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Brian Kaplan |
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Newcomer on the mound who has shown flashes of good ability ... has a good feel for pitching but needs to adjust to the college game ... known for strong arm and good command of a tough curveball ... has good movement on his pitches ... joins Notre Dame baseball program that has produced 13 previous letterwinners from Florida, including senior RHP Danny Tamayo (Miami), junior DH Ken Meyer (Fort Myers) and freshman 3B Javier Sanchez (Miami) ... inherits No. 24 jersey worn by Notre Dame?s 1999-2000 closer and Hollywood, Fla., native John Corbin ... others who have worn 24 include 1B Tim Hutson (?86-?88, 28 career HRs) and C/1B George Restovich, Jr. (?94-?96, .327 career avg.).
PREP & PERSONAL: Two-year captain and regular member of pitching staff on Father Lopez High School teams that won four conference and regional titles while garnering national rankings during his freshman and sophomore seasons ... team MVP as a junior and senior, also earning all-conference, all-city and all-state honors ... set school record for career wins, going 23-5 during final three seasons ... his senior season included 11-2 record, 2.01 ERA and 105 Ks in 80 innings?plus a .167 opponent batting average that set a school record low ... went 9-3 as a junior, with a 1.42 ERA (best in school history), 110 Ks in 85 IP, a .175 opponent batting avg. and a pair of no-hitters?one coming in the district title game vs. Trinity Prep, when he left with score 0-0 after seven innings (he lost a perfect game in the seventh, when the catcher dropped third strike on second batter) ... led team to 22-9 record and round of 16 in ?99 state tournament ... pitched 17 relief innings and won all three decisions on 29-5 team as a sophomore ... selected to East Florida Scout Team ... led summer-league team to third-place finish in state Legion tournament, pitching every week with no losses ... tossed shutout in state Legion tournament win over Gainesville-Buckholtz ... swam freestyle and breaststroke as sophomore and junior, helping squad claim conference and regional titles ... member of National Honor Society, with a 3.86 GPA ... born March 8 , 1982, in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. ... son of Marshall and Linda Kaplan ... full name is Brian L. Kaplan ... enrolled in First Year of Studies ... intends to major in business.
