The season for Florida State baseball, the career for legendary head coach Mike Martin and the year for FSU’s athletic programs came to an end on Wednesday night as the Seminoles fell to Texas Tech in a College World Series elimination game, 4-1.
Despite a disappointing regular season, FSU baseball accomplished some big things including winning on the road in the regional and Super Regional rounds — a first for the program. The Seminoles also managed to extend their streak of 40-win seasons to 42 consecutive years.
In this week’s The Daily Nole Poll, we asked our social media followers who FSU’s MVP was in 2019. The results were a bit surprising.
Only 83 people weighed in this week, but more than half voted for outfielder/closer J.C. Flowers. Flowers enjoyed a career year at the plate while dominating on the mound and becoming just the second FSU player to record 10 home runs and 10 saves in the same season.
At the plate, Flowers hit a career-high .266 and ranked second on the team with 13 home runs and third with 53 RBIs. Flowers was also the team’s leader in stolen bases with 11. On the mound, Flowers finished with a 1.69 ERA and 13 saves.
Lead-off man and leading hitter Mike Salvatore got 23 percent of the vote and is currently the ACC’s leader in hits. Third baseman Drew Mendoza received 22 percent of the vote. 4 percent voted for someone else, but there were no specifications given.
Our Take
It’s a rarity since we revived this series, but we’re actually going against the voters and selecting third baseman Drew Mendoza.
Mendoza arrived at FSU with a lot of hype and although one could argue he hasn’t lived up to it completely, he’s still been a very valuable player. Mendoza led the Seminoles this season with team-highs of 16 home runs and 56 RBIs.
Mendoza also batted .308 and posted a team-best .594 slugging percentage and .471 on-base percentage. Mendoza’s mere presence in the lineup led to more hittable pitches up for those hitting in front of him like Reese Albert and those hitting behind him like Robby Martin.
Mendoza was often pitched around, but still put up outstanding offensive numbers. Also, let’s not forget the fact that it was Mendoza’s RBI single in the 12th inning of the Baton Rouge Super Regional that ultimately landed the Seminoles in Omaha.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson. Like The Daily Nole on Facebook. To pitch an idea, author a post or to learn more about The Daily Nole, email Mike Ferguson at Mike@TheDailyNole.com.
Mark Kuhlmann/FSU athletics
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