April 13, 2012
WICHITA, Kansas-- Stanford catcher Eric Smith was added to the initial list of Johnny Bench Award nominees on Friday, named for college baseball's top catcher.
Smith, who leads the Cardinal in hitting at .366, was one of five catchers added to the initial watch list.
Buck/Cardinal Feature on Smith
Smith earned the starting nod at catcher after two years as a backup infielder. On the plane trip back from North Carolina, coach Mark Marquess talked to Smith about the position switch. On opening day, Smith earned the nod over freshman Wayne Taylor and Christian Griffiths.
Last weekend at Washington, Smith took over the team lead in batting, where he also surpassed his career total in hits (28). Smith enters the weekend series with 34 hits, is third on the team in doubles (9), fifth in RBIs (22) and fourth in runs. He second on the team in multi-RBI games and third in multi-hit games.
The award, once awarded to former Stanford great Ryan Garko, will be presented June 28 at the 15th Annual Wichita Sports Banquet. The list will be narrowed to semifinalists on May 16 and down to three finalists on June 4.