Dec. 20, 2007

By Douglas Kroll

CSTV.com

	DOUG KROLL Doug Kroll is an editor for CSTV.com, focusing on baseball. E-mail here!

        ---   Column Archive   --- BASEBALL 1/17: So Cool In SoCal 1/10: Starting With Not Such A Clean Slate 1/3: Closing the Gap 12/27: For Starters 12/20: Second Is Just Fine 12/13: Not Short On Talent 12/06: Stars In The Outfield 11/29: Staying Hot On The Hot Corner 11/23: First Thing Is First 11/16: Best Backstops 11/08: Engineering Perfection 11/01: Up The Coast 10/25: Sun Devils Best In Fall 10/18: Taking The Plunge 10/11: Tourney Time 10/4: Red Raider Savior 9/27: Not Fooling Around 9/20: Continuing To Right The Ship 9/13: Flying Back With The Ducks? 9/6: Same Faces, New Places 8/30: More And More Like MLB 8/23: Laying Down A Full House 8/16: No Hitch At Deadline 8/9: College Homerun Kings 8/2: Bringing The Tradition Back 7/23: Cape Cod Update - All-Star Edition 7/19: Bringing The Quack Back 7/17: Summer League Update - Week 5 7/6: A Ride On A Carousel 7/2: Summer League Update - Week 3 6/28: Omaha In Review 6/26: Summer League Update - Week 2 6/25: Second Time As Good As First 6/21: Back In The Saddle 6/20: Series On The Line 6/19: Expect the Unexpected 6/19: Planting Seeds...Again 6/18: Cape Cod Summer League Update 6/18: Cards On Their Heels 6/17: Pac-10 Showdown 6/17: Is It April Or June? 6/16: Seeds of Success 6/16: Sunday, Bloody Sunday 6/15: Final Chapter For Price 6/13: Omaha in the Cards 6/7: Big Blue Oaks 6/7: The Right Price 5/31: Go Johnnies Go 5/17: Not So Mid Anymore 5/10: In And Out 5/6: On the Road With ECU: Day Three 5/5: On the Road With ECU: Day Two 5/3: On the Road With ECU: Day One 5/3: Staying True to the Family 4/26: Having Fun With Two 4/19: Pitching Is Name Of The Game 4/12: Going Coastal 4/5: Right On Key 4/3: April Schedule Planner 3/29: Northern Exposure 3/22: East Carolina Set To Make Waves 3/8: Shedding The Blues 3/1: March Baseball Schedule Planner 2/25: Seawolves Swept in Carolina 2/24: A Loss Is, Well, A Loss 2/23: On the Road With The Brook 2/15: Florida Looks To Chomp Out Of Rut 2/9: Winthrop Winning The Tough Way 1/29: February Baseball Schedule Planner 1/28: Same Game, New Team, No Year Off 1/21: The Real All-Americans 1/19: Just One Of Those Weeks FOOTBALL 8/24: When Is A Win, A Win? 8/21: Topping Harlon's Hill Twice 8/2: Mid-American Conference Preview 8/2: Thunder and Lightning in Kalamazoo 8/2: Showing Flashes 12/16: Sweet Home Alabama 12/15: Humble Woodhead Wins Harlon Hill 12/14: Familiar Foes, Only On The Biggest Stage 12/7: Blooming in Bloomsberg 11/30: Grand Valley To Face One And Only Rival 11/15: Something New, For Newberry 11/1: Chadron's On The Map 10/28: What Can Brown Do For U-Conn 10/23: Asserting Identity 10/11: Leaf Fits Right in at West Texas 10/4: Pioneers Post Impressive Feats 9/27: Bible Belt Clash 9/20: Regaining Respect at Ashland 9/13: It's the GLFC, Not the GLIAC 9/7: Four Horse Race At Valdosta State BASKETBALL 10/23: Jayhawks, Longhorns Top Big 12 10/19: Memphis The Class Of C-USA 1/8: In The Zone, Hofstra Goes To It 12/28: Sweet Stroke For Stokes 12/05: Hofstra Wins Battle Of Long Island 11/30: Despite Loss, Great Day For Sea Wolves 10/17: CSTV's Top Five Games 10/16: Shiny Pearl in Knoxville 10/13: FSU's Thornton Still Blossoming W. VOLLEYBALL 8/23: Cardinal Comeback 8/21: Pavan Paves Her Way 8/21: Rock Stars In Diguise 8/20: Nebraska's Staying On Top M. WATER POLO 9/5: West Is The Best 9/3: 2007 Men's Water Polo Preview

A second baseman is a shortstop's best friend, and when you think about some of the best middle infields in baseball history, it's the second baseman that can sometimes get lost in the shuffle of great tandems.

They usually aren't the most powerful or best hitter on the team, but they are usually that piece that every good team needs to win.

The best second basemen in the nation in 2008 are likely to be no different in that aspect. They are real good at what they do, but they just don't have the same type of flashy names that other players around the diamond may have.

But that doesn't mean we won't know who they are by the end of the year.

The ACC will be home to three of the best right sides of the infield in the entire nation. When Virginia plays North Carolina State in the first full weekend of March, the headline matchup of the weekend will not likely be David Adams vs. Dallas Poulk, even though it probably should be.

Here's a look at the best players returning to the college game in 2008, who will be plugging that hole up the middle on the right side.

1. David Adams, Virginia - It has to be a nice thing for Virginia head coach Brian O'Connor to have two veterans up the middle that are two of your best players. With David Adams returning at second base, and Greg Miclat coming back at shortstop after an injury that sidelined him last season, that's exactly what O'Connor's got. The junior was second only to Miclat with a .372 average last year, while hitting five home runs and driving in 43 runs. His fielding improved from his first to second season, as he made only seven errors in 2007. Adams is durable too, with the Florida native the only Cavalier to start all 60 games in 2007. A couple of early exits in the NCAA tournament in a row should have this Virginia team hungry, and with Adams and Miclat leading the charge at the plate and Jacob Thompson one of the best pitchers in the country, Virginia should have a chance to make up for a couple of disappointing endings in a row.

2. Brandon Turner, Mississippi State - In 2006, Brandon Turner redshirted for Ron Polk's Bulldogs. And in 2007, he helped lead Mississippi State on a surprising run to the College World Series by hitting .399, tops on the team. By far the best news for Polk is that one of his top returning players is only a sophomore in 2008. Turner is a prototypical second baseman. While he hit for a great average, he hit only three home runs, but did find a way to drive in 48 runs. Not bad at all. If there's one thing that needs to grow for Turner it's his performance in the field after seeing his fielding percentage dip to .937 in his first collegiate season. No shame at all in that figure, and we should likely see that grow in '08.

3. Aaron Luna, Rice - Rice head coach Wayne Graham probably said it best about Aaron Luna after fall practice in 2007: "At the end of fall practices, we still didn't know if Aaron was a second baseman or an outfielder. What we do know is with his power and average, Aaron should be one of the better hitters in college baseball this spring."

And after a season of playing a lot of DH, they still may not be too sure. Either way, Luna got some time at second base so we will stick him there for the time being. Luna doesn't fit the typical mold for the position since he hits for power (leading the Owls with 13 home runs and 66 RBI in 2007). As for his defense, his four errors doesn't tell the full story with the time he spent at designated hitter, but he did finish with a .976 fielding percentage. With Texas A&M transfer Jess Buenger getting some time at second last year, we'll wait and see where Luna fits in position-wise with the Owls in 2008. One thing's for sure, with what they lost, he's going to have to lead them at the plate.

4. Jemile Weeks, Miami - It's not that Miami's Jemile Weeks gets sick of hearing the comparisons to his brother Rickie Weeks (Milwaukee Brewers), but like with many sibling combinations in sports, he'd like to make his own footprint in baseball. Topping his brother's ridiculous stats at Southern may be tough, but as Weeks enters his junior season in Coral Gables, he hopes to put a tough, injury-plagued sophomore season behind him. After being named a freshman All-American in 2006, Weeks played in 50 of Miami's 61 games and hit .298, hit five home runs and knocked in only 27 RBI. Thanks to his leg injury, Weeks was forced to DH much of the season when he was able to play, but after taking the summer off, expect Weeks to be right back in his spot at second where he's one of the best defensive players in the country.

5. Alden Carrithers, UCLA - The hype around UCLA is something that the Bruins haven't dealt with in some time. And a lot of it has to do with the return of senior second baseman Alden Carrithers. A transfer from UCSB, Carrithers led the Bruins with a .352 average, 53 runs, 32 walks and a .445 on-base percentage. Talk about a pest in a lineup. The 5-foot-10, 165-pound native of Portland, Ore. was also second on the team with nine steals (in 10 attempts). The senior will be right back at the top of the Bruins' lineup after spending his summer in the Cape Cod League. Even though he hit just .198 in 30 games with the Orleans Cardinals, his 28 walks and three hit by pitches gave him a .371 on-base percentage, which was third on the team. That's all you need to know about the type of player Carrithers can be at the top of a lineup.

On The Radar: Zach Miller, Mississippi; Dallas Poulk, North Carolina State