The names that have been a part of the Canisius College offense the past five years are scattered throughout the record books - Kevin Mahoney, Kevin Mailloux, Branson Joseph, Shayne Willson, Ian Choy, Steve McQuail and Perry Silverman. McRae has worked to build talent throughout the classes, featuring a combination of returning veterans and talented newcomers.

Starting behind the plate, the Griffs will have a new starter after Paul Panik making a career-high 34 starts and 38 appearances last season, hitting .278 with five home runs and 33 RBI. The return of Andrew Russo to the program has given Canisius some experience at catcher as the senior goes into the start of the season as the starter.

"Andrew has had a tremendous fall and preseason," Mike McRae said. "You can see the growth and maturity out of him."

Russo appeared in 16 games during the 2009 season and had a pinch-hit grand slam against Fairfield. Sophomore Kevin Whitehead and freshman Tim Coykendall will also see time at catcher, earning starts on the weekend and in mid-week contests.

Four-year starter Brian Burton had his best season as a junior when he earned All-MAAC First-Team honors as a first baseman and also earned MAAC All-Tournament Team honors for the second consecutive season. Burton ranked second in the MAAC in RBI (68), third in home runs (17) and ninth in batting average (.373) while hitting .453 with nine home runs and 39 RBI in league play.

"Brian should be a productive hitter in the middle of our batting order," McRae said. "He does a good job communicating on the field. He has always been solid defensively and has gotten even better throughout his career."

The lone spot in the infield without a returning starter is at second base with the departure of Steve McQuail. The 30^th-round pick of the Toronto Blue Jays became the first junior to be selected in the Major League Draft since 1994. McQuail had one of the best seasons in program history, hitting .397 with 20 home runs and 81 RBI en route to being named a Third-Team All-American.

Freshman Jose Torralba will be the starter at second base. Torralba played with the Ontario Blue Jays, who won the AABC North Atlantic Regional Championship in 2010. Along with Torralba, freshman Ralph Alloco may see time at second and as a utility infielder.
 
"Jose is a pretty advanced player for a freshman. He has a lot of good experience prior to coming to Canisius. He's shows a lot of composure," McRae said.

One player who came into his own last season after entering the program with high accolades was shortstop Sean Jamieson. The Niagara County Community College transfer earned All-MAAC First-Team honors, hitting .371 with 66 runs scored and 52 RBI. Jamieson had a consecutive games streak of 21 games without an error, a long streak for a middle infielder.

"Sean is the guy that needs to be the leader for this team this season," McRae said. "It took some time for him to adjust to the Division I level, but once he bought in, he experienced a lot of success."

Replacing four-year starter Kevin Mahoney at third base was a big challenge for the Griffs, and that job went to Drew Pettit. The junior also improved throughout the 2010 season, reaching base in 15 of the final 17 games of the season and ending the year on an eight-game hitting streak.

"Drew has made a vast improvement in his all-around game from where he was at this point last season," McRae said. "He is far more confident and that has carried over to his offense and defense."

The designated hitter position appears to be a platoon situation heading into the season, deemed a "wide-open battle" by McRae. Sophomore Kevin Whitehead is the primary left-handed option with freshmen Shane Zimmer and Jimmy Luppens serving as the right-handed options. McRae looks to match up with the opposing pitcher and also ride the hot bat.

Outfield

Canisius primarily has six outfielders to use this season, with the common theme throughout being speed. That will allow the Griffs to "cover a lot of ground," especially with the combination of senior Will Chomicki, freshman Ryan Coppinger and sophomore Chris Gruarin.

Chomicki was one of the team's most improved players during the 2010 season. Primarily used as a pinch runner and late-inning defensive replacement during his freshman and sophomore seasons, Chomicki grabbed a hold of the left field spot in the later third of the season. The Poughkeepsie, N.Y. native made 36 starts, with the Griffs going 26-10 in his starts. The speedy outfielder had 13 steals and an on-base percentage of .438 - 146 points higher than his batting average.

"The thing about Will Chomicki is that he competes," McRae said. "He is a battler. As a coach, you want those guys on the field."

Coppinger looks to be the staring centerfielder for the Griffs. Last season, Silverman started in center and had a career year after the graduation of Joseph, who was a four-year starter for the Griffs. A three-time First-Team All-State selection in New Hampshire, Coppinger has the opportunity to man center field for a long time at the Demske Sports Complex.

"We have high expectations that Ryan can be a dynamic player," McRae said. "He might not be our leadoff hitter from day one as that can be a high-pressure spot. But I can see it happening throughout the season."

Another transfer from NCCC and former Golden Griffin Matt Clingersmith, Gruarin should receive the first opportunity to start in right field. Gruarin hit .330 with eight home runs last season and looks to take over for Willson.

"Chris has a lot of tools, but it make take him some time to make the adjustment to Division I baseball," McRae said. "He'll need to battle through them and not give in to the frustrations."

The other three Griffs who will see time in the outfield are Zimmer, redshirt sophomore Jarred Flock, who hit .429 with runners in scoring position last year, and senior Nat Barone.