May 23, 2011
2011 MWC Championship Central
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - UNLV Friday night ace Tanner Peters has been named the 2011 Mountain West Conference Pitcher of the Year, as voted by the coaches and announced by the conference office today. Also joining Peters on the MWC All-Conference team is Brandon Bayardi, Trent Cook and Trever Kirk.
"I'm really excited for the guys who earned these honors," said first-year head coach Tim Chambers. "To be recognized by the coaches in the league on this level is special and shows how much respect they have by our competitors. Tanner getting Pitcher of the Year is tremendous considering the talent the Mountain West Conference has to offer this season."
Peters (9-3, 1.36 ERA) becomes the first UNLV pitcher to earn conference Pitcher of the Year honors in UNLV history. He has been spectacular this season for UNLV, ranking among the nation's elite in wins, earned run average, complete games, strikeouts and innings pitched. The junior righty has turned in 13 straight complete starts to date and has not give up more than three earned runs in a single outing this season.
"I am honored to have been named the Pitcher of the Year," said Peters. "Our conference is loaded with talent, especially the guys down at TCU. The honor is also a reflection of my teammates as well, the confidence I have every start is high because I know my teammates are going to score runs and play great defense behind me."
The Simi Valley, Calif. native has thrown seven complete games this season, including three straight down the stretch. He is currently tied for the Mountain West Conference record for complete games in a single season and career and is also tied for complete-game shutouts in a career with former San Diego State Aztec and 2009 No. 1 overall MLB selection Stephen Strasburg.
He has won 21 games to date in three seasons with the Rebels and surpassed the 250 career strikeout mark earlier this year in an 11-strikeout performance against BYU, a complete-game effort in which he gave up just three hits and two runs - all in the third inning - guiding UNLV to a 7-2 win.
Joining Peters as an All-Mountain West Conference First Team member is Bayardi. Bayardi has enjoyed a solid sophomore campaign, batting .333 on the season with 52 hits, including 10 home runs. The Phoenix, Ariz. native leads the team in RBI with 51 and ranks third in doubles with 13 to date. He carries a .609 slugging percentage and ranks second on the team in stolen bases with nine.
Cook and Kirk each earned All-MWC Second Team honors in their first seasons with UNLV. Cook leads the team with a .372 batting average and also has a team-high 83 hits on the year, starting all 56 games for UNLV. The Centerville, Utah native has 17 extra-base hits this year and 43 RBI to go along with five stolen bases. He committed just three errors at first base for a .994 fielding percentage. He put together the longest hitting streak by a Rebel player in the past decade, hitting safely in 21 straight games, a streak that ranked fifth-longest in the nation at the time.
Kirk, one of 11 players to join Chambers from the College of Southern Nevada, is hitting .327 on the year with 65 hits, good for second on the team behind Cook. He has scored a team-high 55 runs and ranks in the top-15 nationally in runs scored per game. The Las Vegas native has swiped a team-high 12 stolen bases and driven in 28 runs.
The Rebels will open up action at the 2011 Mountain West Conference Championship Tuesday night against fourth-seeded San Diego State at 7 p.m. PT at Tony Gwynn Field.
