UCLA's Bauer, Cole Named to Golden Spikes Award Watch List
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DURHAM, N.C. - UCLA junior right-handed pitchers Trevor Bauer and Gerrit Cole have been named among the 60 semifinalists for the 2011 Golden Spikes Award, as announced Tuesday by USA Baseball.
Bauer and Cole have been leading UCLA's pitching rotation the last three seasons. This spring, Bauer has gone 8-2 with a 1.47 ERA, leading the Pac-10 Conference with 142 strikeouts and 91.2 innings. Cole has posted a 4-5 record with a 3.45 ERA, totaling 81 strikeouts and 15 walks in 75.2 innings.
The Golden Spikes Award is presented at the end of each college baseball season to the nation's top amateur player. USA Baseball will release an updated list of 30 semifinalists on May 31 and will maintain a "rolling list" until that date to ensure that athletes can still play themselves into consideration for the award.
This season, Bauer became UCLA's all-time strikeouts and wins leader. The resident of Valencia, Calif., currently has tallied 399 career strikeouts, fourth most all-time among Pac-10 pitchers, and 29 career victories. Bauer has collected a career 29-8 record and is tied for the Pac-10 lead in wins this season (eight) with Oregon State's Sam Gaviglio.
In consecutive starts in March, Cole carried a perfect game into the seventh inning. The right-hander from Santa Ana, Calif., had a perfect game broken with two outs in the bottom of the seventh at Nebraska (March 4). One week later against Georgia, Cole's bid for a perfect game was snapped with one out in the top of the seventh.
Bauer became UCLA's all-time strikeout leader with a 14-strikeout effort at USC on March 26. In that contest, Bauer had a perfect game into the seventh inning (issued a one-walk walk) and had a no-hitter snapped with one out in the eighth inning.
The Golden Spikes Award presentation will take place Friday, July 15, in a televised show live on MLB Network. The award's three finalists will be announced Tuesday, June 7 with the deadline for fans to vote for the winner by Friday, June 17 at 2 p.m. (PT).