UCLA signs eight new baseball players

From UCLA:

LOS ANGELES – The UCLA baseball program has received eight signed National Letters of Intent during the early signing period, as announced Friday by head coach John Savage. Aided by assistant coaches Rick Vanderhook and T.J. Bruce, the seventh recruiting class under Savage includes six position players and two right-handed pitchers who will enroll at UCLA in the fall of 2011.

UCLA’s latest recruiting class features right-handed pitchers Michael Kerman and Joe Ross and catcher Austin Hedges. The group of signees also includes outfielder Eric Snyder and infielders Tyler Goeddel, Chris Keck, Kevin Kramer and Shane Zeile.

“Our program is thrilled that these players have chosen to attend and play baseball at UCLA,” Savage said. “Coach Vanderhook did a fantastic job putting together our latest recruiting class, and we look forward to the contributions that these players will make down the road.”

Savage’s first six recruiting classes at UCLA have each earned top-20 billing from Baseball America. Most recently, the Bruins’ latest group of incoming freshmen has been ranked the No. 3 recruiting class, nationally, by Baseball America and No. 4 in the country by Collegiate Baseball.

UCLA BASEBALL SIGNEES (2011)

Name Position B/T Ht. Wt. Hometown (Previous School)

Tyler Goeddel INF/OF R/R 6-4 175 Hillsborough, Calif. (St. Francis HS)
Austin Hedges C R/R 6-1 185 San Juan Capistrano, Calif. (JSerra HS)
Chris Keck INF L/R 6-2 175 Pleasanton, Calif. (Amador Valley HS)
Michael Kerman RHP R/R 6-4 210 Beverly Hills, Calif. (Long Beach CC)
Kevin Kramer INF L/R 6-0 195 Turlock, Calif. (Turlock HS)
Joe Ross RHP R/R 6-2 180 Oakland, Calif. (Bishop O’Dowd HS)
Eric Snyder OF L/R 6-0 170 Huntington Beach, Calif. (Edison HS)
Shane Zeile INF R/R 6-1 175 Valencia, Calif. (Valencia HS)

Player Capsules after jump


Tyler Goeddel
Hillsborough, Calif. (St. Francis HS)
INF/OF – 6-4, 175 – R/R
Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at St. Francis High School under head coach Mike Oakland … batted .488 with one home run, two triples, 17 RBI, 13 runs and 10 stolen bases as a junior (2010) … secured first-team All-Western Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) accolades in the infield as a junior … batted .450 with four home runs and a league-leading 20 stolen bases as a sophomore (2009) … earned second-team All-WCAL honors in the outfield as a sophomore … played for the Milwaukee Brewers White Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … older brother, Erik, pitched for UCLA in 2009 and 2010 after redshirting the 2008 season

Head Coach John Savage: “Tyler is one of the best athletes in California. He is very versatile and has all the tools to be a very good college player. With Tyler coming to UCLA, it will be great to have another Goeddel in our program.”

Austin Hedges
San Juan Capistrano, Calif. (JSerra HS)
C – 6-1, 185 – R/R
Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at JSerra High School under head coach Brett Kay … batted .418 with three home runs, one triple, six doubles, 14 RBI and 15 runs as a junior (2010) … captured second-team All-Trinity League honors as a junior … batted .383 as a sophomore (2009), posting a .537 on-base percentage … named the Trinity League MVP as a sophomore, breaking into the starting lineup as a second baseman … helped lead JSerra High School to the 2009 Trinity League title as a sophomore … named a 2010 AFLAC All-America selection, playing for the West Team at Petco Park in San Diego … received the Rawlings Defensive Player of the Year award in August 2010 … selected to the USA Baseball 18-U Team trials in the summer of 2010 in Cary, N.C. … played for the Milwaukee Brewers Blue Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … led his team to the gold medal at the 2010 Perfect Game National Showcase in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Head Coach John Savage: “Austin is the best catch-and-throw guy in the country. He is one of the most complete catchers in the nation. With his solid bat, athleticism and make-up for the game, Austin will bring a lot to our program.”

Chris Keck
Pleasanton, Calif. (Amador Valley HS)
INF – 6-2, 175 – L/R
Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Amador Valley High School under head coach Lou Cesario … batted .462 with four home runs, three triples, 26 RBI, 26 runs, 30 walks and just six strikeouts as a junior (2010) … secured East Bay Athletic League MVP honors as a junior, posting a .609 on-base percentage that season … helped lead Amador Valley to its first-ever CIF North Coast Section title in 2010 … played for the Milwaukee Brewers White Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … competed in Connie Mack League competition for the Danville Hoots Baseball Club.

Head Coach John Savage: “Chris is one of the best hitters in Northern California. He has that rare combination of power with the ability to hit to all fields. We’re confident that Chris will be an impact player right away.”

Michael Kerman
Beverly Hills, Calif. (Long Beach City College)
RHP – 6-4, 210 – R/R
One-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Long Beach City College under head coach Casey Crook … earned first-team All-South Coast Conference honors as a relief pitcher at Long Beach City College in 2010 … recorded a 1.96 ERA and one save in 23.0 innings as a freshman at Long Beach City College … logged 21 strikeouts and three walks, limiting the opposition to a .232 batting average in 2010 … two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Beverly Hills High School under head coach Vonzie Paysinger … voted as the All-South Coast Conference’s top relief pitcher in 2010 … named to the 2010 Mizuno All-Star Team … batted .262 with four home runs, three doubles and 21 RBI as a senior at Beverly Hills High School … as an outfielder during his junior season (2008), batted .339 with two home runs, three triples, 13 RBI and 18 runs.

Head Coach John Savage: “Michael is a converted outfielder from high school, who as a pitcher from Long Beach City College will have a chance to really help us out of the bullpen. He’s a very competitive guy with the ability to throw three pitches for strikes.”

Kevin Kramer
Turlock, Calif. (Turlock HS)
INF – 6-0, 195 – L/R

Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Turlock High School under head coach Mark DelaMotte … two-year varsity football letterwinner (quarterback) at Turlock under head coach James Peterson … batted .460 with seven home runs, five triples, 11 doubles, 30 RBI and 47 runs as a junior (2010) … led Turlock to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I title game in 2010, collecting three homers in the playoffs … pitched in 9.1 innings as a junior, going 0-1 with one save, 11 strikeouts and a 0.75 ERA in four appearances … earned first-team All-Central California League honors as a sophomore (2009) … played for the Milwaukee Brewers White Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … helped lead the USA Baseball U-16 Team to the gold medal in Taiwan during the summer of 2009 … served as starting quarterback for Turlock’s football team in 2009 and 2010 … has led Turlock’s football team to a CIF Sac-Joaquin Division I playoff berth (8-2 record) after going 0-10 in 2009 … as a senior, has passed for 951 yards and 14 touchdowns, rushing for 1052 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Head Coach John Savage: “Kevin is one of the best pure hitters in the country and one of the premier athletes coming out of high school in this class. He’s a natural leader and winner, and we believe he can be an impact hitter right away in our conference.”

Joe Ross
Oakland, Calif. (Bishop O’Dowd HS)
RHP – 6-2, 180 – R/R
Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Bishop O’Dowd High School under head coach Chris Kyriacou … went 4-1 with a 2.37 ERA and two saves, totaling 35 strikeouts and 11 walks in 23.2 innings as a junior (2010) … batted .365 with five extra-base hits, 10 RBI and 16 runs as a junior … secured first-team All-Hayward Area Athletic League (HAAL) honors as a junior … went 4-1 with a 0.81 ERA and one save, logging 24 strikeouts and 10 walks in 26 innings as a sophomore (2009) … batted .371 with six doubles, five RBI and 12 runs during his sophomore campaign … has helped Bishop O’Dowd extend its streak to eight consecutive HAAL titles (2009-10) … played for the Milwaukee Brewers White Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … named a 2010 AFLAC All-America selection, playing for the West Team at Petco Park in San Diego … competed at the 2010 Perfect Game National Showcase in St. Petersburg, Fla. … brother, Tyson, pitched for California from 2006-08 and played for the Oakland A’s in 2010.

Head Coach John Savage: “Joe is the best right-handed pitching prospect in California. He has a very athletic delivery and a fastball that explodes at the plate. We look forward to watching Joe compete for a weekend job right away at UCLA. His potential as a pitcher is unlimited.”

Eric Snyder
Huntington Beach, Calif. (Edison HS)
OF – 6-0, 170 – L/R

Three-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Edison High School under head coach Steve Lambright … batted .391 as a junior (2010), totaling seven home runs and 17 RBI with a .491 on-base percentage … secured Sunset League MVP honors as a junior and first-team All-CalHiSports All-State underclassman acclaim … earned first-team All-County honors from the Orange County Register as a junior … named a second-team All-CIF Southern Section Division I honoree as a junior … helped lead Edison to consecutive Sunset League titles in 2009 and 2010 … batted .354 with three home runs, two triples, eight doubles, 17 RBI and 23 runs as a sophomore (2009) … guided Edison to the 2009 CIF Southern Section Division I title game as a sophomore … batted .500 as a freshman (2008), tying a school record held by Jeff Kent for best single-season batting average … set school records during his freshman year for most single-season hits (53) and at-bats (106) … named Sunset League Rookie of the Year as a freshman in 2008 … batted .700 at the USA Baseball National Championship in 2008, being named to the Team USA 16-U Trial Team … competed on the Babe Ruth gold-medal winning team at the Tournament of Stars in Cary, N.C. … named to Team USA’s National Team Trial team in 2009 and 2010 … played for the Milwaukee Brewers Blue Team at the 2010 Area Code Games in Long Beach, Calif. … selected to the Angels Elite and New York Yankees scout teams in the fall of 2009 and 2010 … earned the Edison High School Character Coalition Award in English and geometry in 2008.

Head Coach John Savage: “Eric is one of the most complete players coming out of Southern California in this year’s class. He has all the tools to be a legitimate outfielder who can play defense and offense at a very high level. The better the competition for Eric, the better he plays.”

Shane Zeile
Valencia, Calif. (Valencia HS)
INF – 6-1, 175 – R/R

Two-year varsity baseball letterwinner at Valencia High School under head coach Jared Snyder … batted .330 with four home runs, four doubles, 20 RBI and 22 runs in 27 games as a junior (2010) … secured first-team All-Foothill League accolades as a junior, recording a .436 on-base percentage … ranked second in batting average (.529) in the Valley Invitational Baseball League during the summer of 2010 … posted a league-leading .882 slugging percentage in the Valley Invitational Baseball League (2010) … competed at the fourth annual Jesse Flores Memorial All-Star Game at Mt. SAC in November 2010 … uncle, Todd Zeile, played for the Bruins from 1984-86 before enjoying a 15-year major league career.

Head Coach John Savage: “Shane can play all four infield positions and really understands the game. He has one of the best arms in southern California and has proven to be a very competitive and durable player.”