Wolverines Sign Seven During Early Period
11/21/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan head baseball coach Rich Maloney announced the signing of seven student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on Tuesday (Nov. 20) during the early fall signing period. They include four pitchers and three position players: pitcher Bobby Brosnahan(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer HS); catcher Coley Crank(Berkeley, Calif./Pinole Valley HS); shortstop Kevin Krantz(Traverse City, Mich./Traverse City Central HS); shortstop John Lorenz(Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East HS); pitcher Tyler Mills(Mt. Pleasant, Mich./Mt. Pleasant HS); pitcher Brandon Sinnery(Franklin, Mass./Worcester Academy); and pitcher Kevin Vangheluwe(St. Claire Shores, Mich./Lake Shore HS).
"We're excited about the incoming recruits that we'll have for next season," said Maloney. "We've got some outstanding arms in this class and very talented athletes, so we've continued our trend of recruiting multi-sport athletes who are versatile and can fill several different roles. We feel really good about each of these kids and think they will make a difference for Michigan baseball in the future."
A left-handed pitcher, Brosnahan earned all-state second team and All-Southeastern Conference honors at Pioneer High School as a junior last year. "He throws three pitches for strikes," said Maloney. "He's very crafty and should be able to help us right away."
A catcher out of Berkeley, Calif., Crank is an all-league selection in both baseball and football, and will add power to U-M's lineup. He was named to the 2007 Junior Sun Belt Oklahoma All-Tournament team, and played in the 2007 Area Code Games in Long Beach. "Coley Crank is a really strong, young man," Maloney said. "He's six-foot, 220, just built like a house. He'll give us added depth at the catcher position, and provide a powerful bat in the middle of the lineup."
A shortstop out of Traverse City Central, Krantz hit .475 as a junior with eight home runs, 44 RBI, and set school season records for on-base percentage (.638), slugging percentage (.848) and walks (38). He also posted a 7-3 record and 1.07 ERA. Krantz was named second-team all-state as a junior in 2006-07. "Kevin Krantz is another outstanding athlete and will be able to help us with the bat."
An honor roll student, Lorenz is listed as the No. 8 player in Illinois' class of 2008 as a shortstop, and is captain of both the varsity baseball and basketball teams. As a junior, he set school records with nine home runs and 45 RBI, while hitting .422, and was named MVP of LWE's 2007 conference and regional champion team. "John Lorenz is an outstanding infield prospect. He has a strong arm, a good bat and is very athletic," said Maloney.
Right-handed pitcher Mills, an honor roll student at Mt. Pleasant High School, is an all-state selection in both football and baseball. "Mills is an outstanding athlete. He's a hard-throwing right-hander and is a strong, physical kid."
Sinnery comes to Ann Arbor with both a baseball and hockey background. Entering his senior year, he is ranked among the top three high school pitchers in Massachusetts by "Perfect Game." He was a first-team All-Central New England Prep School selection with a 5-1 record, two saves, 0.88 ERA, 42 strikeouts, seven walks and allowing just 12 hits in 30 2/3 innings. "Sinnery is what you'd call a long, wiry kid that, with development, has a chance to be pretty good," Maloney commented.
An all-state and all-regional first-team pitcher as a junior in St. Claire Shores, Vangheluwe (pronounced: van-gal-away) carries a 21-2 record into his senior year. He hit .454 as a junior with 10 home runs and 56 RBI, and struck out 90 with just 14 walks in 71 innings and a 0.79 ERA. Vangheluwe is also a guard on the Lake Shore varsity basketball team. "Vangheluwe hit 10 homers for his high school team, but we recruited him as a pitcher," Maloney said. "He throws well and has good breaking stuff."
"Vangheluwe and Mills have been impressive as hitters in high school and we're going to allow them at least the opportunity not only to continue to pitch, which is the main emphasis of recruiting those boys, but also to swing the bat," Maloney continued. "Both are very physical in nature, 6-2, 6-3 type kids, strong kids who are outstanding athletes."
Michigan Baseball Signees -- 2007 Early Signing Period
| Name | Pos. | B-T | Ht. | Wgt. | Hometown (High School) |
| Bobby Brosnahan | LHP | L-L | 6-0 | 160 | Ann Arbor, Mich. (Pioneer) |
| Coley Crank | C | R-R | 6-0 | 220 | Berkeley, Calif. (Pinole Valley) |
| Kevin Krantz | SS | R-R | 6-2 | 185 | Traverse City, Mich. (Central) |
| John Lorenz | SS | R-R | 6-3 | 195 | Frankfort, Ill. (Lincoln-Way East) |
| Tyler Mills | RHP | R-R | 6-3 | 195 | Mt. Pleasant, Mich. (Mt. Pleasant) |
| Brandon Sinnery | RHP | R-R | 6-4 | 170 | Franklin, Mass. (Worcester Academy) |
| Kevin Vangheluwe | RHP | R-R | 6-2 | 205 | St. Claire Shores, Mich. (Lake Shore) |
Contact: Barbara Cossman (734) 763-4423
