July 28, 2014
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky junior stars Kyle Barrett and Kyle Cody earned starting assignments in the 2014 Cape Cod League All-Star Game, with the Western Division posting a 5-0 win over the East, on Sunday night in Bourne, Mass., at Bourne’s Doran Park.
Cody opened the game as the starting pitcher for the Eastern Division, getting a groundout from VMI infielder Jordan Tarsovich and a strikeout of Cincinnati star Ian Happ. Cody then got a soft grounder hit to third base but the ball was bobbled and the throw was late to allow Georgia Tech star AJ Murray to reach first on what was scored a single. Cody then induced a fielder’s choice from Miami’s David Thompson to end the inning. Barrett earned the start for the Western Division in centerfield, hitting seventh, and seeing three trips to the plate.
A 6-foot-7, 240-pound right-hander, Cody is the first UK starting pitcher to earn a start in the CCBL All-Star Game since Taylor Rogers was the starting, and winning pitcher, in the 2011 all-star game at Fenway Park.
Since 2008, nine Kentucky stars have earned Cape Cod League All-Star honors, ranking tied with Vanderbilt for third in college baseball. LSU (15) and Arizona (10) pace college baseball in Cape Cod League All-Star selections since 2008, with Stanford behind UK and Vanderbilt with its seven honorees. This marks the second consecutive season that UK was represented in the CCBL All-Star Game, as Chandler Shepherd fired a shutout, eight-pitch frame in the 2013 game at Yarmouth-Dennis.
Barrett has been a leadoff star for the Harwich Mariners during the summer in the CCBL, hitting .327 (35-for-107) in 30 games, with two doubles, one triple, four RBI and nine steals. A 2013 All-Southeastern Conference Freshman selection in the outfielder for the Wildcats, Barrett has hit .300 (90-for-300) in his 92-game UK career, with 19 doubles, one triple, one homer and 33 RBI, stealing 14 bases. As a freshman, Barrett led the team with a .349 average in 46 games. In 2014, Barrett posted career highs in doubles (six), homers (one), RBI (19), walks (21) and steals (10), hitting .253 in 46 games.
Pitching for the Wareham Gateman during the summer, Cody has made five starts on the mound. He has a 2-2 record and a 2.48 ERA in 25.1 innings, walking just eight, allowing only 22 hits and striking out 25. Over his last three starts, Cody has tossed 21 innings, allowing just three runs with two victories. In his two years at UK, Cody – a 2014 preseason member of the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Watch List – has a 7-3 record and a 4.05 ERA in 33 games and 16 starts. In 2014, Cody missed 21 days due to minor injury but still posted a 4-0 record and a 2.84 ERA in 18 games and six starts. Cody tossed 38 innings with five saves as a sophomore, allowing 36 hits and 13 walks. During his freshman season, Cody has a 3-3 record and a 4.84 ERA in 15 games and 10 starts, working 57.2 innings, with 47 strikeouts.
UK Cape Cod League All-Stars (Since 2006)
Kyle Barrett (2014) – Harwich
Kyle Cody (2014) – Wareham
Chandler Shepherd (2013) – Harwich
Trevor Gott (2011) – Orleans
Taylor Rogers (2011) – Harwich
Braden Kapteyn (2010) – Harwich
Chad Wright (2010) – Cotuit
Chris Bisson (2009) – Cotuit
Keenan Wiley (2008) – Y-D
Collin Cowgill (2007) – Y-D
Antone DeJesus (2006) – Harwich
REED EARNS FIRST PROFESSIONAL PROMOTION
Kentucky great AJ Reed has earned his first professional promotion, as the Houston Astros have advanced Reed to the low class-A Midwest League for his first taste of full-season minor league action.
Reed will debut with the Quad City River Bandits in a familiar place on Monday, taking on the Bowling Green Hot Rods at the BG Ballpark in Bowling Green at 1 p.m. ET.
A 6-foot-4, 240-pound first baseman, Reed got his first extended experience with wooden bats in his 34 games in the New York-Penn League after signing as the first pick of the second round in the 2014 MLB Draft by the Astros. Reed hit .306 (38-for-124) with 11 doubles, five homers and 30 RBI, owning a 22-22 walk-strikeout ratio and stealing two bases. Reed, despite missing seven days due to the award-show circuit, totaled a .420 on-base percentage and a .516 slugging mark. In his final game with the Tri-City ValleyCats, Reed went 2-for-2 with a grand slam and three walks on Saturday, prompting his promotion.
Reed completed one of the best seasons in the history of college baseball in 2014, winning the Golden Spikes Award, the Dick Howser Trophy, Baseball America College Player of the Year, the American Baseball Coaches Association National Player of the Year, Perfect Game’s National Player of the Year and the Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Year. He was also named the SEC’s Male Athlete of the Year, the SEC Player of the Year, and the winner of the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award.
The third unanimous national player of the year in conference history, Reed finished 2014 as the NCAA leader in homers (23), slugging (.735) and OPS (1.211), while becoming the first player in SEC history to lead the league in wins (12-2) and homers.
Reed finished his junior season with a .336 average – narrowly missing the second triple-crown in SEC history – with a conference best in homers and RBI (73). He also led the league in on-base percentage (.476), total bases (164) and walks (49), while adding 60 runs, 18 doubles and one triple. On the mound, Reed was UK’s Friday-night ace for a second straight year, posting the second-most wins in Kentucky history, while starting 16 games. He hurled 112 innings, walking just 29 and striking out 71.
A consensus first-team All-America selection in 2014, Reed finished his record-setting UK career with a .306 average in 172 games, slugging 35 doubles, three triples, 40 homers and 168 RBI. On the mound, Reed finished with a 19-13 record and a 2.83 ERA in his 46-game UK career, tossing 248 innings.
COUSINO NAMED NORTHWEST LEAGUE ALL-STAR
Former Kentucky star centerfielder Austin Cousino has been named to the Northwest League North Division All-Star Team, with the game slated for Aug. 6 in Eugene, Ore.
A native of Dublin, Ohio, Cousino has hit .281 (43-for-153) in his professional debut with the Everett AquaSox. A 5-foot-10, 178-pound left-handed hitter, Cousino has eight doubles, one triple, five homers and 18 RBI, stealing 18-of-20 bases. Cousino has a .366 on-base and a .444 slugging percentage.
A third-round pick in the 2014 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners, Cousino completed his storied three-year career with the Wildcats as a junior in 2014. He started all 178 games of his UK career, hitting .295 (216-for-732) with 47 doubles, seven triples, 19 homers and 48 steals. Cousino owned a .456 slugging and a .386 on-base percentage in his career, charting 17 outfield assists. Cousino was a three-time member of the SEC All-Defensive Team, a two-time Rawlings Golden Glove Award winner, a first-team Academic All-American and the 2012 SEC Freshman of the Year. Cousino was also a two-time member of the USA Collegiate National Team and a three-time member of a USA Baseball program, leading Team USA in hitting in 2012. Cousino played in 61 games as a junior in 2014, leading UK to the NCAA Tournament. He hit .308, with 15 doubles, four triples, four homers and 38 RBI, stealing a career-high 19 bases.
