Nov. 13, 2002
WACO, Texas - Baylor baseball coach Steve Smith announced Wednesday the signing of eight players to National Letters of Intent for the 2004 season. The class is made up of seven high school players and one junior college player.
"I am very pleased and excited about the quality of this group and the impact they will have on our program in the next several years," Smith said. "This class is very representative of the type of players we have been able to sign over the past several years. They are all quality students, with several of them qualifying for academic scholarship aid in addition to athletic aid."
Continuing a recent trend, six of the eight signees come from Texas, with the two out-of-state students coming from Arizona and Arkansas. Mike Pankratz is the lone transfer, joining the Bears from San Jacinto Junior College after having redshirted in football his freshman year at Texas A&M.
All five Texas natives who signed with Baylor out of high school were ranked among the 45 best prospects in the state by Baseball America/Perfect Game, led by Travis Schlichting, who was named the No. 12 prospect in the state and the No. 88 prospect in the country. Texas Baseball News named Baylor signees Cory Van Allen and Jeff Mandel the No. 4 and No. 13 prospects in the state.
"The position players are all exceptional athletes who we feel will continue to improve," Smith said. "It's always a plus to sign dual-position players and in Jeff Mandel and Cory Van Allen, we feel we have two of the very best. I am also very pleased that we were able to sign several quality pitchers to join what should already be a pretty strong staff in 2004."
Baylor concluded the 2002 season with a 36-26 record, earning a fifth-straight NCAA bid and advancing to the regional championship game for the third time in four years. The Bears finished tied for fifth in the Big 12 Conference.
Last season's recruiting class was ranked 13th in the nation by Collegiate Baseball, marking the third time in the past five years that Baylor's class had been named among the top-25 in the nation.
2002 Baylor Baseball Signees
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. B/T Hometown (High School/College)Jason Corley RHP 6-4 220 R/R Scottsdale, Ariz. (Chaparral)Erik Forestiere RHP 6-0 180 R/R Pine Bluff, Ark. (Pine Bluff)Kerr Foster RHP 6-5 215 L/R Athens, Texas (Athens)Jeff Mandel RHP/IF 6-3 185 S/R Houston, Texas (Jersey Village)Xerxes Martin LHP 5-10 150 L/L Dallas, Texas (Highland Park)Mike Pankratz 1B/OF 6-4 200 R/R Katy, Texas (Taylor/San Jacinto JC)Travis Schlichting IF 6-3 185 R/R Round Rock, Texas (Round Rock)Cory Van Allen LHP/1B 6-3 180 L/L Sugar Land, Texas (Clements)
Jason Corley comes to Baylor from Scottsdale, Ariz., where he both started and closed as a right-handed pitcher at Chaparral High School under coach Jerry Dawson. As a junior in 2002, Corley was named all-region honorable mention after compiling a 5-3 record with two saves and a 1.51 ERA in 14 games, striking out 42 batters and walking just nine in 51.0 innings. Those numbers include a win in the Arizona State Championships. During summer ball, Corley went 4-0 with one save and 1.16 ERA while playing for the Scottsdale Giants. He struck out 34 batters in just 30.0 innings while walking only five. An honor-roll student, Corley also has been involved in church activities and coaching youth baseball. The son of Jay and Ethel Corley, Jason chose Baylor over Arizona State and Air Force.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Corley: "Jason is a big, strong right hander with a good arm. He is a mature young man as well as a good competitor on the mound."
Erik Forestiere could pair with brother Matt (a redshirt freshman catcher in 2003) to provide an all-Forestiere battery at Baylor in the spring of 2004. As a junior at Pine Bluff High School in Pine Bluff, Ark., Erik Forestiere put together a 5-2, 3.96 season for head coach Billy Bock in 2002; he also hit .392 and finished second on the team in RBI with 29 in 22 games. For his efforts, Forestiere was named 5A South All-Conference and 5A South Coaches' All-State as a junior. He was selected for the Midwest Code Games and Perfect Game showcases in 2002. Performances in such arenas led Baseball America/Perfect Game to name Forestiere the No. 4 prospect in Arkansas. The son of Lee and Cindy Forestiere, Erik chose Baylor over Arkansas, Arkansas State, Kansas, Ole Miss and Tulane.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Forestiere: "Eric is a very athletic right hander with three quality pitches. He projects very well, and I am particularly pleased he will be able to join his brother Matt, in our program."
Kerr Foster, a right-handed pitcher from Athens High School in Athens, Texas, ranks 37th among Texas high school prospects, according to Baseball America/Perfect Game. As a junior in 2002 under coach Jeremy York, Foster went 8-3 with a 1.66 ERA, striking out 86 in 71.1 innings. At the same time, he hit .270 with eight doubles, four home runs and 22 RBI. Those numbers earned him District 15-4A co-MVP honors in 2002 to go with an all-state selection. Recognition is nothing new for Foster, however; in three years at Athens, he has received three all-district honors (including first-team all-district honors as a sophomore and again as a junior) and three all-Henderson County selections. Foster also has spent summers playing ball with with Houston Kyle Chapman under coach Mike Rutledge. Off the field, he has been involved in National Honor Society, Student Council, Key Club and his church youth group. The son of Steve and Cindye Foster, Kerr chose Baylor over Texas A&M, Texas-Arlington and Southwest Texas.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Foster: "Like Corley, Kerr is a physical right hander with good arm strength. He has a reputation as a hard-nosed tough competitor."
Jeff Mandel could see time both on the mound and in the field for the Bears when he joins the team in 2003. An infielder/pitcher, Mandel was ranked as the No. 6 prospect at the 2002 Perfect Game Southern Top Prospect Showcase. Texas Baseball News named him the No. 13 prospect in the state, while Baseball America/Perfect Game ranked him 27th in Texas and No. 258 in the country. He played summer ball for coach J.R. Salinas with the Houston Raiders, and was also selected for the 2002 Houston Kyle Chapman Winter All-Star Team under coach Mike Rutledge. As a junior in 2002 at Jersey Village High School in Houston under coach Mike Maddox, Mandel was named all-District 16-5A after compiling a 2-2 record with a 4.49 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 39.0 innings. He also earned two varsity letters in basketball. Off the field, Mandel is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, PALS (Peer Assistance Leadership) and the Christian Student Union. He has earned honor roll every semester and is ranked in the top six percent of his class. The son of John and Jill Mandel, Jeff chose Baylor over Arizona, Houston, Rice, Texas A&M and Texas Tech.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Mandel: "Jeff is an exceptional athlete with good speed who should develop into a top dual position player. He has spent most of his baseball life as a switch-hitting infielder, but has emerged in the last year as an outstanding pitching prospect as well."
Xerxes Martin, a left-handed pitcher, will join the Bears out of Highland Park High School in Dallas, Texas. As a junior in 2002, Martin earned all-state honors as his team won the 4A regional championship under coach Lew Kennedy. With six more wins, he will break Zane Carlson's career wins record at Highland Park. Martin has received back-to-back all-district selections and will serve as team captain in 2003. Ranked as the No. 44 prospect in Texas by Baseball America/Perfect Game, Martin has played his summer ball for coach Tommy Hernandez and the Dallas Tigers. The son of E.X and Pat Martin, Xerxes chose Baylor over Wake Forest and Duke.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Martin: "Xerxes is a highly competitive left-hander with good movement and command. More of an off-speed type pitcher, he brings another dimension to the staff."
Mike Pankratz is the lone transfer in the Bears' 2003 class, joins Baylor from San Jacinto Junior College. After redshirting on the Texas A&M football team in 2001, Pankratz transferred to San Jacinto to concentrate on baseball as a first baseman/outfielder, where he played for coach Tom Arrington. During the team's 2002 fall season, he hit .367 (11-for-30) with four home runs and 11 RBI while recording an .867 slugging percentage. While playing at Taylor High School in Katy, Texas, Pankratz earned all-state honors twice and all-district honors three times under coaches Melvin Cerny and Jim Janczak. He was the District 19-5A MVP as a senior. For his career, he hit .433 with 24 home runs and 98 RBI. Pankratz also lettered twice in football and was named to the preseason All-Greater Houston football team in 2000. The son of Greg and Janet Pankratz, Mike picked Baylor over Alabama, Houston, Texas and Texas A&M.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Pankratz: "Mike is a good athlete who has a chance to develop into an outstanding hitter. He is athletic enough to play first base or the outfield and emerged this fall as one of top junior college players in the country."
Infielder Travis Schlichting comes to Baylor from Round Rock High School in Round Rock, Texas, where he played for coach John Langerhans. Baseball America/Perfect Game honored Schlichting as the No. 12 prospect in Texas and the No. 88 prospect in the nation. As a junior in 2002, Schlichting hit .315 with seven doubles, 13 RBI and 26 runs scored en route to all-district honors. During the summer, he played under coach Andrew Prater for the Austin Baseball Club, where he hit .380 with five home runs. Schlichting has earned back-to-back National Honor Roll selections for his work in the classroom. The son of Jay and Victoria Schlichting, Travis chose the Bears over North Carolina State.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Schlichting: "Travis is a physical infielder who will continue to get bigger and stronger. His best tools right now are his arm and his bat. He is athletic enough to play short, but might grow into a corner guy over time."
Cory Van Allen will continue a fine line of products that have come to the Bears out of Sugar Land, Texas, when he leaves Clements High School and coach Herb Espinosa for Baylor. Van Allen went 3-4 in 2002 with a 2.60 ERA, striking out 64 in 51.0 innings. He also hit .431 with seven doubles and 22 RBI while compiling a .997 fielding percentage at first base en route to an all-District 20-5A first-team selection. A high school teammate of current Baylor freshman Ryan LaMotta, Van Allen was ranked the No. 4 prospect in the state by Texas Baseball News and No. 17 in the state (No. 143 in the nation) by Baseball America/Perfect Game. Van Allen also follows in the footsteps of other Houston Kyle Chapman summer ball alums like LaMotta, Mark McCormick and Kyle Reynolds, each of whom played for coach Mike Rutledge. Off the field, he has been involved in PALS (Peer Assistance Leadership). The son of Chuck and Sue Van Allen, Cory chose Baylor over Arizona, Houston, and Texas A&M.
Head Coach Steve Smith on Van Allen: "Cory is a very polished left-hander with good stuff. He has a very projectible build, and I anticipate he will continue to get better and better. We felt Cory was one of the very best left-handers coming out of high school this year."
