In my next player profile for the UK Baseball team, I chose to highlight Zac Zellers. Zellers is a junior on the team, so naturally you would think he has a lot of experience playing for the blue and white. Uniquely however, this is Zellers’ first year on the team, as he played his first two years at Heartland Community College. He was a junior college All-American outfielder in 2011 after having an over .400 batting average.

Zellers is originally from St. Louis, MO and plays in the outfield for the Bat Cats. He bats near the end of the lineup, but in the SEC that means he could probably be near the top of most other squads’ lineups. He, among many others, has been an intergral part of UK’s historic season so far. He is known for having a very strong arm, and can run the bases very effectively.

Like many other of his teammates, athleticism is in his blood. His grandfather played collegiate baseball as well, so this year’s Wildcat squad is almost a whole new generation of great athletes. In addition to his skills on the field, Zac is also known for his toughness and hard work ethic. It’s oftentimes hard to gel into a high profile conference and program like Kentucky in the SEC as a first year player, but Zellers has done just that. Many of his teammates would agree that it seems like Zellers himself has been there longer than he has.

After watching the team play a few times this season, apart from the starts of Maile, Couisno, and the pitching staff, I was very impressed with Zellers. Even when the rest of his teammates were doing poorly at certain points of the game, Zellers would always approach the plate with a neutral attitude and ready to swing the bat. It was refreshing to see, and I’m sure it’s contagious in the dugout. The pickup of Zellers by Coach Henderson is just another reason why it’s a good thing the university kept the head man after several years of futility.

The Wildcats play next on Thursday, as they open a series against the preseason number one team Florida. It will be televised nationally on ESPNU, but the weather this week in Lexington is supposed to be beautiful, so why not go?!

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