Oregon State Baseball Announces 11 Signings

First baseman Michael Wesner and outfielder Doug Kincaid are both staying home in Oregon to play ball for the Beavers.

OSU head coach Pat Casey Photo courtesy: OSU Athletics

CORVALLIS, Ore. - Oregon State baseball head coach Pat Casey announced Wednesday that 11 student-athletes have signed national letters of intent to join the Beavers.

The highly heralded class includes four players ranked in Baseball America’s top 100 high school players nationally.

B.J. Hermsen, a right-handed pitcher from Masonville, Iowa, is ranked 16th, followed by infielder Niko Vasquez of Las Vegas (No. 49) and outfielders Brent Warren of Robins, Iowa (73rd) and Ryan Gorton of Tigard, Ore. (93rd).

Also signing letters Wednesday were infielder Carter Bell (Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada), infielder/outfielder Kyle Beverley (Midvale, Utah), first baseman Michael Wesner (Lake Oswego, Ore.) and outfielder Doug Kincaid (Portland, Ore.).

Three junior college players also signed with the Beavers Wednesday, including outfielder Logan Lotti from Sierra College, pitcher James Nygren, who is with Western Nevada and is a native of Klamath Falls, Ore., and outfielder Devin Shepherd, who will join the Beavers from Southern Nevada.

“Everybody likes their recruiting class because they recruited them,” Casey said. “They like them because they recruited them. Everyone looks for certain things and we felt like we were going to look more at the offensive end of it. I believe we have gotten some kids who could have gone and played at any place. We have some great balance in this class.”

Bell comes to Oregon State as the No. 204 high school prospect according to Baseball America. Able to play shortstop and third base, he played for the Canadian Junior National Team in 2007 as well as the Parksville Royals of the British Columbia Premier Baseball League, where he hit .411 with five doubles, two home runs and 19 runs batted in.

“Carter is a kid that we really like and that we think can play anywhere in the infield,” Casey said. “We think he’s going to develop into a really good player here. He fits into our style of game.”

Beverley is a three-star infielder/outfielder, according to Baseball America, and is ranked No. 187 nationally among high school players by the publication. He earned First-Team All-State his junior year after posting a state-best 11 home runs while also finishing with a 1.083 slugging percentage. He also earned MVP honors of the state tournament after hitting five home runs and posting 17 RBI.

“He is a kid that can play anywhere in the infield or outfield,” Casey said. “He’s more of a third baseman-type player. We really like his bat. He has a lot of offensive potential and is a good runner. He came from the same school as (current OSU pitcher Tanner) Robles so we really liked him and have seen him play a lot.”

Gorton will stay close to home when coming to Corvallis. The outfielder/right-handed pitcher is a three-star Baseball America recruit and is ranked 93rd nationally by the publication. He batted .545 his junior season at Tigard and is ranked the No. 1 player among Oregon’s top 50 2008 high school players by BaseballNorthwest.com.

“Ryan is off the chart,” Casey said. “It’s going to be fun and exciting to try and figure out where he’s going to play. I think he’s going to be a really good college player.”

Hermsen is a highly-touted recruited out of West Delaware High School in Masonville, Iowa. He is ranked 28th by Baseball America and 16th by perfectgame.com. Hermsen issued just 10 walks in 66 2/3 innings his junior season, which ties him for eighth-best in state of Iowa history. He was named First-Team All-State his junior year after going 8-0 with a 1.50 ERA.

“B.J. was the only right handed high school pitcher that we recruited,” Casey said. “He’s ranked as one of the top pitching prospects in the country. He has great size and it a tremendous athlete. He plays basketball and football. We’re really excited about him.”

Kincaid is another in-state player who has signed with the Beavers. He is ranked second in the state of Oregon among high school players by BaseballNorthwest.com and is the No. 49 rated outfielder nationally by perfectgame.com.

“Doug Kincaid is a guy that’s had some offensive success,” Casey said. “I’m excited to see him sign with Oregon State.”

Lotti is a junior college transfer who will come to Oregon State after playing 31 games for Sierra College in 2007. He batted .308 with 10 doubles, six home runs and 33 RBI for the school and helped guide Sierra to a school-record-tying 35 wins. He went to Sierra after lettering for two seasons at Pleasant Valley High School in Chico, Calif. Lotti batted .467 with seven home runs and 31 RBI his senior season at Pleasant Valley.

“Logan is an outfielder that can really hit,” Casey said. “He went to the same junior college as (current OSU senior outfielder) Chris Hopkins and can really throw.”

Nygren, like Lotti, is a junior college transfer for the Beavers who will come to the program from Western Nevada. Nygren, however, is an Oregon native having starred at Henley High School in Klamath Falls. He was named to the Oregon 4A All-State Second Team as a right-handed pitcher in 2007.

“James Nygren is a guy that (assistant coach) Marty (Lees) went to see throw and was excited to see that his velocity had jumped,” Casey said. “We think that he can pitch here with the guys that we have. Everyone really likes his pitching ability and his size. Everyone really likes him.”

Shepherd is a highly-touted outfielder who was a fifth-round selection out of Oxnard High School (Agoura Hills, Calif.) by Minnesota, but signed with Oklahoma. He played in 34 games for Oklahoma in 2007, batting .235 with one home run before transferring to Southern Nevada. In four years at Oxnard, he batted .485 with 29 home runs and 103 RBI. He hit .407 with seven home runs, 30 RBI and 25 stolen bases to earn all-state honors his senior season.

“Devin was one of the best offensive high school players coming out of high school a few years ago,” Casey said. “He went to Oklahoma and is now at Southern Nevada. We’re very fortunate go get him. He’s one of those guys who you’re thrilled about having and can hit in the middle of your order.”

Vasquez is a highly-touted infielder at Durango High School in Las Vegas. A four-star prospect according to Baseball America, he is rated No. 49 nationally by the publication and is ranked as the ninth-best high school infielder by perfectgame.com. He earned Nevada 4A First-Team All-State honors his junior year after batting .464 with six home runs and 33 RBI.

“Niko is an offensive player that can play anywhere in the infield,” Casey said. “He has played at a very high level in many showcases and has played very well. He’s a very good player.”

Warren comes to Oregon State as a four-star prospect, according to Baseball America. He is ranked 73rd among the nation’s top 300 high school players, according to the publication, and is the No. 9 outfielder on perfectgame.com.

“He’s a guy that I’m really excited about,” Casey said. “He’s a very good athlete and can really run for a big guy. I’m excited about his upside and what he’s going to bring to our club. Down the road he’s going to put on some strength. I think Brent could have gone anywhere in the country.”

Wesner is another in-state player to sign with the Beavers. A native of Lake Oswego, he was named to the Three Rivers Conference First-Team in 2007. He was also named the MVP of the Northwest Championship.

“Mike Wesner, he’s a guy we think can really hit,” Casey said. “He’s a great athlete. He’s going to have great skill coming in. I really think he’s going to be an offensive guy. We’re always looking for guys who we think can produce and produce early.”

Source: OSU Athletics

Adding comments to these stories has been disabled. View the current sports stories Salem-News Sports