Former Alonso pitcher makes national watch list for Gators

Posted Mar 23, 2010 by Aaron Oberlin

Updated Mar 24, 2010 at 12:22 AM

Anyone who follows college baseball knew to keep an eye on University of Florida shortstop Preston Tucker at the beginning of the season. USA Baseball put him on the Preseason Golden Spikes Award Watch List in February.

On March 23, the College Baseball Foundation gave baseball enthusiasts another Gator to follow this season, naming sophomore pitcher Alex Panteliodis to the Pitcher of the Year Watch List.

And rightfully so.

The Tampa transplant (Alonso High School alum) has pitched a handful of times this year, racking up a 1.52 ERA. His 5-0 record is tied for the lead in the Southeastern Conference.

In his last outing on March 19, he threw a career-high 7.1 innings against Mississippi State, allowing two runs on four hits. Panteliodis, however, gave most of the credit to his teammates for the 7-2 win, saying they played great defense.

He’ll take the mound again on March 26 at No. 17 Ole Miss, where he’ll battle another pitcher on the Watch List, junior Drew Pomeranz (3-0, 1.23 ERA).

“This Watch List is full of great pitchers from across the country,” said Landon Holly, a co-chair for the Pitcher of the Year committee. “We worked closely with The College Baseball Blog to make sure we could create a list that was as comprehensive as possible. There are some truly impressive pitchers on this list.”

To win the award, Panteliodis will have to out-hurl Georgia Tech’s Deck McGuire, the only pitcher also on last year’s Watch List. He boasts a 0.87 ERA, with 33 strikeouts in 31 innings so far.

The Pitcher of the Year Award will be presented June 2 at the College Baseball Awards Show in Lubbock, Texas, along with the induction ceremony for the National College Baseball Hall of Fame.

Pitcher of the Year Award Watch List:

Jimmy Nelson, Alabama, SEC
Jake Borup, Arizona State, Pac-10
Mitchell Lambson, Arizona State, Pac-10
Josh Spence, Arizona State, Pac-10
Drew Smyly, Arkansas, SEC
Logan Verrett, Baylor, Big 12
Eric Johnson, California, Pac-10
Asher Wojciechowski, Citadel, Southern
Matt Rein, Coastal Carolina, Big South
Cody Wheeler, Coastal Carolina, Big South
Alex Panteliodis, Florida, SEC
John Gast, Florida State, ACC
Sean Gilmartin, Florida State, ACC
Deck McGuire, Georgia Tech, ACC
Drew Leininger, Indiana, Big 10
Matt Little, Kentucky, SEC
Shawn Teufel, Liberty, Big South
Anthony Ranaudo, LSU, SEC
Neil Holland, Louisville, Big East
Thomas Royse, Louisville, Big East
Matt Harvey, North Carolina, ACC
Francis Brooke, Northwestern, Big 10
Alex Wimmers, Ohio State, Big 10
Jeremy Erben, Oklahoma, Big 12
Aaron Barrett, Ole Miss, SEC
Drew Pomeranz, Ole Miss, SEC
Tyler Anderson, Oregon, Pac-10
Greg Peavey, Oregon State, Pac-10
Tanner Robles, Oregon State, Pac-10
Addison Reed, San Diego State, Mountain West
D.D. Hanks, South Alabama, Sun Belt
Trever Vermeulen, South Dakota State, Summit
Josh Janway, Southeastern La., Southland
Scott Copeland, Southern Miss, Conference USA
Todd McInnis, Southern Miss, Conference USA
Cole Green, Texas, Big 12
Taylor Jungmann, Texas, Big 12
Chance Ruffin, Texas, Big 12
Barret Loux, Texas A&M, Big 12
John Stilson, Texas A&M, Big 12
Daniel Bibona, UC Irvine, Big West
Eric Pettis, UC Irvine, Big West
Mario Hollands, UC Santa Barbara, Big West
Trevor Bauer, UCLA, Pac-10
Gerrit Cole, UCLA, Pac-10
Jason Mitchell, UT Arlington, Southland
Sonny Gray, Vanderbilt, SEC
Danny Hultzen, Virginia, ACC
Jesse Hahn, Virginia Tech, ACC