Complete Notes
Four American Athletic baseball teams concluded their seasons in NCAA regional action to wrap up the 2018 slate. The league’s four selections (UConn, ECU, Houston and USF) were the most for the conference since 2015, and tied for the fourth-most bids (with the Big Ten and Pac-12) among the 31 NCAA Division I conferences.
The American ended the season with a .627 winning percentage against nonconference opponents. The league’s 177-105-1 nonconference record finished top five in the nation.
The American wrapped up the season with eight of its nine member teams in the top 100 of the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index this year. The American is one of four conferences (with the ACC, Pac-12 and SEC) to boast three top-30 RPI teams: ECU at No. 15, UConn at No. 20 and USF at No. 28.
Wichita State All-America third baseman Alec Bohm and USF southpaw Shane McClanahan were each selected in the First Round of the Major League Baseball Draft. Bohm was the third overall pick in the draft and selected by the Philadelphia Phillies, while McClanahan was the 31st overall pick and selected by the Tampa Bay Rays. Bohm, who led The American in runs scored (57) and home runs (16), becomes the highest player drafted in conference history.
Furthermore, the two first-round picks are the most in American Athletic Conference history, as the league has seen at least one of its players get selected in the MLB first round in each of the past four seasons. The American’s two first-round selections are the fourth-most among the 31 NCAA Division I conferences.
Bohm and McClanahan highlighted the group of 38 student-athletes drafted by the MLB in 2018. The 38 selections set a conference record, bettering last year's total of 26. All nine conference teams were represented in the draft, as Wichita State led the way with 10 picks, good for tying the third-most selections (with North Carolina and South Carolina) among all college programs this year. The Shockers' 10 MLB picks are also the most selected from an American Athletic Conference team in a single year. This year's conference picks consisted of 22 pitchers and 16 position players. The American has seen 130 of its players get drafted by an MLB team in its five-year span.
After winning its second American Athletic Conference baseball title, ECU became the third conference team to host an NCAA regional, joining Houston and Louisville on the list. A conference team has hosted a regional in four of the past five seasons, including when Houston was a host last year. Houston (2017 and 2015) and Louisville (2014) are the two other American Athletic Conference teams to have hosted a regional over the league’s five-year span.
The 2018 season proved to be a historical one with 19 league records falling. The statistical categories consisted of 10 all-time season and 10 individual career records. Player of the Year Bryant Packard of ECU had at least one hit in a record 32-consecutive games on the way to setting the league’s single-season batting average record at .406. USF All-America third baseman David Villar set a conference record with 24 doubles.
The 2018 Bulls’ offense made their mark in The American’s history book, setting season records in batting average (.296), slugging percentage (.464), doubles (147) and total bases (951). UCF also set conference records with 109 stolen bases and an all-time low opponent batting average (.216). The Bulls’ doubles finished the year ranked No. 2 in the nation, while the Knights’ stolen bases ranked ninth.
Packard’s lifetime .360 batting average ranks at the top of the list in the conferecence’s all-time career records. Second team all-conference designated hitter Joe Davis of Houston set a trio of conference career records through his three years with the Cougars. His 229 hits, 35 home runs and 382 total bases are each good for leading the conference. Villar additionally earned his spot on the career records list with 51 doubles. Teammate McClanahan held his batters faced to a conference career-low .184 batting average. Houston lefty Trey Cumbie led the conference with two shutouts and recorded two more complete games in 2018 on the way to breaking both of those career marks (six complete games, four shutouts). Cincinnati’s Jared Yoakam ended his career with 97 appearances for the most trips to the hill in conference history. UCF’s Rylan Thomas carried an eight-game on-base streak from 2017 into his sophomore season to extend it to a conference record 56-game streak. UConn’s Zac Susi concluded the year in historical fashion, reaching base safely in 49-straight games to capture the single-season record.
Ten American Athletic Conference baseball players earned All-America recognition from ABCA/Rawlings, Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, CoSIDA, D1Baseball.com, the NCBWA and Perfect Game. Wichita State’s Bohm and Liam Eddy, UConn’s Mason Feole, P.J. Poulin, Isaac Feldstein and Christian Fedko, ECU’s Packard, Chris Holba and Alec Burleson and USF’s Villar each picked up awards. Packard led the group with seven All-America nods.