Tiger Trio named ABCA All-South Region

Published 6:00 am Wednesday, June 20, 2018

Auburn players Casey Mize, Will Holland and Edouard Julien have been named to the 2018 ABCA/Rawlings All-South Region Teams voted on by members of the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Mize was named a first-team selection for the second straight season and was joined by Holland on the list, while Julien was a second-team honoree. First-team selections are nominated for ABCA/Rawlings All-America honors..

In 17 starts this season, Mize posted a 10-6 record and a 3.30 ERA en route to becoming just the second two-time All-American in program history. He was also named First Team All-SEC and a finalist for both the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy presented to the best player in college Baseball.

The Springville, Ala., native leads the SEC and ranks second in the country with 156 strikeouts, good for the third most in a single-season in program history. Dating back to the beginning of last season, Mize has struck out 265 batters and issued only 25 walks. Along with his strikeout total, he also leads the SEC in strikeout-to-walk ratio (9.75), strikeouts per nine innings (12.24) and WHIP (0.87).

Holland capped off a breakout sophomore season during which he played in all 66 games and has earned 65 starts at shortstop. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native led the team with 61 runs scored, good for a tie for fourth in the Southeastern Conference, and tied for the team lead with 78 hits. Holland also ranked second on the team in batting average (.313), doubles (18) and RBI (52) and tied for second in home runs (12).

Holland became the first Auburn shortstop to earn All-SEC honors since 2011 and was named a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award presented to the nation’s best shortstop.

Julien turned in one of the best freshman seasons in program history as he led the team with 17 home runs and 69 RBI, which broke former Auburn great and National Baseball Hall of Famer Frank Thomas’ freshman program record. His 69 RBI were also good for the SEC lead and are tops among all freshmen nationally, while his 17 home runs were tied for the second most among freshmen nationally and sixth in the league.

Julien is the only freshman recognized in the South Region and just one of 10 freshmen to be recognized as all-region performers across the country. He was one of four Tigers to earn SEC All-Freshman Team honors and has also been named a Freshman All-American by multiple publications.