Baseball Announces Annual Awards
5/16/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 16, 2000
East Lansing, Mich. - The Michigan State baseball team held its annual awards banquet last night at the Michigan Athletic Club. The following awards were announced:
Offensive Player of the Year: Bob Malek (Fr., Canton, Mich.)
Malek led the team with 58 RBI, tied for third best in a MSU single season. He also led the team in slugging percentage (.545), total bases (109) and home runs (nine). His 69 hits were 10th best in a MSU single season.
Pitcher of the Year: Gary Zsigo (Sr., Lennon, Mich.)
Zsigo posted a 2-4 record this season, but was the team's most consitent pitcher all year long. On Saturday, May 13, he pitched his best game of the year. Although MSU lost that game to Ohio State, 2-1 in 12 innings, Zsigo threw 10 1/3 innings, allowing only one unearned run on four hits. He led the team in innings (68.1) and was second in strikeouts (44).
Most Valuable Defensive Player: Ted Demetral (Sr., Sterling Heights, Mich.)
Demetral had 136 assists this year, tied for ninth best in a MSU single season. He also had 128 putouts, and only had seven errors in 264 chances (.974 fielding percentage).
Bullpen Club Academic Award: Mike Pisani (Sr., Rochester, Mich.)
Pisani has been named to the All-Academic Big Ten team the last two seasons, and was recently named to the All-Academic District IV team.
Craig Hendricks Sportsmanship Award: Kimya Massey (Sr., Okemos, Mich.)
Massey was one of the top MSU athletes in community service hours over his four years as a Spartan. Massey was also named a co-captain for the 2000 season.
Most Improved Player: Domanick Squires (So., Rochester, Mich.)
Squires went from only pitching in six games his freshman season to becoming MSU's team leader in wins (five), ERA (3.12) and saves (three) during his sophomore campaign.
Most Valuable Player: Mike Pisani
Pisani left his mark as one of the premier players in Spartan baseball history. This senior season he had a career year, leading the team in batting average (.351), hits (74), runs (50) and doubles (18). On April 9 against Penn State, he hit his 48th double of his career, putting his name in the Spartan record books by becoming MSU's all-time doubles leader. Pisani was only hit shy of tying MSU's all-time hits record of 238, as he finished his career with 237. He is only one of eight Spartans who have amassed 200 career hits, and his 134 runs rank seventh best all-time at MSU. His 18 doubles this year were second best in a single season at MSU, and his 74 hits were fourth best. Pisani was also elected as a co-captain for the 2000 season.
