* 2B Jess Bechard (Brantford, Ont.) earned a spot on the Kent State Golden Flashes all-time team, celebrating 100 years of baseball along with the likes of major leaguers C Thurman Munson and former Cy Young award winner Steve Stone. .... 2014 Canadians in the Minors … Canadians in College 2015 Canadian draft list Letters of Intent

 

By Bob Elliott Thurman Munson, Steve Stone, John Van Benschoten and Jess Bechard now all belong in the same sentence.

After all, they play for the same team.

Munson, the late New York Yankees catcher and captain during the Billy Martin/Reggie Jackson days, Van Benschoten, a former first round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2001 and Bechard all most certainly belong in the same breath after being named to the Kent State Golden Flashes all-time team.

Bechard practiced for hours at Cockshutt Park in Brantford before heading off to school at Washington at Masillon, Ohio. He was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 41st round in 1995 and went to Kent State for his degree.

The infielder led all Kent State hitters in doubles with 83 doubles, was tied for second with 209 runs scored with 490 total bases. Kent State celebrated its 100 years of ballot based on 2,660 votes by fans.

The all-time team was honored in May and trading card sets distributed to the first 300 fans at the commemorative game.

The Kent State baseball All-Time team includes: Pitcher - Andrew Chafin (Selected 43rd over-all by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2011, making three appearances with the Diamondbacks this season.

Pitcher - Andy Sonnanstine. (Chosen in the 13th round of the 2004 draft by the Tampa Bay Rays, pitched five seasons with the Rays going 28-31 in 132 games, making 80 starts.)

Pitcher - David Starn (Chosen in the 7th round by the Atlanta Braves in 2012.)

Pitcher - Steve Stone (Selected in the fourth round in 1969 by the San Francisco Giants, winning 107 games in 11 years for the Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, the Giants and the Baltimore Orioles, where he won the 1980 Cy Young award.)

Catcher - Thurman Munson (First round pick, 4th pick over-all in 1968 by the New York Yankees, who played 11 years before his career was cut short by a place crash.)

First Base - Greg Rohan. (Chosen in 21st round in 2009 by the Chicago Cubs.)

Second Base - Jess Bechard  (Besides leading all Kent hitters in doubles, tying for second in runs and having the third most total bases, he was fourth in hits, 304; fifth in average .3698, sixth in RBIs, 181 and at-bats, 822).

Shortstop - Jimmy Rider (Chosen in the 26th round by the Pirates in 2012)

Third Base - Andrew Davis (Selected in the 12th round by the San Francisco Giants in 2007)

Infield - Rich Rollins (Signed as a free agent in 1970 by the Washington Senators, play 10 years in the majors with the Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers).

Outfield - Evan Campbell (Had 52 doubles, 15 triples, 12 homers, 160 RBIs while hitting for a .313 average in four years with an .827 OPS) in four years at Kent)

Outfield - Randy Bockus (Selected in the 34th rouns by the Giants in 1984, played parts of four seasons with the Giants and Giants)

Utility - John VanBenschoten (First round pick, 8th over-all by the Pirates in 2001, played three seasons with the Pirates.)

Head Coach- Scott Stricklin (Coach 2005-2013)

 

More good stuff on Quantrill: Stanford Cardinal RHP Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) still doesn’t happen until June of 2016.

The Ontario Terriers grad was named the No. 1 prospect in the Coastal Plain summer college league by Baseball America and Perfect Game Scouting Service has him ranked ahead of the juniors who are eligible to be drafted next June.

And now PG has its scouting report on Quantrill, drafted in the 26th round by New York Yankees scout Denis Boucher (Laval, Que.) pitched with the Morehead City (NC) Marlins.

Quantrill walked nine and struck out 33 in 23 innings going 3-0 with a 1.59 ERA in four starts.

Perfect Game Coastal Plain prospect reports BEST TOOLS Best breaking stuff: Cal Quantrill, Morehead City Marlins

TOP 20 PROSPECTS 1. Cal Quantrill, rhp, Morehead City Marlins (Stanford/SO in 2015) After putting together an impressive freshman campaign for the Cardinal, Quantrill continued his impressive ways this summer with a strong showing for Morehead City. Quantrill, an athletic 6-foot-3, 185-pounder, tallied a 1.59 ERA in four starts and 22 2/3 innings of work, while also striking out 33 and walking just nine batters. He showed a mature approach on the mound this past summer and threw three plus pitches for strikes. Quantrill sat in the low-90s with his fastball and showed the ability to get into the mid-90s as well. His changeup was a plus offering, and his breaking ball was very impressive as well. Several coaches in the league said Quantrill clearly had the best pitchability of anyone.

 

HOFer Anholt: Matthew Gourlie has a real good read on Ryan Anholt (Moose, Jaw, Sask.) being inducted into the Northwestern State University Demons Hall of Fame in Natchitoches, La.

Anholt pulled off a rare double in his two years at NSU. A 1998 All-American shortstop (third-team, American Baseball Coaches Association), he was a 1999 Academic All-American (third team).

He was the 1998 Southland Conference Newcomer and Player of the Year under coach John Cohen, when he set a single-season school hits record (88) and batted .417 as a junior college transfer leading NSU to the Southland title. The Demons were 78-41 in his two seasons as he posted a career .368 batting average, fourth all-time in Demon history.

Anholt played with the Sask Selects, the Moose Jaw Cardinals, won the nationals in 1994, played for the Canadian national junior team, attended the National Baseball Institute and spent a year at a New Mexico JUCO.

He still holds the NSU record for hits in a season (88) and total bases (155) in 1998. He hit .417 (fourth-best all-time) and had 15 home runs (second). His 64 RBIs are the second most in a season.

The following season he hit 62 RBIs, third-most in a season.

Anholt 1998 with the Canadian national team which travelled to Nicaragua where they advanced to the world championships in Italy.

He was drafted in the 74th round by the New York Yankees in 1994 and two years later he was in the 57th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

After one season of independent league with the Richmond Roosters and LondonWerewolves  in the Frontier League in 2000, he represented Canada at the Olympic qualifiers in Panama in 2000.

Also inducted were former USC head football coach Ed Orgeron, two-time Olympian triple jumper Kenta Bell, former Cincinnati Bengals corner back Adrian Hardy, plus shot put champion Peggy Lewis, and linebacker Ed Moses.