Raph Rhymes, Kevin Gausman top All-La. team

Advocate staff photo by BILL FEIG
LSU outfielder Raph Rhymes was named the All-Lousiana Hitter of the Yaer after batting .431 with four home runs and 53 RBIs.

LSU junior outfielder Raph Rhymes was a unanimous selection as the 2012 Louisiana Hitter of the Year while teammate and sophomore starting pitcher Kevin Gausman was named the state’s Pitcher of the Year on the Louisiana Sports Writers Association’s All-Louisiana baseball team.

Tigers coach Paul Mainieri earned Coach of the Year honors, edging LSU-Shreveport’s Rocke Musgraves.

Southeastern Louisiana pitcher Andro Cutura was voted as the state’s Freshman of the Year.

Greg Friesen, a junior first baseman from LSU-Shreveport, was selected as Newcomer of the Year.

Ten schools were represented on the first and second teams; LSU led the way with eight selections, including three on the first team. Outfielder Mason Katz was LSU’s other first-team selection. Catcher Ty Ross; shortstop Austin Nola; and pitchers Nick Goody, Aaron Nola and Chris Cotton were the Tigers’ second-team selections.

Tulane followed with five selections, two on the first team, and Southeastern Louisiana and LSU-Shreveport also had two first team selections.

Rhymes, who was named the Southeastern Conference’s Player of the Year, flirted with hitting .500 for most of the season and finished the year at .431 with four home runs and 53 RBIs.

Gausman led the Tigers with a 12-2 record and a 2.77 ERA. A fourth overall selection in this year’s Major League Baseball draft by the Baltimore Orioles, he struck out 135 batters in 123.2 innings in 17 starts. He earned first team All-America and All-SEC honors.

Cutura was named this year’s Southland Conference Freshman of the Year after he posted an 8-3 record and a 2.62 ERA in 13 starts. He notched his first collegiate win over SEC tournament champion Mississippi State to help ignite the Lions to a two-game sweep over the Bulldogs.

Friesen earned first team All-Red River Athletic Conference honors after he helped guide the Pilots to a third-place finish in the NAIA College World Series. He hit .388 with 12 homers, 13 doubles and 50 RBIs.

Mainieri directed the Tigers to the SEC regular-season title, the team’s second championship in the past four seasons. The Tigers were 42-14, including 19-11 in the SEC, and posted series victories over then-No. 1 South Carolina, then-No. 1 Florida, and then-No. 3 Arkansas.

More Information

LSWA All-Louisiana Baseball team

First team

C — Jeremy Schaffer, Tulane

1B — Alex Williams, La. Tech

2B — Brock Hebert, Southeastern La.

SS — Jeremy Sy, UL-Monroe

3B — Thomas Brown III, Grambling

OF — Raph Rhymes, LSU

OF — Mason Katz, LSU

OF — Kyle Pearson, LSU-Shreveport

DH — Colin Bear, NW State

P — Kevin Gausman, LSU

P — Stefan Lopez, Southeastern La.

P — Jared Mortensen, LSU-Shreveport

P — D.J. Ponder, Tulane

Second team

C — Ty Ross, LSU

1B — Joey Rapp, UL-Monroe

2B — Ryan Gebhardt, La. Tech

SS — Austin Nola, LSU

3B — Garrett Cannizaro, Tulane

OF — Brandon Boudreaux, Tulane

OF — Seth Granger, McNeese

OF — Nick Schneeberger, Tulane

DH — Derrick Hopkins, Southern

P — Nick Goody, LSU

P — Aaron Nola, LSU

P — Chris Cotton, LSU

P — Phil Maton, La. Tech

Special honors

Hitter of the Year : Raph Rhymes, LSU, .431 avg., four home runs, 53 RBIs.

Pitcher of the Year: Kevin Gausman, LSU, 12-2, 2.77 ERA.

Freshman of the Year: Andro Cutura, Southeastern Louisiana, 8-3, 2.62 ERA.

Newcomer of the Year: Greg Friesen, LSU-Shreveport, .388, 12 home runs, 50 RBIs.

Coach of the Year: Paul Mainieri, LSU, 42-14 overall, 19-11 SEC, SEC champions.