Four Hurricanes Earn Baseball America All-America Honors
June 12, 2008
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Junior first baseman Yonder Alonso, freshman left-handed pitcher Chris Hernandez, junior centerfielder Blake Tekotte and junior second baseman Jemile Weeks have been named All-Americans by Baseball America. Alonso was a first team selection as the designated hitter while Hernandez, Tekotte and Weeks were all recognized on the second team at their respective positions.
Alonso, a first team All-ACC selection, hit 23 home runs and leads the nation in walks (74). He takes a .367 batting average into the College World Series and has a team-high 71 RBI while slugging .774. He became the first Hurricane to hit at least 20 home runs in a single season since Danny Matienzo in 2002. He also is a semifinalist for the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award and a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award.
Hernandez led the ACC going 10-0 during the regular season. He added a win in the ACC Tournament and is 11-0 with a 2.62 ERA. He’s allowed just three walks in his last six starts. He has posted the best record by a UM freshman since Jerry Brust went 10-0 in 1974. Hernandez was named the 2008 ACC Freshman of the Year as well as earned first team All-ACC honors. He also was recognized as the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper National Freshman Pitcher of the Year and National Collegiate Baseball Writers’ Association National Freshman Pitcher of the Year.
Tekotte leads the Hurricanes with 85 hits while hitting .357. He is 26-of-32 in stolen base attempts and ranks third in runs scored (78). He has 12 doubles, four triples and 11 home runs from his leadoff spot. He leads all outfielders with 102 putouts and owns a .470 on-base percentage.
Weeks also earned first team All-ACC honors. He ties for the team-lead in batting average (.367) going into the CWS hitting .367. He has 33 extra-base hits on the season including 17 doubles, five triples and 11 home runs while ranking third in RBI (59). He also is 21-of-22 stolen base attempts. He became the all-time UM leader in career triples (19). Like Alonso, he is a semifinalist for the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award.
