Lehigh University Athletics
Baseball alumni McBride, Berger shining in the pros
7/7/2010 9:15:00 PM | Baseball
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BETHLEHEM, Pa. – With July just a week old, it has already been a profitable month for the two former Lehigh baseball standouts that are currently playing professionally in the minor leagues. Former Mountain Hawk slugger Matt McBride was named the Eastern League’s Player of the Week after hitting six home runs in a five-game span for the Akron Aeros, the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. In addition, recent graduate Andrew Berger is off to a strong start for the Yakima Bears, the Arizona Diamondbacks short season A-ball affiliate in the Northwest League.
McBride batted .370 (10-for-27) in seven games from June 28 to July 4, but did most of his damage in the power department, with the six home runs and nine runs batted in. The Bethlehem native homered in four of Akron’s first five games last week, highlighted by a 3-for-4 showing with three home runs in the Aeros 5-0 win over the host Bowie Baysox last Thursday.
In his first full season in Double-A, McBride has appeared in 77 of Akron’s 84 games, batting .262 with a team leading ten home runs and 41 RBI. After spending most of his days at Lehigh behind the plate, McBride has successfully transitioned into an outfielder/first baseman.
While at Lehigh, McBride helped lead the Mountain Hawks to a Patriot League Championship and NCAA Regional berth in 2006, a year in which he was recognized as the Patriot League’s Player of the Year. McBride won the Patriot League’s Triple Crown in 2006, leading the league in batting average, home runs and RBI’s. He holds Lehigh’s career record with 56 doubles and owns school single-season records for home runs (12), RBI (61), hits (88) and doubles (20).
Berger’s professional career has been much shorter to this point, having just signed with the Diamondbacks early last week. In just his second day as a professional, Berger made his debut with a scoreless inning of relief against the Vancouver Canadians on June 30. Three days later, the 2010 Lehigh graduate made his first professional start, allowing a run on two hits in three innings of work against the Boise Hawks. Berger, who fanned 42 batters in 61.2 innings for the Mountain Hawks this past season, struck out five Hawks in just three innings and did not factor in the decision.
A native of Piedmont, California, Berger put himself on the radar of professional scouts with a breakout senior season, where he went 5-2 with a 3.36 earned run average as the Mountain Hawks’ top starting pitcher. He ranked second in the league in ERA and was a first team All-Patriot League selection for a Mountain Hawks squad that reached the Patriot League tournament for the first time in four years.
McBride and the Aeros will continue a four-game series with Trenton Wednesday night in Ohio, while Berger and the Bears will begin a five-game set against Vancouver Thursday night in British Columbia.
