May 31, 2012
TUCSON, Ariz.-- Mark Appel was named a first team All-American by Collegiate Baseball, the first of what is expected to be many awards for the Cardinal righthander. In addition, due to a Pac-12 error, Alex Blandino and Eric Smith were added to the All-Pac-12 team, earning honorable mention status.
Appel is the Pac-12 leader in strikeouts and has gone 9-1 with a 2.37 ERA over 14 starts this season. He is a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and Golden Spikes Award, given to the nation's top collegiate player. He is projected to be the No. 1 pick in the draft.
Appel, along with Stephen Piscotty were named first team All-Pac-12 selections. Blandino and Smith join Brian Ragira and Austin Wilson as honorable mention selections.
Smith is the team's leading hitter at .329 after 45 regular season starts at catcher. Blandino, the team's freshman third baseman is hitting .289 with 35 RBIs and seven homers.
Stanford hosts its own regional starting on Friday. The Cardinal are matched up with Fresno State at 6 p.m. Pepperdine and Michigan State are the other regional, starting at 1 p.m.