Missouri State junior southpaw Buddy Baumann and senior third baseman Brayden Drake have been named Louisville Slugger TPX All-Americans, it was announced Thursday by Collegiate Baseball newspaper.
A second-team choice, Baumann is the 2009 Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year and completed the season with an 11-1 record and 3.23 ERA. The Rogersville, Mo., native is the third pitcher in school history to win 11 games in a season, and his 101 strikeouts in 2009 rank fifth all-time at MSU. The southpaw held opponents to a .220 batting average this year and is eighth in MSU history with 215 career strikeouts. Baumann’s other 2009 honors include CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Third Team selection, College Baseball Foundation Pitcher of the Year award semifinalist, USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award semifinalist and two-time MVC Pitcher of the Week. Baumann is the second player in school history, joining Ben Carlson in 2008, to reach All-America status in baseball for both athletic and academic performance in the same season.
A third-team selection, Drake is the Joe Carter MVC Player of the Year after hitting .414 with 10 home runs and 54 RBIs. A three-time league player of the week in 2009, Drake holds school records with 67 career doubles and a 30-game hit streak that lasted from April 2008 through March 2009. The Webb City, Mo., native ranks among Missouri State’s career top 10 in doubles (1st), hits (5th), extra base hits (5th), at bats (5th), hit by pitch (5th), RBIs (7th), total bases (8th), games played (9th), singles (9th) and game-winning RBIs (10th).
Baumann and Drake put together the 20th and 21st All-America seasons in MSU baseball history in 2009.