Connect with us

Pack in the Pros

Former Wolfpacker, Andrew Knizner, to make St. Louis Cardinals roster, back-up Molina

Published

on

Andrew Knizner hasn’t ‘officially’ been declared the back-up catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, but as manager Mike Shildt said, ‘you can read between the lines.’

Knizner is hitting .280 this spring and has 25 spring training at-bats. The Cardinals starter, Yadier Molina, has 28 and the other two catcher vying for a roster spot have 10 a piece. So yeah, read between the lines. Andrew Knizner is all but locked into a roster spot and the backup catching role.

Yadier Molina, the long-time Cardinals backstop is almost a sure-fire hall of famer. The guy is about to play his 17th MLB season, all with St. Louis. He sports a .293 career average and is one of the best defensive catchers that’s ever played. But he’s 38 years old, and for a catcher that plays almost every day, that’s almost unheard of.

That is why St. Louis is grooming their next back stop. Former NC State star, Andrew Knizner.

“It’s good he’s getting the multiple looks,” Shildt said. “He’s creating familiarity with them. He’s done more than his share to get his opportunity to go play. We know Yadi (Molina) is our guy, but he (Knizner) has been a good teammate over the last couple of years. He’s been patient, taking advantage of his time and he deserves to get his opportunity when it’s appropriate, and he has taken advantage of it.” (St. Louis Post Dispatch)

Knizner was the #6 rated Cardinals prospect coming into the 2020 season after being drafted in the 7th round in 2016.

Over his career at NC State he hit .312 and hit 15 HRs, but the real reason everyone loves his bat so much is that he’s an elite contact guy who will take a walk and rarely strikes out. On top of that, he’s profiling to be an above-average defensive catcher.

Keep an eye out for Knizner this season as he gets his chance to prove he’s the St. Louis Cardinals’ catcher of the future.

Click to comment
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Pack in the Pros

Former NC State All-American SS Trea Turner Named NL Player of the Week

Published

on

Former NC State All-American Shortstop Trea Turner was named the National League Player of the Week last week.

  • The 30-year-old hit .462 (12-for-26) with a home run, four RBI, five doubles, a walk, 10 runs scored, a stolen base and a .481 on-base percentage in six games last week.
  • The Florida native led the Majors in runs scored; tied for the NL lead in doubles and extra-base hits (6); ranked third in slugging (.769), OPS (1.250) and hits (12); and ranked fourth in total bases (20).
  • The two-time All-Star recorded four straight multi-hit games from Tuesday through Saturday, putting together three-hit games on Wednesday against Colorado and Thursday against Chicago (AL). It was the third time in his Phillies’ tenure and eighth time in his career that he had at least four-straight multi-hit games.
  • The 2019 World Series Champion has hits in 10 straight games since April 11th, batting .429 (18-for-42) with two homers, six RBI, six doubles, two walks, 12 runs scored, a stolen base and a 1.169 OPS during the stretch. He has reached in each of his last 13 games since April 8th, batting .434/.483/.660 over the stretch.
  • The North Carolina State product stole home on Sunday against the White Sox, marking his 40th consecutive stolen base since September 6, 2022 when he was a member of the Dodgers. His current streak surpassed Jimmy Rollins for the fourth-longest all-time and is now tied with Hall of Famer Tim Raines for the third-longest streak in Major League history. Next on the list is Ichiro Suzuki, who swiped 45 straight bases from April 29, 2006 through May 16, 2007, and Vince Coleman, who stole a Major League record 50 straight bases from September 18, 1988 through July 26, 1989. (MLB)

Turner was a 2-time All-American at NC State. In 2012, Turner was named 3rd Team All-American by NCBWA, and in 2013 he was named 2nd Team by Collegiate Baseball, and 3rd Team by NCBWA and Baseball America.

Turner’s 113 career stolen bases at NC State are the most in school history.

Turner was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 1st Round with the 13th overall pick in the 2014 MLB Draft.

Continue Reading

Pack in the Pros

NC State’s Payton Wilson & Dylan McMahon’s 2024 Draft Projections

Published

on

The 2024 NFL Draft is 1 day away. Where does NC State Linebacker Payton Wilson and Center Dylan McMahon project to be drafted?

PFF

Payton Wilson – 1st Round – 29th Overall Pick – Indianapolis Colts

It’s a cliché to go “best athlete available” for the Colts, but Payton Wilson certainly ticked that box at the NFL scouting combine. Wilson was exceptional in his final season at NC State, earning grades above 75.0 in all three facets of defense, led by his 90.0 coverage grade with three interceptions and four forced incompletions.

Dylan McMahon – 6th Round – 214th Overall Pick – Cincinnati Bengals

Sporting News

Payton Wilson – 2nd Round – 38th Overall Pick – Tennessee Titans

Dylan McMahon – 5th Round – 175th Overall Pick – New Orleans Saints

Walter Football

Payton Wilson – 2nd Round – 42nd Overall Pick – Houston Texans

CBS Sports

Payton Wilson – 2nd Round – 43rd Overall Pick – Atlanta Falcons

Dylan McMahon – 6th Round – 182nd Overall Pick – Tennessee Titans

The Athletic 

Payton Wilson – 2nd Round – 56th Overall Pick – Dallas Cowboys

Dylan McMahon – 7th Round – 232nd Overall Pick – Minnesota Vikings

Fantasy Pros

Payton Wilson – 3rd Round – 66th Overall Pick – Arizona Cardinals

Dylan McMahon – 7th Round – 55th Overall Pick – Green Bay Packers

NFL.com

Payton Wilson – 3rd Round – 80th Overall Pick – Cincinnati Bengals

Dylan McMahon – 4th Round – 112th Overall Pick – Carolina Panthers

ESPN

Payton Wilson – 3rd Round – 81st Overall Pick – Seattle Seahawks

Wilson has an early-round grade based strictly on his game tape, but durability concerns could drop him to this range — or even later. He had 130 tackles, six sacks and three interceptions last season.

Dylan McMahon – 7th Round – 247th Overall Pick – Houston Texans

Pro Football Network

Payton Wilson – 3rd Round – 83rd Overall Pick – Los Angeles Rams

Dylan McMahon – 6th Round – 205th Overall Pick – Detroit Lions

Continue Reading

Pack in the Pros

Former NC State G Terquavion Smith Earns a Spot on the 2023-23 NBA G-League All-Rookie Team

Published

on

Former NC State Guard Terquavion Smith earned a spot on the 2023-24 NBA G-League All-Rookie Team.

Smith averaged 22.3 points, 3.4 assists and 3 rebounds per game for the Delaware Blue Coats. What’s crazy, is that he only started in 3 of the 36 games he played in. With that being said, he averaged 30.7 minutes per game. Smith shot 35.6% from three.

As a 2-way player, Smith also played 16 games for the Philadelphia 76ers, averaging 3.3 points in 5.3 minutes per game. He shot 37.1% from three.

Continue Reading

Pack in the Pros

NC State LB Payton Wilson Visited with the Steelers Yesterday

Published

on

Former NC State Linebacker Payton Wilson had a Top-30 visit with the Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday. Wilson is the first Linebacker the Steelers have brought in.

Wilson has already had Top-30 visits with the Dallas Cowboys and the Carolina Panthers.

PFF ranks Wilson as the #1 Linebacker in the 2024 Draft, and #26 on their Big Board.

1. LB PAYTON WILSONNC STATE

PFF BIG BOARD RANK: 26

Wilson has the length, movement ability, IQ and tape of a first-round linebacker. What will likely keep him from being drafted on Day 1 is his injury history and age. If healthy, he can be a starting inside linebacker in any defense. (PFF)

Will someone take Wilson in the 1st round? Will he be a 2nd round pick? If he slips past that, that’s just stupid.

 

 

Continue Reading