DALLAS (NCBWA) The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released its National Player of the Week awards for the period ending April 7. Tulane junior third baseman Kody Hoese was named National Hitter of the Week, while West Virginia junior right-handed pitcher Alek Manoah was named National Pitcher of the Week. The NCBWA Board reviews candidates from each Division I Conference each week and names winners each Tuesday throughout the season.
Hoese had an outstanding week at the plate, batting .579 and slugging 1.316. The junior third baseman tallied 11 hits, nine RBI, nine runs scored, four home runs, two doubles and drew a pair of walks in a week that included a series win against Wichita State. He had multiple hits and RBI through all four games last week, including a career-best 5-for-5 performance with two home runs, three RBI and three runs scored at New Orleans Tuesday night. Hoese registered two hits, two RBI and two runs scored in each of the three games against the Shockers, hitting homers in the first and second game of the series.
In eight shutout innings, Manoah struck out 11 batters to lead WVU to an 11-1 victory at No. 23 Oklahoma State on Friday. Manoah held OSU to no runs on just three hits with no walks as he led the Big 12 in innings pitched (8.0) and strikeouts (11) and was third in opponent batting average (.115) on the week. He was the only Big 12 pitcher last week to not allow a run in more than 4.0 innings pitched. In the win, Manoah retired the side in order five times and limited the Cowboys to just three baserunners, only one of which advanced to second base, in the eighth inning. Manoah earned his sixth quality start in eight starts this season.
Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. For more information about the NCBWA, visit the association's official website, ncbwa.com.
For more information on the NCBWA Division I National Players of the Week, contact NCBWA Assistant Executive Director Mike Montoro at West Virginia University at 304-293-2821.
2019 NCBWA Division I Players of the Week:
Week ending Feb. 17: Austin Martin, Vanderbilt (Hitter); Grant Judkins, Iowa (Pitcher)
· Week ending Feb. 24: Thomas Dillard, Ole Miss (Hitter); Tommy Henry, Michigan (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 3: Harrison Freed, Butler and TJ Hopkins, South Carolina (Hitter); Tanner Burns, Auburn (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 10: Cameron Warren, Texas Tech (Hitter); Jake Kuchmaner, East Carolina and Chris Gerard, Virginia Tech (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 17: Chris Lanzilli, Wake Forest (Hitter); Jake Kuchmaner, East Carolina (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 24: Tristan Peterson, New Mexico State (Hitter); Connor Thomas, Georgia Tech (Pitcher)
· Week ending March 31: Jake Sanford, WKU (Hitter); Zach Thompson, Kentucky (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 7: Kody Hoese, Tulane (Hitter); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 14: Spencer Steer, Oregon (Hitter); Cody Luther, Saint Louis and Ryan Shreve, Pacific (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 21: Logan Wyatt, Louisville (Hitter); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)
· Week ending April 28: Keaton Smith, Nevada (Hitter); Ryan Garcia, UCLA (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 5: Chase Smartt, Troy (Hitter); Andy Fisher, Illinois (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 12: Bryce Ball, Dallas Baptist (Hitter); Micah Kaczor, East Tennessee State (Pitcher)
· Week ending May 19: Andrew Daschbach, Stanford (Hitter); Seth Lonsway, Ohio State (Pitcher)
2019 NCBWA Division I Players of the Month:
February: Nick Gonzales, New Mexico State (Player); John Doxakis, Texas A&M (Pitcher)
· March: Hunter Bishop, Arizona State (Player); Reid Detmers, Louisville (Pitcher)
· April: Adley Rutschman, Oregon State (Player); Alek Manoah, West Virginia (Pitcher)