Baseball signs 12 players in early signing period

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Wichita State’s baseball program announced the signing of 12 players during the early signing period on Wednesday.

The class includes three two-way players, four right-handed pitchers and five position players, head coach Todd Butler announced in a news release.

“We are excited to announce the 2017 Shocker Baseball recruiting class,” Butler said in a statement. “This year’s class is another smaller class, but we feel like we have filled our needs for the future.

“We are excited to get this group of young men on campus for the fall of 2017.”

The Shockers’ signing class of 2017 includes Blake Burd, an outfielder from Collinsville, Oklahoma. Burd hit .502 during his junior season at Collinsville High School along with leading the team in stolen bases and on base percentage. Burd is rated as the No. 6 outfielder in Oklahoma.

Ross Cadena, a catcher from Southlake, Texas, hit .385 with 12 runs, five doubles and seven RBI’s last spring for Southlake Carroll Senior High School. He is listed as the No. 3 catcher in the Texas.

The Shockers increased the team’s pitching depth with by Tyler Davis. Davis, a right-handed pitcher and infielder from Spring, Texas, had an 8-2 record with a 1.43 ERA and 64 strikeouts during his junior season at Oak Ridge High School. He also hit .353 with five home runs and 25 RBIs.

The Shockers wrapped up the signing class by adding depth to their bullpen with the addition of Ronnie Taylor. Taylor, a right-handed pitcher from Allen, Texas, will likely come in to pitch relief after striking out 23 in 16 innings pitched last spring for Allen High School.

Earning Perfect Game Underclass Honorable Mention honors in 2015 and 2016, Taylor is listed as the No. 30 right-handed pitcher in Texas.

WSU has four seniors on its 2017 roster.