UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State baseball program has placed three athletes on the Big Ten's 2014 Baseball Players to Watch List. The three Nittany Lions garnering the recognition are senior Alex Farkes (Boston, Mass.) and sophomores James Coates (Girard, Ohio) and Greg Guers (Langhorne, Pa.).
Farkes will take on a leadership role for the Blue and White this season, as the catcher looks to make a big impact behind the plate with the pitching staff and in the batter's box. Farkes is coming off a 2013 campaign in which he earned a career-high 32 starts and played in 37 games. The catcher hit .259 last year with 12 RBIs and 18 runs.
Penn State's unanimous 2013 All-Big Ten Freshmen Team selection, Coates, returns for his sophomore season in hopes of building on last year's success. The outfielder impressed at the dish, hitting .295 for the season, while leading the team in runs scored with 27. Coates finished the season on fire, recording a seven-game hitting streak that will carry into the start of the 2014 season.
The third Nittany Lion to be recognized as a player to watch for the upcoming season is Guers, who will be making his Penn State debut this season. The outfielder sat out last season due to NCAA rules after transferring from USC-Upstate to the Nittany Lions. As a freshman with the Spartans Guers started 42 games and batted .309, while compiling 37 runs, 36 RBIs and four home runs.