Aug. 14, 2007
CAPE COD, Mass. -- Baylor baseball rising senior relief pitcher Nick Cassavechia was named 2007 Cape Cod League Relief Pitcher of the Year, the premier college baseball summer league announced Monday. Cassavechia, a semifinalist for the 2007 NCBWA National Stopper of the Year Award, is the second Baylor closer to earn the award (Zane Carlson, 2002).
In his second summer with Yarmouth-Dennis, Cassavechia has posted a 1-1 record with 11 saves and a 1.07 ERA in 16 appearances. He has 24 strikeouts against only three walks in 25.1 innings and leads the Cape Cod League in saves. Cassavechia was named to the Cape Cod League All-Star Game earlier this season and earned the victory in that game.
Cassavechia also earned the victory in Yarmouth-Dennis' 4-3 win over Chatham in the first game of a best-of-three playoff series last week. He then pitched a perfect ninth inning to complete Y-D's 4-0 shutout of Chatham in the second game to reach the championship series against Falmouth. Yarmouth-Dennis won the first game of that series 8-2 Monday night; the series' second game is scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. CDT.
A product of St. Mark's High School in Dallas, Texas, Cassavechia was named second-team All-Big 12 Conference by the Waco Tribune-Herald and honorable mention all-league by the coaches last spring. He was 6-2 with a 3.12 ERA and 11 saves in 2007, recording 72 strikeouts against 20 walks in 52.0 innings. Cassavechia established a Baylor record for strikeouts in relief and joined Carlson as the only Baylor closers to record eight-plus saves in multiple seasons.
Cassavechia enters the 2008 season tied with Abe Woody for second on Baylor's career saves list with 19. He and Woody also are tied for second on Baylor's career Big 12 saves list with eight. Carlson holds both Baylor career saves records with 37 total and 17 in Big 12 play.
NOTES: Two former Baylor baseball players were mentioned in Baseball America's Best Tools edition, released this week. Second baseman Kevin Russo (Tampa Yankees) and third baseman Michael Griffin (Sarasota Reds) were selected as the best defensive players at the respective positions in the Class A Florida State League. Griffin has since been promoted to the Double A Chattanooga Lookouts.
