St. John's University Athletics
Matt Harvey Highlights Eighth Annual Baseball Bullpen Winter Banquet
2/7/2014 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 7, 2014
QUEENS, N.Y. - A crowd of more than 200 alumni, family and friends of the St. John's baseball program attended the Eighth Annual Baseball Bullpen Winter Banquet last week at the Metropolitan Club in Manhattan. The event, which was sponsored by Rawlings, raised more than $65,000 for the program and was highlighted by guest speaker and New York Mets All-Star Matt Harvey.
A number of notable guests were in attendance at the event, including Hall of Fame coaches Jack Kaiser and Lou Carnesecca, former St. John's standout and New York Mets Hall of Famer John Franco, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon and Mets PR Director Jay Horwitz.
"Matt is a young guy and he's not that far removed from college so he was able to relate to our guys quite well and give them some good advice," said head coach Ed Blankmeyer. "As someone who passed up big money out of high school to attend college, he preached a great message that stressed the importance of education as well as the maturity gained through the college experience."
Harvey joins a list of guest speakers that includes Bernie Williams (2013), Terry Francona (2012), Bobby Valentine (2011), Ron Darling (2010), John Franco (2009), David Wright (2008) and Roger Clemens (2007).
"It's important for us as alumni to come out to these events and keep giving back to the program," said Nick Luisi, who finished his St. John's playing career in 2009. "Not all of us go on to play professional baseball, but you learn a lot from St. John's and from Coach Blankmeyer when you come through this program and those lessons can be used in life and in whatever career path you take."
Mike Stafford, who earned both his undergraduate and law degrees from St. John's, was honored at the event for his continued support of the program and devotion to the University. The Sports Information Director at St. John's from 1964-67, Stafford is an active member of the Red White Club and was presented with the University's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2007. A former sportswriter for United Press International and a one-time Vice President of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Stafford currently practices law in New York.
As part of the evening's festivities, the Peter P. Smith Most Valuable Player Award was also presented to Frank Schwindel. Drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 18th round of the 2013 MLB Draft, Schwindel garnered first team ABCA All-Northeast Region accolades as well as second team All-BIG EAST honors. The first baseman batted a team-best .349 and also led the team with 53 RBI. Schwindel belted a team-high five home runs and posted a team-best .502 slugging percentage, while finishing tied for the team-lead with 21 doubles.
Ryan Horstman, meanwhile, was presented with the Howie Gershberg Award as the team's most outstanding pitcher. A fourth round selection of the Seattle Mariners in the 2013 MLB Draft, Horstman earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America honors and was also a third team All-BIG EAST choice. The lefty finished the season 6-6 with a 2.33 ERA in 65.2 innings of work and led the team in both wins and ERA. Horstman also racked up 56 strikeouts and limited the opposition to just a .240 batting average.
Blankmeyer, the winningest coach in St. John's baseball history, and his Red Storm squad open the 2014 season on Feb. 14 with a three-game series at Pepperdine. A 56-game schedule features trips to nine different states and a total of 21 games against teams that have made at least one NCAA Tournament appearance in the past three seasons, including four matchups against 2013 NCAA Tournament squads.
