be held at John Paul Jones Arena. Many of the nation's top high school boys annually attend the camp, at which they're tutored by current and former NBA players on the court and in the classroom.

Camp alumni include Rashard Lewis, Dwight Howard, Lamar Odom, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant.

This year's camp starts Wednesday and runs through June 21. Among the Virginia recruiting targets scheduled to attend are rising seniors Kyle Collinsworth and Mychal Parker, who attends Miller School near Crozet.

NCAA rules prohibit Cavaliers coach Tony Bennett and his assistants from talking with or evaluating players during the camp. But players and their families are allowed to meet with U.Va. coaches before and after the camp.

Virginia's own camp for elite prospects is Monday and Tuesday.

Rivals unite for clinic
Several current ACC basketball players, including U.Va.'s Mike Scott, are expected to work as counselors at a one-day event in Richmond billed as the Ty Lawson and Friends Dream Clinic.

The father/son and father/daughter clinic will be held June 20 at St. Christopher's. Also, the public can attend a barbecue that night at which Lawson and the counselors will be present. For information, e-mail Thomas Leachman at tleachman@comcast.netor call (804) 405-7951.

Lawson, a point guard who helped North Carolina win this year's NCAA title, is projected as a first-round pick in this month's NBA draft. -- Jeff White
 

Tuscola QB surprises coaches, picks Virginia
By Stan Olson
solson@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Monday, Jun. 08, 2009

Late Sunday night, quarterback Tyler Brosius of Waynesville Tuscola High committed to Virginia.

That started the avalanche.

“The phone has been going absolutely crazy,” said his dad, Mike Brosius, Monday afternoon. “This thing is totally out of control. It's other coaches calling, wanting him not to commit yet, trying to change his mind.

“Today's been a tough day; a really tough day.”

Among the other schools that had offered Tyler scholarships were East Carolina, Maryland, Pittsburgh, along with Central Florida, Western Carolina and Elon.

Brosius committed after an enjoyable visit to Charlottesville during the weekend, but not until the family stayed up until midnight Sunday night discussing it.

Asked if the commitment is a firm one, Mike Brosius said it was. But he sounded awfully tired as he said it.

The father called back later after talking to the son again, and said the commitment was solid.

“He really likes the environment; it reminds him so much of home,” Mike Brosius said. “He loves the coaches, and he loves the offense they run.”

Tyler Brosius threw for 2,437 yards and 27 touchdowns as a junior, with 10 interceptions. He has good quarterback size at 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, and has decent 4.9-second speed in the 40-yard dash.