Big changes at FIU and Barry … and NSU still has no head coach
FIU baseball player Mario Zabala, who arrived on campus in the fall of 2020 as a highly touted hitter, has signed with the Angels … as an undrafted pitcher.
Zabala struggled as a hitter in 2022, batting just .156 with a .581 OPS in 77 at-bats.
This past fall, under new FIU coach Rich Witten, Zabala asked to be tried as a pitcher.
“When I first got here, I was told that Mario had a ton of tools and a hell of an arm,” Witten said.
This past spring, Zabala was used as a reliever, showing a 91-94-mph fastball and a slider. In three appearances, he went 1-0 but had an ERA of 19.29 in 2 1/3 innings.
The Angels took a chance on him as a pitcher with athleticism who has the potential for higher velocity.
Meanwhile, after going 21-34 in his first year as FIU’s coach, Witten has brought in some interesting players in advance of the 2024 season, including catcher Nelson Rivera, shortstop Chase Engelhard and left-hander Tristan Dietrich.
Rivera, a Puerto Rico native, was a three-year starter for the South Florida Bulls. In 2021, he made the all-tournament team as USF won the Gainesville Regional in a massive upset.
Engelhard made 30 appearances for Tulane’s team this past season, including 23 starts, as the Green Wave went 19-42. He hit .211 with a .612 OPS.
Dietrich, an incoming freshman from Pennsylvania, was the Marlins’ 18th-round pick but did not sign with Miami. He reportedly got calls to be selected even higher in the draft, but his financial demands were not met.
“He’s 6-foot-5,” Witten said of Dietrich, who has a fastball up to 90 mph as well as a changeup, slider and curve. “He’s what prospects are supposed to look like.”
As a senior, Dietrich had a 2.48 ERA and walked 25 batters in 31 innings, meaning that he can improve his command while at FIU.
NEW COACH AT BARRY
Coach Juan Ranero has left Barry. In addition, star pitcher Mike Reagan (10-2, 3.33 ERA) signed with an independent pro league; first-team All-Sunshine State Conference DH Joe Stella (.353 batting average, team-high 51 RBI) transferred to Georgetown, and third baseman Jake Ogden (.322 batting average) transferred to North Carolina-Greensboro after getting named the conference’s Freshman of the Year.
Brett Young, who had served as a Barry assistant since the fall of 2021, is the Bucs’ new coach. In two years as Barry’s recruiting coordinator, he helped the Bucs sign what Perfect Game rated the nation’s top class of newcomers in NCAA Division II.
Then, in 2023, the Bucs made the NCAA Tournament for just the fourth time in program history.
After the season, Ranero bolted for a Georgia high school, Westminster Christian, where he will serve as baseball coach and assistant athletic director.
His wife, Libby, will also be on the staff at Westminster Christian, serving as head volleyball coach and science teacher at the Athens-area school.
“I’ve been looking to get into Christian education,” Juan Ranero said. “I still have a great relationship with everyone at Barry.”
THIS AND THAT
▪ NSU has no head baseball coach yet after Laz Gutierrez bolted to become the Miami Hurricanes pitching instructor. NSU lost just one player to the pros from last season as pitcher Carlos Rey signed with the Diamondbacks, who drafted him in the 17th round and gave him a $100,000 bonus.
▪ Two players from the 2023 MDC baseball roster were drafted this year, but only one – first baseman Wooyeoul Shin -- signed with the pros. He was picked in the 16th round by the Tampa Bay Rays. The other MDC draftee, pitcher Herick Hernandez, was drafted in the 19th round by the Cincinnati Reds, but he will play for the Miami Hurricanes in 2024. Hernandez blossomed into an ace this year, going 8-3 with a 2.86 ERA.
