Wildcat Trio Highlights Preseason All-Big 12 Team
Jan 24, 2024 | Baseball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Three Wildcats were tabbed to the 2024 Preseason All-Big 12 Team in a vote of the league's head coaches, announced Wednesday by the conference office.
Left-handed pitcher Owen Boerema, infielder Kaelen Culpepper, and relief ace Tyson Neighbors each received their first Big 12 preseason honor of their respective careers, while Neighbors was also one of six student-athletes to be unanimously selected to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
Seventeen individuals were selected to the preseason ledger and eight of the 13 league teams were represented on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team. TCU led the way with five selections, followed by K-State with three. Oklahoma State, KU, and Texas each had two honorees apiece, while the remaining institutions had one representative. Coaches could not vote for their own players.
Boerema, who earned Second Team All-Big 12 honors a year ago, earned his position as the Friday night starter in his first season with the Cats where he finished 7-2 on the mound. A native of Litchfield, Minn., finished sixth overall in the league with 95 strikeouts to set a new program single-season class record for a senior pitcher, surpassing Jim Ripley's 90 in 2004.
With a 5.06 ERA, the left-hander was one of just six pitchers from the Big 12 to strikeout out 12-plus batters in a single appearance in 2023 after punching out 12 in the series opener against Texas.
Culpepper is coming off a standout sophomore campaign as the Wildcats' every day starter is projected to be the No. 28 overall selection in the 2024 MLB Draft by MLB Pipeline. In 40 games, the Memphis, Tenn., product turned in a career-best slash line of .325/.423/.576 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI. He was just one of three Wildcats to reach double digit homers while his slugging percentage led the Cats' offense and was second in batting average.
A two-time All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, Culpepper was the top slugger for Team USA last summer as he led the Red, White, and Blue with a .471 batting average and slugging percentage of .853.
Neighbors, who was named a Preseason All-American by Perfect Game, enters his junior campaign known as one of the top power relievers in the country. The 2023 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Finalist compiled a league-high 11 saves, going 5-1 with a 1.85 ERA across 25 appearances out of the bullpen. He totaled 86 strikeouts on his way to becoming the just the second player in school history to earn consensus All-American status.
The Royse City, Texas native was undefeated in Big 12 play, allowing just seven earned runs in 24 1/3 innings for a 3-0 record along with five saves. Neighbors competed for Team USA alongside Culpepper, where he allowed just three hits with four strikeouts during his 3 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.
K-State officially begins its 2024 campaign at the MLB Desert Invitational in Scottsdale, Ariz., on February 16-18. The Cats will take on Cal, Boston College, and Georgetown across the three-day event at Salt River Park and Sloan Park, the spring training homes of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago Cubs.
A full list of the Preseason All-Big 12 Team and preseason award winners can be found below.
Preseason All-Big 12 Team
C: Karson Bowen, TCU
IF: Kodey Shojinaga, Kansas
IF: Kaelen Culpepper, K-State
IF: Anthony Silva, TCU
IF: Gavin Kash, Texas Tech*
IF: JJ Wetherholt, West Virginia*
OF: Bryce Madron, Oklahoma
OF: Nolan Schubart, Oklahoma State*
OF: Porter Brown, Texas
DH: Janson Reeder, Kansas
UT: Carson Benge, Oklahoma State
SP: Owen Boerema, K-State
SP: Kole Klecker, TCU*
SP: Petyon Tolle, TCU
SP: Lebarron Johnson Jr., Texas*
RP: Tyson Neighbors, K-State*
RP: Ben Abeldt, TCU
Preseason Player of the Year
JJ Wetherholt, West Virginia*
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Lebarron Johnson Jr., Texas
Preseason Newcomer of the Year
Peyton Tolle, TCU
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Will Gasparino, Texas
*- unanimous selection
How to follow the 'Cats: Stay up to date on K-State baseball online at www.kstatesports.com and on the team's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Left-handed pitcher Owen Boerema, infielder Kaelen Culpepper, and relief ace Tyson Neighbors each received their first Big 12 preseason honor of their respective careers, while Neighbors was also one of six student-athletes to be unanimously selected to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team.
Seventeen individuals were selected to the preseason ledger and eight of the 13 league teams were represented on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team. TCU led the way with five selections, followed by K-State with three. Oklahoma State, KU, and Texas each had two honorees apiece, while the remaining institutions had one representative. Coaches could not vote for their own players.
Boerema, who earned Second Team All-Big 12 honors a year ago, earned his position as the Friday night starter in his first season with the Cats where he finished 7-2 on the mound. A native of Litchfield, Minn., finished sixth overall in the league with 95 strikeouts to set a new program single-season class record for a senior pitcher, surpassing Jim Ripley's 90 in 2004.
With a 5.06 ERA, the left-hander was one of just six pitchers from the Big 12 to strikeout out 12-plus batters in a single appearance in 2023 after punching out 12 in the series opener against Texas.
Culpepper is coming off a standout sophomore campaign as the Wildcats' every day starter is projected to be the No. 28 overall selection in the 2024 MLB Draft by MLB Pipeline. In 40 games, the Memphis, Tenn., product turned in a career-best slash line of .325/.423/.576 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI. He was just one of three Wildcats to reach double digit homers while his slugging percentage led the Cats' offense and was second in batting average.
A two-time All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, Culpepper was the top slugger for Team USA last summer as he led the Red, White, and Blue with a .471 batting average and slugging percentage of .853.
Neighbors, who was named a Preseason All-American by Perfect Game, enters his junior campaign known as one of the top power relievers in the country. The 2023 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Finalist compiled a league-high 11 saves, going 5-1 with a 1.85 ERA across 25 appearances out of the bullpen. He totaled 86 strikeouts on his way to becoming the just the second player in school history to earn consensus All-American status.
The Royse City, Texas native was undefeated in Big 12 play, allowing just seven earned runs in 24 1/3 innings for a 3-0 record along with five saves. Neighbors competed for Team USA alongside Culpepper, where he allowed just three hits with four strikeouts during his 3 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.
K-State officially begins its 2024 campaign at the MLB Desert Invitational in Scottsdale, Ariz., on February 16-18. The Cats will take on Cal, Boston College, and Georgetown across the three-day event at Salt River Park and Sloan Park, the spring training homes of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago Cubs.
A full list of the Preseason All-Big 12 Team and preseason award winners can be found below.
Preseason All-Big 12 Team
C: Karson Bowen, TCU
IF: Kodey Shojinaga, Kansas
IF: Kaelen Culpepper, K-State
IF: Anthony Silva, TCU
IF: Gavin Kash, Texas Tech*
IF: JJ Wetherholt, West Virginia*
OF: Bryce Madron, Oklahoma
OF: Nolan Schubart, Oklahoma State*
OF: Porter Brown, Texas
DH: Janson Reeder, Kansas
UT: Carson Benge, Oklahoma State
SP: Owen Boerema, K-State
SP: Kole Klecker, TCU*
SP: Petyon Tolle, TCU
SP: Lebarron Johnson Jr., Texas*
RP: Tyson Neighbors, K-State*
RP: Ben Abeldt, TCU
Preseason Player of the Year
JJ Wetherholt, West Virginia*
Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Lebarron Johnson Jr., Texas
Preseason Newcomer of the Year
Peyton Tolle, TCU
Preseason Freshman of the Year
Will Gasparino, Texas
*- unanimous selection
How to follow the 'Cats: Stay up to date on K-State baseball online at www.kstatesports.com and on the team's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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