| PING!BASEBALL SPOTLIGHT PLAYER
Mike Ford & Mario
Hollands
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos |
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The Gauchos are looking to make their move
this year in the über competitive Big West Conference.
This, despite having what could arguably be on of the toughest
schedules in collegiate baseball. After non-conference games
against the likes of UCLA, Pepperdine, and Southern California,
the Gauchos must tackle conference foes UC-Irvine, Cal St.
Fullerton, Long Beach St. and UC-Riverside, all of whom earned
regional berths last year (with Fullerton and Irvine reaching
the College World Series).  But
an overall balanced team, led by a pair of talented underclassmen
on the mound, have the optimistic Gauchos thinking about post-season
play themselves. With sophomore pitcher Mike Ford, and red-shirt
freshman Mario Hollands leading the way, the future looks
bright for the Gauchos.
Phoenix native Mike Ford passed on offers
from several Arizona universities to become a Gaucho. At 6
feet 3 inches tall, Ford has a fastball in the low 90’s,
and has developed a true change-up to keep batters on their
toes. As a freshman, he led UCSB in strikeouts (the first
since Barry Zito did so in 1997), sending 68 batters back
to the bench empty handed in 82 innings pitched. In fact,
he led all Big West freshman hurlers in K’s. Ford was
recently named to the 2008 Brooks Pre-Season Watch List after
his showed more than flashes of greatness while winning a
pair of games in 17 appearances (13 starts) his debut season
with a 5.05 ERA. With performances such as taking a no-hitter
into the 7th inning against TCU in Fort Worth, and striking
out 10 against Long Beach St., it’s no wonder why the
Gauchos are bullish on Ford.
Berkeley native lefty Mario Hollands is another
tall drink of water, standing at 6’ 5” with an
intimidating fastball that’s approaching the mid-90’s
with heavy rotation.  He
possesses a deceptive Dontrelle Willis-esque delivery that
only adds to his uniqueness. The business economic major was
named one of “The Nation’s Best 50 Pitchers to
Watch” by studentsport.com coming out of high school
and was listed as the number five prospect from the Alaska
League list this summer after going 3-1 in seven starts with
a 3.47 ERA for the Peninsula Oilers. In 33.1 innings pitched,
Hollands allowed a scant 22 hits, while striking out 25 while
pitching in "The Last Frontier". The red-shirt freshman
is projected to be the Gaucho’s Saturday starter.
Gaucho Head Coach Bob Brontsema said of his
freshman ace, "Mario has great potential that we think
he will display over the course of this year and beyond. He,
along with a handful of our young players, make the future
very bright for UCSB baseball.”
Ford and Hollands will be keys to the Gauchos’
success this season. The underclassmen will be counted on
to lead a team that is full of potential, in the always tough
Big West. If these two Young Guns produced as expected, look
for the Gauchos to fight for an upper-half finish in the Big
West, and a little post-season baseball action.
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