July 24, 2007
San Antonio – St. Mary’s University baseball coach Charlie Migl announced on Tuesday the signing of Tyler Cales and Ben Itz to national letters of intent to join the Rattlers, starting with the 2007-08 academic year.
Cales, a 6’3″, 230 lb., right-handed pitcher, comes to San Antonio after playing for the University of New Mexico and Midland College the last two years. He played one year for head coach David Coleman at Midland College, helping lead the Chaparrals to a 37-21 overall record, second place in the region and a berth in the regional tournament in his only season on the team. He started the season as a reliever, but worked his way into the starting rotation, picking up three wins.
Prior to his time at Midland and UNM, he played for Coach Gordon Gazell at James Madison High School. He earned first-team all-district honors as both a pitcher and designated hitter his senior year. He went 8-2 with a 1.43 ERA, striking out 89 batters and only allowing 47 hits and 21 walks in 62 innings of work his junior season. He was picked in the 49th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft by the Cincinnati Reds.
Cales and Itz are the tenth and 11th signees for the Rattlers this summer. The Rattlers finished the 2007 regular season with a 38-16 overall record and a 30-10 mark in Heartland Conference play. St. Mary’s finished the regular season second in the Heartland Conference, just one game behind St. Edward’s, who had a 31-9 HC mark.