June 7, 2011
Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina sophomore right-hander Matt Price has been selected in sixth round of the 2011 MLB Draft. Price was the No. 184 overall pick in the draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He is the second current Gamecock player to be selected in this year’s draft. In addition, Price has been named a finalist for the 2011 NCBWA Stopper of the Year award.
Price, an All-SEC selection and also a semifinalist for the Howser Award, owns a 5-3 record and 17 saves for the 2011 season with a 2.25 ERA. This is the second straight year Price has earned all-conference accolades, as he was a second-team choice as a freshman in 2010. Price has struck out 63 batters in 48.0 innings and opponents are hitting only .202 against him.
This year’s finalists include Price, Kyle McMillen of Kent State and Bo Reeder of East Tennessee State, along with Branden Kline of Virginia and Corey Knebel of Texas.
More than 50 of the nation’s top collegiate relief pitchers were included in the selection process for this year’s NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award, beginning with initial preseason nominations by baseball contacts at NCAA Division I schools.
The NCBWA’s All-America Committee will select the winner, with this year’s recipient to be announced Tuesday, June 21, during the 2011 College World Series.
Texas hurler J. Brent Cox won the inaugural Stopper of the Year Award in 2005, with Don Czyz of Kansas claiming the honor in 2006, Luke Prihoda of Sam Houston State winning it in 2007, Georgia’s Joshua Fields topping the field in 2008, San Diego State’s Addison Reed winning it in 2009 and Texas’ Chance Ruffin grabbing the honor last season.
PRICE’S CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
2011 – First-team All-SEC honors as a relief pitcher … Consenus Preseason All-America selection … Picked up two saves in NCAA Regional vs. Georgia Southern and Stetson … Two scoreless innings of relief with just two hits allowed, two strikeouts and a walk in 4-2 loss to Georgia (5/27) … Earned 15th save of the year with 1.1 hitless innings of relief with two strikeouts in 3-2 win at Alabama (5/21) … Earned 14th save of the year with three innings of work in 6-3 win at Alabama (5/20); allowed two runs on five hits with four strikeouts … Picked up win with 2.1 innings of work allowing two runs on two hits with four strikeouts in 6-5 win over Arkansas (5/14) … Two scoreless innings of relief with two strikeouts to earn 13th save of the year in 7-3 win over Auburn (5/1) … One perfect inning of relief with two strikeouts to earn a save in 9-6 win vs. Liberty (4/26) … 2.1 scoreless innings of relief in 13-4 win over Mississippi State, allwoed just two hits and struck out four batters … Two appearances in two wins vs. No. 1 Vanderbilt with a win and a save; 11 of 13 outs recorded were via strikeout … Season-high three scoreless innings with just two hits allowed and a season-high seven strikeouts to pick up the win in 5-3 victory vs. Vanderbilt (4/17) … Struck out all four batters he faced to pick up save in 3-1 win vs. Vanderbilt (4/15) … 1.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts to pick up a save in 2-1 win at Tennessee (4/9) … Struck out lone batter he faced to pick up a save in 2-0 win at Tennessee (4/8) … 1.1 scoreless innings with just one hit allowed and a strikeout in 4-0 win at Tennessee to pick up a save (4/7) … Earned victory with two perfect innings of relief and a pair of strikeouts in 4-3 win over Kentucky in 10 innings (4/2) … Earned seventh save of the year with one scoreless inning of relief in 3-1 win over Kentucky (4/1) … Picked up sixth save of the year with one perfect inning of relief with a pair of strikeouts in 6-4 win over The Citadel (3/30) … Picked up second win of the year with 2.1 scoreless innings out of the pen and just one hit allowed with one strikeout in 4-3 win over Florida (3/27) … Earned fifth save of the year with two scoreless innings with four strikeouts in 8-3 win over Georgia (3/20) … Picked up first victory of the year with one scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts in 2-1 win over Georgia (3/19) … Pitched one scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout in 8-4 win over Wofford (3/16) … Worked 0.2 perfect innings with a strikeout in 5-2 win over CSU Bakersfield (3/12) … Earned fourth save with one scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout in 5-4 win over Clemson (3/8) … Picked up third save of the year with 1.2 perfect innings of relief in 6-3 win vs. Clemson, struck out the side in the top of the ninth as well (3/4) … One scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout in 14-1 win over Furman (3/1) … Earned second save of the year with 0.2 perfect innings with one strikeout in 10-6 win over Southern Illinois (2/25) … Picked up first save of the season with 1.1 hitless innings of relief in 2-1 win over Santa Clara (2/19).
2010 – Freshman All-America selection by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball … Earned second-team All-SEC honors and named to SEC All-Freshman Team … Picked up win 2-1 victory over UCLA that clinched the national championship; hurled 2.2 scoreless innings of relief with just one hit and one walk allowed and struck out three batters (6/29) … Earned victory in 4-3 win over Clemson at College World Series that sent Gamecocks to national championship series (6/26); allowed one run on three hits in 2.1 innings with three strikeouts … Three no-hit innings of relief in 3-2 win over Oklahoma at the College World Series with five strikeouts (6/24) … Hurled 1.2 scoreless innings of relief with four strikeouts in 11-4 win over Arizona State at College World Series (6/22) … One perfect inning of relief to earn a save with a strikeout in 10-9 win over Coastal Carolina in NCAA Super Regional (6/13) … Two scoreless innings of relief to earn a save in 4-3 win over Coastal Carolina in NCAA Super Regional (6/12) … Earned a save with 1.2 scoreless innings of relief and two strikeouts in 9-4 win over The Citadel in NCAA Regional (6/5) … Quality outing out of bullpen despite a loss in 3-1 defeat vs. Auburn at SEC Tournament (5/27); allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits in 3.1 innings with five strikeouts … Closed out 11-6 win vs. Florida with 2.2 innings of work allowing one run on three hits with three strikeouts and two walks (5/22) … Earned a save with a perfect 1.1 innings of relief in 5-3 win at Arkansas (5/16) … Earned a save with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief with a pair of strikeouts in 3-2 win at Arkansas (5/14) … Picked up a save with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts in 13-9 win at Kentucky (5/7) … Key relief performance in 20-15 win over Alabama (5/2); allowed three runs on four hits with four strikeouts in 2.2 innings of work … 1.1 perfect innings of relief with three strikeouts in 5-4 loss to Ole MIss (4/18) … 0.1 scoreless inning of relief with a walk and a strikeout in 9-5 win over Ole Miss (4/18) … Pitched two perfect innings of relief with three strikeouts in 2-0 win at Vanderbilt (4/11) … Pitched 0.2 perfect innings of relief with a strikeout in 3-2 win at Vanderbilt (4/9) … Strong relief performance to earn win vs. Mississippi State (4/4); pitched five scoreless innings and allowed just two hits while striking out six batters in 14-2 victory (4/4) … Hurled a perfect inning of relief and struck out the side in 10-1 win over The Citadel (3/30) … Pitched 1.1 perfect innings of relief with a pair of strikeouts in 2-0 win at Auburn to earn save (3/27) … Pitched two perfect innings of relief with three strikeouts and earned first career save in 4-0 win vs. Tennessee (3/21) … One scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts in 8-4 win over Brown (3/13) … PIcked up second win of the season with four scoreless innings of relief with just one hit and one walk allowed and a career-high eight strikeouts in 7-3 victory over Valparaiso (3/10) … Earned win with one inning of relief with two srikeouts and one run allowed on two hits in 7-5 victory over Clemson (3/6) … Pitched one scoreless inning of relief in 15-0 win over Presbyterian (3/3) …. Hurled one inning of relief and allowed one run on two hits with two strikeouts and a walk in 10-3 win over Duquesne (2/19).
2009 – Received a medical redshirt after sustaining a fractured right wrist at The Citadel on a fielding play that resulted in missing the rest of the season (3/31) … Career-high seven scoreless innings of relief with four strikeouts in 2-1 win over Georgia Southern (3/25) … Two scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts in 6-0 win vs. Davidson (3/17) … Three scoreless innings of relief allowing just three hits in 13-3 win vs. Old Dominion (3/10) … Earned first career win after 2.2 innings of relief, allowed just one run on two hits with three strikeouts in 7-5 victory over Long Beach State (3/7) … Pitched one inning of scoreless relief with one strikeout in 6-0 win vs. Duquesne (2/23) … 2009 SEC Academic Honor Roll member.
