On Tuesday, the Virginia baseball team announced the first additions to a highly-touted 2003 recruiting class in the first year under coach Brian O'Connor.
The Virginia coaching staff has succeeded in signing 10 high school seniors during the national letter of intent early signing period, a group which has received early acknowledgement as one of the top classes in the nation.
According to Baseball America, the Cavaliers have six players in the group of 10 who rank among the top 300 prospects in the country. The recruiting Web site TeamOneBaseball.com has the 2003 Virginia class ranked even higher, in the top 20 nationally, with four players in the top 200.
O'Connor has established a strong precedent in both recruiting and coaching excellence since being named head coach in July 2003. Coming from the position of assistant coach at Notre Dame, where he developed the reputation as an incredible recruiting force and helped the Fighting Irish land the top recruiting class in the nation for 2001, O'Connor brings a strong resume to Virginia.
"This is an outstanding class," O'Connor said in a press release about the early signing period. "Our coaching staff is ecstatic about the talent that these prospects will be bringing to the University of Virginia. This class will set a precedent for future recruiting classes here at U.Va."
Included in the group are five pitchers, a possible starting catcher and a variety of athletic position players, several of whom could make an impact on Cavalier baseball immediately upon their enrollment at Virginia in the fall of 2004.
Sean Doolittle and Pat McAnaney are two top left-handed pitchers who could immediately improve the Cavalier staff under new pitching coach Karl Kuhn. Doolittle is the 63rd ranked prospect in the nation by TeamOneBaseball.com and in his junior year led the team to the state championship with 23 strikeouts and zero walks in nine innings in the state finals.
"Sean can have an immediate impact in our program as a legitimate two-way player," O'Connor said. "Anytime you can attract a player who can improve the program in more than one area, you have something special."
The recruiting class is filled with student-athletes, the type of recruit that has been the focus of O'Connor in his short tenure.
"I'm very passionate about developing student-athletes while creating an exciting, winning environment," O'Connor said after the announcement of his new position last summer.
With the outstanding Virginia academics, in addition to the up-and-coming baseball program under the direction of a new coaching staff, these types of players are a perfect fit to wear the Cavalier blue and orange.
In commenting on their recruitment and decision to sign with Virginia, every recruit spoke of excitement for not only of the excellent opportunities as a player, but also of the education that they will receive as a student.
"My decision to attend the University of Virginia was to be a part of the new direction the baseball program is taking to move it into national prominence," Brandon Guyer said, a third base recruit from Herndon High School in Northern Virginia. "This, coupled with the newly renovated stadium, challenging ACC schedule andoverall great tradition of U.Va. will provide me with tools to succeed both as a baseball player and an individual."
For the Cavaliers, this recruiting class could not enter at a better time. The recent chapters in Cavalier baseball history have been marked by a struggle to maintain consistency. With the prospect of the loss of a large portion of the team in the next two seasons, the Virginia coaching staff has positioned a number of players ready-in-wait to lead the team to national success in the future.
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