Miami Ohio University Athletics
Coach Hayden Announces Signing of Four to NLIs
11/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
OXFORD, Ohio - The Miami University baseball team and head coach Danny Hayden are happy to announce the signing of four student-athletes to National Letters of Intent, all of whom will join the RedHawks for the 2016-17 season.
The class features catcher/outfielder Cal Elvers (Springfield, Ill.), right-handed pitcher/catcher Grant Hartwig (Novi, Mich.), third baseman/shortstop Landon Stephens (Hamilton, Ohio) and shortstop Carlos Texidor (Guayama, Puerto Rico). Texidor comes in with two years of eligibility following his time at Kaskaskia Junior College.
Biographical information, stats and position rankings are courtesy of PrepBaseballReport.com. Texidor's information comes from the Kaskaskia College athletics website.
THE SIGNEES
CAL ELVERS
C/OF
6-1/175
Springfield, Ill./Sacred Heart-Griffin
ABOUT ELVERS: Attends Sacred Heart-Griffin High School ââ'¬Â¦ ranked No. 41 prospect in the state of Illinois, as well as the No. 5 catcher.
COACH HAYDEN ON ELVERS: "Cal is a really great catcher. We think he's going to be able to come in and compete with the guys we have right away. But, he is also athletic enough that he can play the outfield really well too. So, he is definitely a guy we feel can come in and push guys to get on the field. At either position, I feel like he will be an above average baseball player early and evolve into one of the really good ones."
GRANT HARTWIG
RHP/C
6-3/215
Novi, Mich./Detroit Central Catholic
ABOUT HARTWIG: Attends Detroit Catholic Central ââ'¬Â¦ No. 21 prospect overall in Michigan ââ'¬Â¦ No. 13 amongst pitchers ââ'¬Â¦ 84-86 fastball.
COACH HAYDEN ON HARTWIG: "He is a big arm, big body and big frame. He is going to come in and be a competitive pitcher who already has a great work ethic. He is a great team guy and his personality is going to lend itself really well to our guys. If he comes in here and works and makes that jump, he is going to be an elite college pitcher. He already has the tools to come in right away and be successful. I am really excited for his potential on the mound."
LANDON STEPHENS
3B/SS
6-1/200
Hamilton, Ohio/Hamilton
ABOUT STEPHENS: 6-foot-1, 200-pound strong build. In the infield he projects as a corner guy. Fields the ball out in front of his body with a good, clean exchange. Throws from a short, high-3/4 slot with 79 mph arm strength across the diamond. Right-handed hitter with a little toe tap to load. Starts with his hands high and has strength in his swing and power to pull side. Registered top exit velocity of an impressive 96 mph and ran a 7.16-60 (PrepBaseballReport.com).
COACH HAYDEN ON STEPHENS: "Landon plays some really great third base and he is athletic enough to play several different spots on the field for us. He is going to grow into some power throughout college. He is going to be a real power bat that can play some really good defense at third base and really add a lot to the team on both sides of the ball."
CARLOS TEXIDOR
SS
5-8/155
Guayama, Puerto Rico/Kaskaskia JC
ABOUT TEXIDOR: Currently attends Kaskaskia Junior College ââ'¬Â¦ played 47 games in the 2014-15 season ââ'¬Â¦ collected 29 runs and 12 RBI ââ'¬Â¦ also swiped 11 bases ââ'¬Â¦ Texidor will come in as a junior eligibility-wise.
COACH HAYDEN ON TEXIDOR: "Lockdown shortstopââ'¬Â¦he's a junior college transfer and we are planning on having him come in and play right away. He is a solid hitter and he will give us really good at bats. He runs really well and he will be someone that potentially hits at the top of the order. More than anything, he'll be a defensive guy at shortstop and we are very excited to have him.
