GLENS FALLS’ DAVIS NAMED NYCBL PITCHER OF THE YEAR

Courtesy of John McGraw, NYCBL Media Relations

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The New York Collegiate Baseball League announced today that Shane Davis (Canisius), of the Glens Falls Golden Eagles, has been chosen as the 2008 NYCBL Pitcher of the Year. Davis is the first Glens Falls player to receive a major individual award from the league since Terry Blunt was named the NYCBL Player of the Year in 2004.

Davis concluded the regular season with a 5-0 record and a 0.33 earned run average in 54 innings pitched. Davis allowed five runs (two earned) on 31 hits, walked eight and struck out 31. He pitched two complete games, yielded three extra-base hits and held opposing Eastern Division hitters to a .171 batting average.

The Belmont, Ont., Canada, native pitched the first nine-inning no-hitter in Glens Falls Golden Eagles franchise history on June 11 against the Bennington Bombers at East Field. Davis walked one, hit one and struck out five. He allowed just two base runners and retired 26 of the 28 batters he faced. At one point, Davis sat down 15-straight Bennington hitters. The Canadian southpaw pitched a complete game, two-hit shutout against Amsterdam on July 9 at East Field.

Davis started the season with 16-straight scoreless innings. He did not allow a run until the third inning of his third start. Even more impressive, Davis did not give up an earned run for 34-straight frames from June 16 through July 22. He also pitched a scoreless inning in the NYCBL All-Star Game on July 7 at Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds in Watertown, N.Y.

In the spring, Davis set a single-season school record at Canisius College with 12 victories. The lefty finished among the national freshman leaders in wins and ERA (2.42). He helped the Golden Griffs to a share of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular season championship. Davis, as a redshirt freshman, was named the MAAC Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year, the first player to ever garner both awards in the same season. He earned freshman All-America recognition from Baseball America, Pro-Line/NCBWA, Louisville Slugger, Rivals.com, and Ping! Baseball. Davis was also named Louisville Slugger third-team All-America, NCBWA third-team All-America and Ping! Baseball third-team All-America.

The New York Collegiate Baseball League, founded in 1978, is a summer wood-bat league sanctioned by the National Alliance for College Summer Baseball (NACSB) and partially funded by Major League Baseball. The league gives college players who have not yet signed a professional contract the opportunity to develop their skills at a high level of play, gain experience with wood bats and be evaluated by professional scouts. The NYCBL is located in scenic upstate New York and southern Vermont. For more information on the New York Collegiate Baseball League, please visit the league web site at http://www.nycbl.com