Pomeranz a Golden Spikes semifinalist

Published 12:06 am Wednesday, June 2, 2010

OXFORD — Junior left-hander Drew Pomeranz was named one of 30 semifinalists for the 2010 Golden Spikes Award honoring the nation’s top collegiate baseball player, USA Baseball announced on Tuesday.

This year’s award will mark the 33rd consecutive year that the award has been presented to the nation’s top amateur baseball player.

The list will be narrowed down to five finalists on Tuesday, June 8, before the announcement of this year’s winner on July 13.

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Pomeranz, who was named the Southeastern Conference Pitcher of the Year last week, has been a dominant force for the Rebels this season as he has compiled an 8-2 record in 2010.

The southpaw leads the Southeastern Conference in strikeouts (134), opposing batting average (.190) and in ERA (2.21).

He also garnered first team All-SEC honors last week, the league office announced prior to the SEC Tournament.

With his seven strikeouts against South Carolina in the opening round of the SEC tournament, Pomeranz hit the 339 strikeout mark for his career, taking over the top spot on the career strikeout list at Ole Miss and passing Lance Lynn (332). Pomeranz needs 12 more strikeouts to hit the top spot for strikeouts in a season set by Lynn in 2008.

A preseason All-America selection, Pomeranz was tabbed by Baseball America as the Midseason Player and Pitcher of the Year and is also a semi-finalist for the Dick Howser Award in addition to being named a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award.

Last week, the junior was also named the 2010 recipient of the Cellular South Ferriss Award honoring the top collegiate baseball player in Mississippi. The award is named after former Delta State head coach and Boston Red Sox Hall of Famer “Boo” Ferriss.