Hernandez Named to John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award Watch List

THE FLATS – Freshman Alex Hernandez has been named to the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award Watch List, the College Baseball Foundation announced today. Hernandez leads all Power 4 freshman in RBI (45) and is second in the nation for HR among freshman, with 10. He is also the only underclassman, and one of three players nationally, to record a save and 10+ home runs this year.

At the plate, Hernandez is one of the best freshmen in the nation. He is batting .355 with a 1.099 OPS (4^th-best among P4 freshmen), leads Power 4 in RBI (45 – 2^nd in DI) and is one of only two freshmen in DI to have double-digit home runs. He has batted in the top four spots in the GT lineup for 31 of the Jackets’ 36 games.

On the mound, Hernandez has pitched 6.0 innings, including one start and is 0-1 with a save. He recorded the final five outs of GT’s opening weekend sweep over Old Dominion, recording a pair of strikeouts to earn the save.

The Cumming, Ga. native is one of nine freshmen on the Watch List and one of only five first years from a Power 4 conference. There are 35 total players on the Watch List.

The award is named for former Washington State University standout John Olerud, who achieved success both as a first baseman and left-handed pitcher during the late 1980s. He was inducted into the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007. The award will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year, on June 17.

For more information on the Olerud Award, visit the College Baseball Foundation website at www.collegebaseballhall.org

Full Steam Ahead

Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.

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