WVU baseball: Kyle Gray leading hitters on the season

The WVU baseball team did not get off to the best start this season. The weather is still cold back home and the bats have yet to heat up.

West Virginia’s Kyle Gray wouldn’t be so happy with his start, but he does have the highest batting average so far. Through 24 games, where the WVU baseball team has a 10-14 record, Gray is hitting .266.

He has started 23 of the Mountaineers’ 24 games this season. Only Darius Hills, Brandon White and Jimmy Galusky have played more. All four players have been consistent but Gray has been able to rise slightly above the rest.

His average is 12 points higher than the next highest batter, Andrew Zitel, who now sits at .254. Sooner or later, some of these guys will have to get into the .300-level. Last year, Gray hit .260 and was an honorable mention for the Big 12.

He is a sophomore second baseman who looks the natural part of an everyday player. He has a good build at 5-foot-10, 175 pounds. He is sleek and speedy but also packs a good amount of power to drive the ball to all fields.

On top of his solid batting average, Gray has five home runs, 10 RBI, four doubles and two triples. His best game this season was against Middle Tennessee where he went 3 for 4. The game prior against Western Kentucky, Gray collected two home runs.

In the most recent series against Texas Tech, Gray went 1 for 10, which lowered his average immensely. He was able to get up to .329 a couple of weeks ago so he is cooling off. Once he finds his stroke again, the Mountaineers will be in good shape to make a nice run in the second half of the season.

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There are 29 games left on the season, so plenty of time for everyone to get their minds and bodies straight to earn a repeat trip to the NCAA Tournament.