With the regular season for ACC baseball now over, the conference put out their list of yearly awards, and while there were a few surmises and heads turned on some of the selections, there is one thing for certain: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets outfielder/utility player Alex Hernandez was worthy of his spot as the ACC Freshman of the year.
It is the second year in a row that a Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets player has won the award, hoping outfielder Drew Burress from last season. Hernandez is the seventh player to win the award overall, joining Jason Varitek, Nomar Garciaparra, Matt Wieters, Mark Teixeira, and Micah Owings on the list of former winners from the Flats.
The award comes as no surprise to Yellow Jackets fans, as Hernandez has been arguably the second-best player on the team this season. Hernandez posted a .337 batting average this season, good for third on the team, and led the team in RBI with 60 this season. However, his ability to get on base is something that the Yellow Jackets have needed in a lot of huge moments during the season, and he delivered, finishing two hits shy of the team lead in hits, with 70. Hernandez was one of three players to appear in all 55 games for the Yellow Jackets this season.
Having someone like Drew Burress come in last season should have been a rarity, but having two players in consecutive season win the ACC Freshman of the Year award is something that is going to propel the Yellow Jackets even further as a program.