Rutledge, May Earn Preseason Honors
1/21/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Jan. 21, 2009
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Alabama sophomore shortstop Josh Rutledge and junior infielder/outfielder Brandon May picked up more preseason honors Wednesday afternoon.
Rutledge was a first-team All-SEC pick by Rivals.com while May was named to the 2009 Recruiting Closer Preseason All-American Team.
Rutledge is coming off a stellar freshman season that earned him freshman All-America and All-SEC honors. He hit .369 (99 for 268) last year to become the second freshman in school history to lead the Tide in hitting, joining David Magadan, who turned in a UA freshman record .389 batting average in 1981. Rutledge also led the team in hits (99), runs scored (62), multi-hit games (31) and stolen bases (16). He wrapped up the regular season with an SEC-leading 91 hits and led the league with 51 hits in 30 conference games. His .406 SEC batting average was second to South Carolina's Justin Smaok, a first-round draft pick of the Texas Rangers.
May has played in 112 games in his UA career and earned 104 starts. He has played in 87 consecutive games, the longest active streak on the team. He owns a career .328 (131 for 400) batting average with nine home runs and 63 RBI. He is expected to hit in the middle of a talented Alabama lineup this spring and has worked at both corner infield and outfield positions. He was a 2008 first-team All-SEC selection after hitting .365 (92 for 252) with nine home runs and 50 RBI in 62 games. He led the Tide with four, four-hit games, 18 doubles and 31 multi-hit games as a sophomore.
Alabama will open the 2009 season with a three-game series against Southeast Missouri State, beginning Friday, Feb. 20 at 6:35 p.m. at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide will open practice for the 2009 season on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009.
