DALLAS (NCBWA) The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) released its National Player of the Week awards for the period ending April 28. Nevada redshirt senior second baseman Keaton Smith was named National Hitter of the Week, while UCLA junior right-handed pitcher Ryan Garcia 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.
Smith led Nevada with a .600 batting average, 30 total bases, 15 hits, three doubles, three triples, two home runs and a 1.200 slugging percentage in the five games played this past week, including a pair of wins over No. 2 Oregon State.
In the second game against defending National Champion Beavers, Smith launched the first pitch he saw in the 10th inning over the left-field wall for a 7-6 walk-off victory. Against OSU, Smith slashed .667 with six hits, a triple, three RBI and the game-winning home run.
At Air Force, Smith made Nevada history as the first player to hit for the cycle since Brooks Klein in 2012, posting the accomplishment in the series finale. Smith continued his hot streak by batting .563 with nine hits, three doubles, two triples and a home run with 19 total bases against the Falcons. Smith scored at least one run in all five games last week, and at least three hits in four of the five.
Garcia is coming off a complete game two-hit shutout of Utah on Friday night, leading the Bruins to a series-opening 5-0 win. The Sierra Madre, California, native allowed just three baserunners all game against Utah, none of which advanced past first base. In addition, he recorded a career-high 14 strikeouts, the most by a UCLA pitcher since Trevor Bauer against Fresno State on Jun. 4, 2011.
He started the game by retiring eight straight and ended it by sending down 11 consecutive batters. He needed just 108 pitches to finish the complete game shutout, UCLA's first since Griffin Canning on May 25, 2017.
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)