LUBBOCK, Texas — Columbia baseball shortstop
Andy Blake was named one of 25 semifinalists for the 2023 Brooks Wallace Award, the College Baseball Foundation announced.
The award honors the nation's top shortstop and will be presented this summer by the College Baseball Foundation. It is named for former Texas Tech shortstop Brooks Wallace, a slick-fielding shortstop who played for the Red Raiders from 1977 to 1980. Wallace died of leukemia at the age of 27.
The 25 players highlighting the 2023 Brooks Wallace Award semifinalist list exemplify what top-notch shortstops are supposed to be – confident with the bat and sure-handed in the field.
Blake has reached base safely in all 43 games this season and leads Ivy League hitters in seven offensive categories, including batting average, hits, and runs. Last Saturday at Penn, Blake set the program's single-season record for hits with his 72nd of the year. The senior captain is tied for the team lead with 11 home runs and has recorded a hit in all but five games this season. He also ranks in the top 25 nationally in doubles, doubles per game, and hits per game.
Defensively, the Hopewell Township, New Jersey native has committed just three errors in 21 conference games and leads the league in assists. Blake is part of a Columbia defense that ranks eighth in the country in double plays per game.
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