DANNY RUECKEL #5

INF/RHP, BR/TR, 6-0, 165, Junior

Dunwoody, Georgia

Dunwoody High School

Returns for his third year as Furman¹s starting shortstop and as the leader of Furman¹s infield...has good hands, strong arm, and productive bat...emerged late last year as a solid relief pitcher, combining with Rob Purvis to give Furman another quality closer...effectiveness as a pitcher is due to a good curve and ability to change speeds....possesses an outstanding overall knowledge of the game. 2000 -- Started 52 games at shortstop...batted .285 with five home runs and 29 RBI...matched Ryan Presnell with a team high 14 doubles...showed steady improvement defensively over the course of the season...committed 16 errors and fielded at an .860 clip over Furman¹s first 23 games, but in his final 30 games notched a .966 fielding percentage with only five errors in 147 chances...went errorless in his last 10 games...belted a school record three home runs (all solo blasts) as part of a 3-for-3 performance in an 8-7 win at VMI...went 4-for-4 in his next game, a 6-5 victory over Georgia Southern, for a school record string of seven consecutive hits...went 3-for-5 with a double, a triple, two RBI and two runs scored in a 17-4 thrashing at UNC Greensboro...helped key Furman¹s 11-1 rout of The Citadel in Southern Conference Tournament play with a 3-for-5, 4 RBI performance...emerged as an effective reliever at midseason and went on to post a 2-1 record with three saves and a staff best 2.93 ERA in 12 appearances...recorded 28 strikeouts in 27.2 innings of action...limited opposing hitters to a staff best .243 average...notched saves against UNC Asheville (7-4), The Citadel (10-7), and East Tennessee State (10-8)...came out of the bullpen to pitch 7.0 innings of four-hit, no-run ball to lead Furman to 7-3 triumph over UNC Greensboro in Southern Conference Tournament action. 1999 -- Stepped up in his freshman year to start at shortstop in 56 of the Paladins¹ 57 games...batted 262 with five home runs and 29 RBI...went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run in a 2-1 loss to UNC Charlotte...went 2-for-4 with three RBI and three runs scored in a 16-11 win over The Citadel. High School/Personal -- Played under the direction of Tom Bass at Dunwoody High School and was named DeKalb County Player-of-the-Year his senior year after batting .447 with 10 home runs...earned all-county honors three times and was a two-time all-state pick...helped Dunwoody capture region 7-AAAA championships his junior and senior years...played on Connie Mack summer league team that won state and southeast regional titles in 1998...full name is Daniel Craig Rueckel...son of Scott and Barbara Rueckel...born September 25, 1979, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida...political science.

RUECKEL'S CAREER STATISTICS