TUCSON, Ariz. – Schools around the country are starting to take notice of the rise of Fairfield Stags baseball. The 2017 Stags, the team with the mission to try and repeat their MAAC title, has received votes in Collegiate Baseball newspaper's Fabulous 40 NCAA Division I pre-season poll presented by Big League Chew bubble gum. The Stags are the only representative in the MAAC and was one of 131 schools to garner at least one vote in the poll.
“It certainly is a value based on last year's success of winning the MAAC Championship,” Head Coach Bill Currier said. “We're grateful for our success last year but it certainly means way more at the end of the year that we are in that category of being a high ranked team.”
The Stags are coming off their most historic season that saw them win a program record 32 games, none more important than the ones that gave the Stags the MAAC tournament title. Fairfield also earned the program's first trip to the NCAA Regionals, before falling to two nationally ranked squads in Texas Tech and Dallas Baptist.
To try and repeat last year's feat, the Stags are returning their entire starting rotation, which led the MAAC with a 3.16 ERA during conference games. Gavin Wallace, who tied the program with eight wins last year, John Signore, a sophomore pitcher who led the nation for several weeks in strikeout to walk ratio during his rookie season, and Kyle Dube, who gave the Stags several key wins, all return as the weekend starters.
On the offensive side, captains Michael Conti and Mac Crispino are expected to be two consistent bats in the lineups and build off their junior seasons. Crispino, an All-MAAC Second Team selection was the Stags leading hitter with runners in scoring position, while Conti put together a very consistent season and hit .335 which placed him second on the squad.
On the national scene, TCU was picked in the top spot in the top-40 pre-season poll. Last year's NCAA Regional opponents Texas Tech (26) and Dallas Baptist (29) also made the list. Two of the opponents the Stags will see during the 2017 season also earned votes with Lamar and St. John's appearing on the list.
