Marshall announces seven-member fall signing classMarshall announces seven-member fall signing class
Baseball

Marshall announces seven-member fall signing class

SAN ANTONIO -- UTSA baseball has signed seven future student-athletes for the 2020 season, it was announced by seventh-year head coach Jason Marshall on Wednesday afternoon.
 
The Roadrunners welcome right-hander Zach DeLeon (Hondo, Texas), righty Jack Engelmann (Georgetown, Texas), left-handed pitcher Richard Gilbert (San Antonio), right-hander Jacob Jimenez (Houston), righty Pepper Jones (Dallas), outfielder Hobbs Price (Fredricksburg, Texas) and right-hander Jesse Reed (Austin, Texas) into the UTSA family.
 
"We are excited to add seven new members to our Roadrunner Baseball Family for next year," Marshall said. "I appreciate the hard work our coaching staff has invested in this class and their persistence to keep working throughout the summer and fall to get to signing day. We addressed the needs of our program heading into the 2020 season and put our effort into bolstering our pitching staff and holding an extremely high standard for any offensive player we were going to sign. I feel very good about the quality of players and people we attracted in this class and can't wait to see these guys in our uniform."
 
Zach DeLeon, 6-2, 200, RHP, Hondo, Texas (Hondo High School / San Jacinto College)
Notes: Appeared in 17 games in 2018, working 16 innings with 13 hits allowed, striking out 20 with a 4.02 ERA … Played for Coach Tom Arrington at San Jacinto College from 2017-18, earning region all-state honors … Prepped at Hondo High School … Was named a Perfect Game All-American with club team San Antonio Kings … Participated in the Perfect Game 2016 WWBA South Qualifier, earning All-Tournament honors … Three-time all-district selection … Four-time academic all-district selection … A three-time team captain … Personal: Full name is Zachary James DeLeon … Son of Oscar and Grace DeLeon … Has an older sister, Megan, who attends Abilene Christian … Interested in major in kinesiology. 

Marshall on DeLeon …
"We were very pleased to add Zach to our class this fall. We have watched him since high school and feel that he will be a staple in the backside of our bullpen. He is able to run a fastball up there at 93 with heavy sink and the breaking ball has a chance to be a wipeout pitch. Zach is part of a perennial winner and is used to winning. He is a quality addition to our 2020 team and also brings great make-up to the table. We are excited to have him."
 
Jack Engelmann, 6-2, 190, RHP, Georgetown, Texas (Georgetown High School / Paris College)
Notes: Led the conference in appearances (23), sporting a team-best 2.65 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP … Ranks fourth in Georgetown HS history in save … Named second-team all-district and honorable mention all district in high school, also earning academic all-state honors.  

Marshall on Engelmann …
"Jack will give us a different look out of the bullpen throwing from an 'underneath' slot. He has a knack for creating bad swings and is very confident with his stuff. We really like his aggressiveness on the mound and overall presence. He has the ability to be a mid-game stopper as well as a finisher."
 
Richard Gilbert, 6-2, 210, LHP, San Antonio, Texas (Johnson High School / Texas Tech / Blinn College)
Notes: Pitched in four innings at Texas Tech in 2018 before transferring to Blinn JC for the remainder of the 2018 season … Earned four letters for coach Gordon Gessell at Johnson High School … Helped lead team to the playoffs in each of his four seasons … Pitched Johnson HS to the Texas 6A State Championship game as a junior … Earned 11 wins with a save as a junior … Had a 9-4 record with a 1.09 ERA with 107 strikeouts as a senior … Named to the San Antonio Express-News Super Team and all-area … Earned first-team all-state honors in 2016 … Named THSBCA Academic All-State, All-District and second-team all-state honors in 2017 … Played club for the San Antonio Angels and the Houston Banditos … Played on the Texas Rangers 2015-16 Area Code teams … Personal: Born in Grapevine, Texas … Son of Bill and Lisa Gilbert … Has a brother, James … Father pitched at Crowder JC.

Marshall on Gilbert …
"We are excited to get Richard back in San Antonio. He had a very good high school career at Johnson and was exceptional when we saw him this fall for Blinn. He will help with our need to have more left handed pitching on our staff, but does so while bringing electric stuff with him. His fastball was 90-94 this fall and also showed a quality breaking pitch. Richard projects as someone that will fill a starting role for 2020 team."
 
Jacob Jimenez, 6-0, 200, RHP, Houston, Texas (Chavez High School / Galveston College)
Notes: Earned all-conference and all-star honors at Galveston College … Went 7-6 with a 3.63 ERA in 69 innings, allowing 66 hits with 68 strikeouts.

Marshall on Jimenez …
"Jacob fits the starter mold as he has a solid three pitch mix. He logged a lot of innings as a true freshman and will continue to get to better as this year progresses. His competitive presence and gamesmanship really separates him this fall. He will have an impact role for our team in 2020."
 
Pepper Jones, 6-0, 180, RHP, Dallas, Texas (McKinney High School / Navarro College)
Notes: Played at Navarro JC for Coach Matt Podjenski and Brett Doe … Helped lead Navarro to the 2017 NJCAA Region 14 East Conference Championship …  Tabbed NJCAA Region 14 fist-team all-conference … Had a 2.86 ERA with 11.05 strikeouts per game … Held opponents to a .194 average … Named to the President's List at Navarro with a 4.0 GPA … Played at McKinney High School, earning 2017 district pitcher of the year honors after a 0.97 ERA … Named to the THSCA Elite All-State Team … A four-year academic all-district selection … National Honor Society … Named McKinney HS 2017 King of the Hill … Played shortstop and third base in HS … Played club with the Dallas Tigers and the DBat Elite … Pitched in the 2017 Connie Mack World Series … Named 2016 Perfect Game Underclass All-America honorable mention … named second-team all-region by 2017 Rawlings Perfect Game.

Marshall on Jones …
"Pepper is another pitcher who has a chance to fill different roles for our staff. He saw most of his time out of the pen in 2018 but we believe he has the stuff to navigate through a line up multiple times. He presents a heavy swing and miss fastball as well as a quality breaking pitch. He has run his fastball up to 93 but we feel that he still has untapped potential. With most of our staff leaving to graduation he has a chance to make a huge impact."
 
Hobbs Price, 6-0, 180, OF, Fredricksburg, Texas (Fredricksburg High School)
Notes: School record holder for Battlin' Billies at Fredricksburg High School in single-season RBI (40) and doubles (17) … Ranked third in the state in doubles, fifth in RBI and 85th in average … Earned first-team all-district and all-state honors as a junior in the outfield … Named to the San Antonio Express-News All-Area Team in the outfield … Earned first-team all-district accolades on the mound as a sophomore … Tabbed second-team outfield on the Super Centex team as a sophomore … Named honorable all-state in the outfield as a sophomore … Played four years of club for the South Texas Sliders, which earned a No. 16 ranking by Perfect Game in 2018 …

Marshall on Price …
"Hobbs has a chance to be one of the more dynamic players we have had at UTSA. With very few position players leaving this year we were very picky on any position player we were going to add to the roster and he checks off all the boxes. Hobbs has elite speed and the defensive actions to match. He can be an immediate offensive impact for our lineup, as he can drive the ball to all fields consistently. He was fun to watch all summer as he performed against the very best competition. We expect him to be an immediate contributor."
 
Jesse Reed, 6-3, 200, RHP, Austin, Texas (McCallum High School / Temple College)
Notes: Went 5-2 with 10 saves in 24 relief outings in 2018 … Had a 3.30 ERA with 70 strikeouts and 11 walks in 71 innings … Led the conference in saves at Temple College … Started two games in the JUCO World Series … Named to the Texas and New Mexico Region 5 All-Star Game … Named district MVP at McCallum High School, earning Austin all-star honors … A three-year starter who was tabbed as one of the top 50 prospects to watch in Texas … Member of the National Honor Society.

Marshall on Reed …
"Jesse had a tremendous freshman season at Temple and has shown he can fill multiple roles for our staff. He throws a ton of strikes and competes in the zone with a three-pitch mix.  He had success in the closing role as well as a starter. We are excited to see where he will fill in as we believe he has a chance to make our staff very dynamic in 2020."
 
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