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After roster makeover, Wichita State baseball has a new look under coach Brian Green
By Taylor Eldridge; October 12, 2023
New coach Brian Green has virtually turned over the roster with 34 newcomers — 18 incoming freshmen, 14 from junior college and two from the transfer portal — mixed with just 11 returners. Outside of junior catcher Mauricio Millan and senior left-handed pitcher Caden Favors, no player has an established role with the Shockers.
To pull it off, it required his staff, which includes recruiting coordinator Clay Overcash, pitching coach Anthony Claggett and hitting coach Anthony Miller, to be on the road recruiting so much that they weren’t in the same room together for seven weeks after Green was hired on June 5.
The result was an influx of talent to the roster from the junior-college ranks: infielder Ryan Callahan (Johnson County), infielder Josh Livingston (Crowder College), outfielder Dayvin Johnson (Crowder College) and pitcher Daniel Zang (Dakota County Technical College) have all been standouts this fall.
“We really hit the juco’s hard and those juco guys have not disappointed,” Green said. “A lot of them are Midwest juco guys and they’re performing at a really high level. The coaches did a really great job.”
Green also considers himself fortunate for being on the receiving end of such a highly-touted incoming freshmen class, which was primarily recruited by the previous staff and maintained by the new one. Green did make two major additions in shortstop Darnell Parker Jr. and pitcher Tommy LaPour, which helped Wichita State’s 2023 recruiting class be ranked as the 36th-best nationally by Perfect Game.
“This freshmen class is definitely as good as advertised,” Green said. “Perfect Game had us at 36 and I would say it’s every bit of that. I think they got that one right. This class is very talented and I think you’re going to see some of those guys on the field right away. They’re definitely making their mark.”
Those freshman arms will likely help WSU’s starting rotation right away, as LaPour, Geraghty and Hamilton are all being looked at as potential starters. Considering their experience, Favors and Zang are good bets for weekend spots, while senior returner Nate Adler and junior left-hander Gavin Oswald, a former Oklahoma commit, also seem to be in the mix.
“We’ve got some good fastballs on the mound and we’ve got enough left-handers where I think we’re going to be able to match up out of the bullpen,” Green said. “We got some guys who can really run it up there. LaPour has been clocked at 97 (mph), Geraghty is at 94 and moving it, Zang has been up to 95. We’ve got a lot of really good fastballs and we’ll pitch to that.” Millan is the only returner from last season’s lineup and he’ll be spelled at times this season by fellow returner Alex Birge behind the plate.
By Taylor Eldridge; October 12, 2023
New coach Brian Green has virtually turned over the roster with 34 newcomers — 18 incoming freshmen, 14 from junior college and two from the transfer portal — mixed with just 11 returners. Outside of junior catcher Mauricio Millan and senior left-handed pitcher Caden Favors, no player has an established role with the Shockers.
To pull it off, it required his staff, which includes recruiting coordinator Clay Overcash, pitching coach Anthony Claggett and hitting coach Anthony Miller, to be on the road recruiting so much that they weren’t in the same room together for seven weeks after Green was hired on June 5.
The result was an influx of talent to the roster from the junior-college ranks: infielder Ryan Callahan (Johnson County), infielder Josh Livingston (Crowder College), outfielder Dayvin Johnson (Crowder College) and pitcher Daniel Zang (Dakota County Technical College) have all been standouts this fall.
“We really hit the juco’s hard and those juco guys have not disappointed,” Green said. “A lot of them are Midwest juco guys and they’re performing at a really high level. The coaches did a really great job.”
Green also considers himself fortunate for being on the receiving end of such a highly-touted incoming freshmen class, which was primarily recruited by the previous staff and maintained by the new one. Green did make two major additions in shortstop Darnell Parker Jr. and pitcher Tommy LaPour, which helped Wichita State’s 2023 recruiting class be ranked as the 36th-best nationally by Perfect Game.
“This freshmen class is definitely as good as advertised,” Green said. “Perfect Game had us at 36 and I would say it’s every bit of that. I think they got that one right. This class is very talented and I think you’re going to see some of those guys on the field right away. They’re definitely making their mark.”
Those freshman arms will likely help WSU’s starting rotation right away, as LaPour, Geraghty and Hamilton are all being looked at as potential starters. Considering their experience, Favors and Zang are good bets for weekend spots, while senior returner Nate Adler and junior left-hander Gavin Oswald, a former Oklahoma commit, also seem to be in the mix.
“We’ve got some good fastballs on the mound and we’ve got enough left-handers where I think we’re going to be able to match up out of the bullpen,” Green said. “We got some guys who can really run it up there. LaPour has been clocked at 97 (mph), Geraghty is at 94 and moving it, Zang has been up to 95. We’ve got a lot of really good fastballs and we’ll pitch to that.” Millan is the only returner from last season’s lineup and he’ll be spelled at times this season by fellow returner Alex Birge behind the plate.
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