2016 Clemson Baseball Season Review: Infielders

With the 2016 baseball season over for Clemson, it is time to take a look back. Yesterday we took a top-level look at how Clemson did in 2016 and for the next several days we'll look at how each player did. Today we start with the infielders. Clemson had plenty of talent in the infield when they were at the plate, but defensively it was a different matter. Errors, especially in the middle of the infield, played a large part in Clemson's problems all season.

Chris Okey -€” Junior, C

The second round draft pick in the 2016 MLB Draft had an excellent final season at Clemson. Okey hit .339 with a .465 OBP, good for second on the team in both categories. He led the team in RBIs with 74 and also hit 15 home runs. His slugging percentage was .611. Chris also did well behind the player with only 6 errors all year and was probably the best defensive player on the team, a must at catcher. He's going to be missed next year as he recently signed a 2 million dollar contract with the Cincinnati Reds.

Weston Wilson -€” Junior, 2B

Weston Wilson's junior campaign was a solid one for Clemson. The infielder hit a respectable .279 over 63 games and got on base at a .343 clip. Wilson slugged .434 with 7 home runs to his name along with 45 RBIs. One thing Wilson, along with Pinder and Wohlman, did well was getting hits with runners in scoring position. Despite the low number of home runs he was still able to knock in a good number of runs. Wilson was one of the worst offenders in the field though. He committed 11 errors all year for a .966 fielding percentage. That is the type of thing that can kill a team and it certainly hurt Clemson. Wilson appears likely to leave after being drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the MLB Draft and while it could be a positive on the defensive side we'll have to see how his bat is replaced.

Eli White -€” Junior, SS

White had a difficult season. His hitting wasn't bad. He hit .272 with a .389 OBP while scoring 57 runs. He also hit 4 home runs and earned 30 RBIs, solid if unspectacular numbers. White was a speedster on the base paths with 24 steals in 30 attempts, the best on the team by far. The problem is that he committed 24 errors. That's frankly unacceptable at this level and an absolute killer for someone playing in 64 games for a team. And that may be the frustrating part of our defense; outside of 3-4 guys the team fields the ball pretty well. But those errors are enough to kill a team. White was drafted during the 2016 MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics and is likely to sign a professional contract.

Chris Williams -€” Sophomore, C/1B/3B

Another name we didn't hear much about. Williams featured in 57 games for Clemson and hit .245 with a .342 OBP. He did show some nice pop in his bat with a .413 slugging percentage and 8 home runs. He also drove in 38 runs and scored 34 by himself. Once again though fielding was a problem with 12 errors for a .969 fielding percentage. Between Williams, White, and Wilson Clemson had 47 errors, nearly half the errors of the entire team. With Okey signing a professional contract with the Reds, Coach Monte Lee mentioned that Chris Williams is likely to be the guy behind the plate next year.

Jordan Greene -€” Freshman, 3B

Greene did well in spot duty at the plate. Across 38 games, and 27 as a starter, he hit .235 with a quality OBP of .422. He didn't hit for power much with a .321 slugging percentage, but he was able to get on base and score with 22 runs all season.  In the field Greene was a different story. He committed 12 errors, enough to tie for second most on the team, and seemed a bit lost at times.

Andrew Cox -€” Redshirt Junior, 1B/OF

Cox was another spot start guy who got some plate appearances late as well. He appeared in 37 games with 26 starts and hit .224. He didn't get on base all that frequently with a .284 OBP, but when he was able to hit the ball he was effective.  He was able to drive in 16 runs and scored 10 times himself. In the field he was excellent with a .995 fielding percentage making him a dependable if not spectacular backup option.

Adam Renwick -€” Sophomore, 3B

Renwick really regressed in 2016. After a 2015 season with some spot duty in 25 games, Renwick hit .139 in 30 games this year, 23 of which he started. The thought was that he was ready to make the next step in his sophomore season, but that didn't happen. With some many departures this year Renwick has to step up and offer a contribution in 2017. Hopefully his poor numbers were due to a lack of comfort and routine, but with 72 at-bats this year I'm not optimistic. I see his future with the Tigers likely as an infield utility man who provides more to the team on defense rather than on offense.

Jackson Campana -€” Redshirt Junior, 1B/RHP

Campana did not have a great 2016 at the plate or on the mound. He had a 9.00 ERA in his single appearance and at the plate he had 10 plate appearances and a single hit. Not the best. He did have a perfect fielding percentage though, sometimes it is all about the positives.

Glenn Batson -€” Redshirt Sophomore, 3B

Though he got time in 29 games, Batson only got 23 plate appearances and managed a single hit and walk during that time. He also committed 3 errors while in the field and seemed to be used mainly as a sub to give other players a break during midweek games or games where Clemson had a large lead.