University of Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee Adds Thirteen Baseball Signees for 2006 Season
November 23, 2004 | Baseball
Nov. 23, 2004
Tennessee head baseball coach Rod Delmonico announced Tuesday that 13 players have signed national letters of intent to join the Volunteers for the 2006 season. Six pitchers and seven position players are among Tennessee's talented crop of signees.
"I believe this group of signees has the potential to make a big impact on our program," Delmonico said. "We signed a really strong mix of pitchers and position players, many of whom have the potential to make immediate contributions to our success."
Tennessee's talented crop of signees includes six players who hail from the Volunteer State, eight high-school prospects and five junior college players. All five juco transfers have been previously drafted by Major League franchises. Right-handed pitcher Josh Lindblom is rated as the top overall prospect in the state of Indiana by Baseball America, and the same publication lists Ryan Jones as the No. 1 outfielder in the state of Tennessee.
Included among the host of incoming pitchers are Patrick Caldwell (Buckeye, Az./Yavapai College), Aaron Everett (Loudon/Loudon HS), Lindblom (West Lafayette, Ind./William Henry Harrison HS), Bobby Mosebach (West Palm Beach, Fla./Hillsborough Community College), Ryne Simpson (Lookout Mountain/The Baylor School) and Ryan Tabor (Las Vegas, Nev./Community College of Southern Nevada).
The Vols' position-player signees include Brian Bibee (Knoxville/The Webb School), Cody Brown (Knoxville/Farragut HS), Ryan Castellanos (Las Vegas, Nev./Community College of Southern Nevada), Jarred Frazier (Shelbyville, Tenn./Shelbyville Central HS), Jones (Chattanooga/Ooltewah HS), Michael Moore (Charlotte, N.C./Providence HS) and Chris Siewert (Henderson, Nev./Community College of Southern Nevada).
Bibee is an outfielder whose father, Hal Sr. (1973-75), and older brother, Hal Jr. (1999-2002), both played baseball at Tennessee. Rocky Top's newest Bibee boasted a .320 batting average at The Webb School and helped lead the regional-champion Spartans to a runner-up finish in the Tennessee state tournament as a sophomore in 2003.
Brown is also a local product who attends Farragut High School. The corner infielder helped guide the Admirals to back-to-back state titles in 2003 and 2004 while sporting a solid .421 average at the plate.
Castellanos, a corner infielder from Las Vegas, currently plays for the Community College of Southern Nevada. As a senior at Silverado High School in 2003, Castellanos helped his team attain a ranking of No. 9 in the nation. He was drafted by Arizona in the 45th round in 2004.
Frazier is a middle infielder at Shelbyville Central High School. A starter since his freshman year, he batted .318, .368 and .346 in each of the last three seasons. As a sophomore, he was voted team MVP and named to the All-District 8-AAA team. He also earned All-Region recognition as a junior.
Jones, an outfielder at Ooltewah High School, has been twice named to the Chattanooga Times-Free Press "Best of the Preps" list and was ranked as the No. 153 overall prospect in the nation by Baseball America. He is a three-time All-District honoree and his team claimed district titles during his sophomore and junior years.
Moore is a standout catcher at Providence High School who boasts a .320 batting average. He helped his team claim a conference tournament title as a junior.
Siewert, a shortstop at the Community College of Southern Nevada, boasts a .312 average at the plate for the Coyotes. He also batted .410 in high school, and was drafted by Houston in the 45th round in 2004.
Caldwell is a left-hander at Yavapai College in Prescott, Az., who was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 22nd round in 2004. He posted a 4-1 record for the Roughriders in 2003 and also hit three home runs and knocked in 28 RBI.
Everett is a right-handed pitcher who has earned All-District, All-Region and All-East Tennessee honors while compiling a 25-6 record with a 1.01 ERA at Loudon High School. Baseball America lists Everett as the fifth-best pitching prospect in the state of Tennessee.
Lindblom, a 6-4, 220-pound right-handed pitcher from William Henry Harrison High School in West Lafayette, Ind., was rated by Baseball America as the No. 94-ranked overall prospect in the nation and the 14th best prospect at the elite Area Code Games.
Mosebach is a right-handed pitcher who attends Hillsborough Community College in Tampa, Fla. His 1.21 ERA and 8-3 record garnered him first-team All-Conference and second-team All-State recognition. Mosebach was a 12th-round selection of the Expos in 2004.
Simpson is a right-handed pitcher at The Baylor School in Chattanooga. He helped lead the Raiders to a 2003 state championship and a tournament appearance last season. Simpson owns a .370 average at the plate and an ERA of 1.90 on the mound.
Tabor is the third player in this signing class from the Community College of Southern Nevada (fellow signees Castellanos and Siewert and current UT pitcher Jabe Beard also played there). He is a left-handed pitcher who notched a 6-4 record, with a 2.90 ERA, for the Coyotes. Tabor was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 24th round in 2004. At Green Valley High School in Henderson, Nev., he was a three-time All-Southern Nevada first-team selection.
