Former SEU Fire baseball that have advanced to the professional ranks:
Jonathan Bermudez
With the 702nd overall pick in the 2018 Draft, the defending World Series champion Houston Astros selected junior left-handed pitcher Jonathan Bermudez. The Astros used their 23rd round selection on the recently-named NAIA Pitcher of the Year. Bermudez turned in a historic season on the mound for SEU, going 15-2 with a 1.95 ERA, 153 strikeouts, and a .178 opponent batting average. The marks in wins and strikeouts were single-season program records. The Coamo, Puerto Rico native was a perfect 2-0 in the Avista-NAIA World Series, tossing a complete game versus Oklahoma City before fanning 12 in a 7.1 inning performance versus host school Lewis-Clark State. Bermudez also tossed a nine-inning no-hitter versus Sun Conference foe Warner on 3/23/18 in which he punched out 16. Bermudez was also part of Team Puerto Rico during the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Nick Bottari
Over three seasons at Southeastern, Bottari hit .403 with 38 home runs, which included 24 during his final season in 2021. He also drove in 124 runs with a .762 slugging percentage and posted an on-base percentage of .523. He drew 83 walks with just 64 strikeouts in 123 games.
Christian Camacho
A First-Team All-Sun Conference selection during the 2021 season, Camacho was 11-1 with a 3.24 ERA in 105.2 innings of work. Camacho posted 109 strikeouts against 31 walks and held opponents to a .221 average against.
Shane Casey
Casey was named to the Pecos League All-Star Team in 2014, hitting .373 with the Las Vegas Train Robbers and the Trinidad Triggers. He’s added 13 homers, 12 doubles, and 50 RBIs in 59 games. During the 2013 season, he hit .319 in 19 games with the Raton Osos. Casey led the Fire in batting average in 2012, hitting .376 with 12 doubles, four triples, and a home run. He also stole17 bases, and drove in 38 runs.
Pedro Castellano
Castellano posted a .357 average during a First Team All-Sun Conference season in 2021 during which he started all 60 games. He drove in 87 runs to lead the team and stole 12 bases. Castellano boasted a .626 slugging percentage with 16 doubles and 15 home runs.
Zach Cornell
Cornell was only in uniform for the Fire 27 times, but was dominant in the COVID-19 shortened season of 2020. Opponents had a hard time getting him out thanks to a .519 average with 56 hits which included 12 doubles and 10 homers. He was a three-time Sun Conference Player of the Week. There were no postseason awards given out that season. After the 2020 MLB First Year Player Draft was shortened to a mere five rounds, Cornell signed a free agent contract with the Washington Nationals.
Jared Crescentini
Days after the conclusion of the 2018 MLB Draft, senior right-handed pitcher Jared Crescentini signed a deal as an undrafted free agent with the Miami Marlins. Crescentini was 6-1 on the year with a 3.18 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 56.2 innings of work in 2018. After moving from the starting rotation to the back end of the bullpen mid-season, the Wesley Chapel native earned six saves.
Stephen Cullen
Cullen signed with the Idaho Fall Chukars after hitting .334 over 112 games with the Fire over a two-year span with 35 home runs and 100 RBIs. Cullen smashed 23 home runs during his final season and posted a .790 slugging percentage. He had 54 hits with 10 doubles and 12 homers in 2022 to help the Fire win the Avista NAIA World Series.
Austin Davis
Following his junior season with the Fire, Davis was offered a free agent contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, and was assigned to the Bluefield Blue Jays of the Rookie Appalachian League. During his time in Lakeland, Davis appeared in 112 games with 10 doubles and 30 RBIs/ He hit a career high .247 during SEU’s Sun Conference Championship season. Defensively, he recorded five assists from the outfield in 43 games, and helped turn two double plays. He recorded his first professional hit on June 21st, and finished the first month of his career with a .304 average in nine games. After hitting .302 in 12 games on the Vancouver roster, Davis was assigned to the Lansing for the 2016 season where he played 33 games.
Adam De La Cruz
De La Cruz helped the Fire win their first national championship in program history with 41 hits during the 2018 season and followed with a .345 campaign at the plate in 2019 with 21 doubles among his 70 hits. He also drew 34 walks his second year at SEU to post a .445 on base percentage.
Luis Diaz
Four-year starter Luis Diaz continued his baseball career in the Frontier League, signing with the Joliet Slammers on 7/22/17. While at Southeastern, Diaz helped the Fire win a pair of Sun Conference Tournament Championships, and played in the NAIA National Tournament in three of his four seasons. In 2017, Diaz led the nation in triples with a school-record 12, hitting .415 with a school-record 100 hits, 21 doubles, nine home runs, and 57 RBIs. Diaz started 219 games over his four years at SEU, recording 294 hits with a lifetime .362 batting average, 98 stolen bases, and 165 RBIs. He also set the career triples record with 24. In his first season as a professional, Diaz notched 10 doubles, a pair of triples, and 15 RBIs.
Willie Estrada
Estrada became the second player in program history to win a Rawlings-NAIA Gold Glove with 398 putouts and 35 assists in 436 chances and caught 12 runners stealing. At the plate, Estrada hit .353 with nine homers and 10 doubles. He signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Phillies after his lone season with the Fire.
Brian Fuentes
Fuentes made a major impact in one season, setting the program record for home runs in a season with 25 and was named Most Valuable Player of the 2022 Avista NAIA World Series. The All-American saw time at third base, second base, and in the outfield and led the team with a .418 average. Fuentes added 15 doubles and drew 33 walks on the season.
Dee Gordon
Gordon spent the 2007 season with the Fire, hitting .378 and stealing 45 bases. He was the Dodgers’ 4th round pick in the 2008
MLB Draft. He made his major league debut on June 6, 2011 in Philadelphia. That season, he appeared in 56 games for the Dodgers and recorded 68 hits and stole 24 bases. In 2012, he appeared in 87 games with 69 hits and 32 stolen bases. He saw a change in his role during the 2013 season, playing 92 games in AAA Albuquerque and 38 in the majors. The 2014 season was a bounce-back for Gordon, moving to second base from shortstop, and becoming an everyday starter. During that season, he was named an All-Star for the first time. Gordon had a monster 2015 season with the Marlins, which saw him win the National League batting title, a Gold Glove, and the stolen base title. In 2016, his second year with the Marlins, Gordon hit .268 with 14 RBIs and one home run.
Abdel Guadalupe
Guadalupe spent three seasons at SEU and left as the program's career leader in home runs with 47 in 146 games. Guadalupe hit .409 in 24 games in 2020 and after missing the 2021 season he returned to Lakeland to serve as one of the key components of the national championship team. He hit 19 home runs and drove in 60 during the 2022 season with a .387 average and a .739 slugging percentage.
Brenden Heiss
Heiss was 6-1 with a save in 44 innings over two seasons at Southeastern. He racked up 64 strikeouts and held opponents to a .119 batting average against over 22 appearances. Following the 2021 season which saw Heiss post a 1.89 ERA and hold the 83 hitters he faced to a .063 average against, he signed a free agent contract with the San Diego Padres.
John Jaeger
Upon the completion of the 2017 season, Jaeger signed with the Windy City Thunderbolts of the Frontier League. In his lone season at SEU, the Tracy, Calif. native was named Honorable Mention NAIA All-America, posting 11 saves in 27 appearances and sporting a 2-1 record and a 2.36 ERA. In 42 innings pitched, Jaeger held opponents to a .230 batting average, and just seven extra-base hits in 182 batters faced. He struck out 50 against 15 walks. In his first season with the Thunderbolts, Jaeger posted a 3.38 ERA with 14 strikeouts in 26.2 innings pitched.
Eddie Jimenez
In one season at SEU (2018), Jimenez was 3-0 with a 1.35 ERA, 38 strikeouts, a .177 opponent batting average, and four saves in 26.2 innings of work. Jimenez was the winning pitcher in the championship-clinching game of the NAIA World Series for Southeastern, after tossing 5.1 innings and fanning seven in the start. He was selected in the 18th round of the 2018 MLB Draft with the 550th overall pick by the Boston Red Sox.
Johnnie Kirkland
After leading the NAIA in strikeouts with 139, Kirkland became the 25th round pick of the Detroit Tigers in the 2013 MLB Draft and spent the season with the Connecticut Tigers. In his first pro season, Kirkland pitched 30.1 innings with a 4-2 record and two saves. He recorded 27 strikeouts and 10 walks, amassing an earned run average of 2.97.
Phil Kish
The NAIA’s single season and career saves leader, Kish signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Toronto Blue Jays and made an immediate impact in the Gulf Coast League where he was 2-1 with two saves and an ERA of 0.64. In 14 innings, he struck out 19 batters and issued just three walks. He received a promotion to Class A-Short Season Bluefield, registering a 1.96 ERA in 18.1 innings of work. Kish began his second pro season with the Class A Lansing Lugnuts, and has a record of 5-3 with a save in 27 games. Through 51 innings, Kish has 37 strikeouts against just seven walks. In his 2015 season, Kish started off in Advanced A Dunedin where he pitched in 10 games and struck out seven batters. For the remaining of the year, he was sent to Lansing, Michigan where he appeared in 30 games and struck out 29.
Craig Maddox
A 2007 graduate of Southeastern, Maddox hit .365 with 12 doubles, three triples, and a school record 18 home runs. He was a part of two NCCAA II National Championship teams during his time in Lakeland. He was signed as a free agent by the Tigers following the 2007 season, and played in 25 games in the Gulf Coast League, hitting .240 with 13 RBIs and three home runs. The following season, he got his first taste of independent baseball, playing in the Canadian-American Association with the New Jersey Jackals with a .248 average with nine doubles and five homers. He started off the 2009 season with the Schaumburg Flyers of the Northern League where he hit .291, but got a chance to play in the Braves organization with Class A Rome. After spending the 2010 season with Worcester of the Canadian-American Association, Maddox came to the Gary Southshore RailCats, helping them win the American Association title in 2013, and was named an All-Star in 2014.
Marvin Malone
In his lone season with the Fire (2018), Malone hit .360 at the plate with 16 home runs, 61 runs batted in, and 17 stolen bases. With the 480th overall pick in the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft, the Tampa Bay Rays selected Malone. The 16th round pick marks the second-highest selection for SEU in program history.
Willi Martin
In his only season at SEU, Martin was named First Team All-Sun Conference, and was an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American. The Tampa native hit .355 with 16 home runs, 23 doubles, and had a .687 slugging percentage and .442 on base percentage. In his first pro season, Martin finished as the team leader in batting average at .322 with 11 doubles, a home run, and 22 RBIs. Martin started off the 2016 season with the River City Rascals where in played in 49 games and hit .295. A mid-season trade brought Martin to the Southern Illinois Miners where he hit .254 in 22 games.
Chris Mattison
In his lone season at Southeastern, Mattison amassed a .398 average with a team leading 15 home runs and 57 RBIs. Mattison earned First Team All-Sun Conference, as well as, a conference gold glove at first base. He predominantly played first base while at SEU but profiled as a catcher at the next level. Because of his efforts, the native of Lancaster, Pa. was selected in the 16th round by the San Diego Padres. Mattison began his career with the Tri-City Dust Devils and spent the last part of the season in the Arizona League.
Bryan Muniz
As a junior at Southeastern, Muniz was The Sun Conference Player of the Year, hitting .400 with 86 hits, and a school record 28 doubles, which led the NAIA. He helped the Fire win their first Sun Conference Championship, and during their appearance in the NAIA Opening Round, hit .500 with seven RBIs and a .579 on base percentage. He was selected in the 22nd round by the Houston Astros and was assigned to the Greenville Astros of the Rookie Appalachian League, going 1-4 with an RBI in his first game as a pro on June 20th. After getting acclimated to professional baseball in his first year in Greenville, Muniz was sent to full season Quad Cities. There, he hit .286 with four home runs and 31 RBIs. He currently works as a hitting instructor in the Astros organization.
Ryan Munoz
Over three seasons with the Fire, Munuz was 17-2 with five saves in 43 appearances and accumulated 125.2 innings on the hill. In seven appearances during the brief 2020 season, Munoz was 4-0 with 26 strikeouts and just three walks in 22.1 innings of work and allowed just seven runs on 19 hits. He was the team co-leader in wins with 11 in 2021 and picked up four saves on the year with 75 strikeouts in 66 innings of work.
Al Pesto
Pesto was 4-0 in 14 appearances at SEU, racking up 27 strikeouts in 19 innings of work. He earned his first win with the Fire on February 16, 2021 by striking out the side in a 7-1 win over Edward Waters. He struck out four over three perfect innings of work against Freed-Hardeman on March 26, 2021. After some time away from baseball, Pesto signed a free agent contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on June 3, 2023.
JJ Sanchez
Sanchez was stellar for the Fire in 2023, going 5-0 in 17 appearances with a 1.91 ERA. He struck out 65 of the 131 he faced and held opponents to a .160 average against in 37.2 innings of work. Against Westmont in the NAIA World Series, Sanchez went seven innings, allowing just one earned run on two hits with seven strikeouts to keep the Fire in the tournament. Following the 2023 MLB Draft, Sanchez signed a free agent contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Jordan Scott
Senior right-handed pitcher Jordan Scott was the fifth and final member of the 2018 squad to sign a contract with Major League Baseball. The Atlanta, Ga. native signed a deal as an undrafted free agent with the San Francisco Giants. Scott finished the 2018 campaign 14-1 with a 2.40 ERA, 108 strikeouts, and .230 opponent batting average. Scott earned an NAIA All-American Honorable Mention placement after his successful season on the mound for Southeastern.
Aaron Sheaks
Four-year Fire player Aaron Sheaks continued his baseball career after the 2017 campaign with the White Sands Pupfish of the Pecos League. During his time at SEU, Sheaks appeared in 160 games with 120 starts, posting a career .286 batting average with 13 doubles, two triples, three home runs, and 57 RBIs. Founded in 2010, the Pecos League is an independent baseball league headquartered in Houston, operating in cities in desert mountain regions throughout the West. In his first season with the PupFish, Sheaks hit .331 at the plate (39-118) with nine doubles, two home runs, and 31 runs batted in.
Eston Stull
Stull made 17 appearances for the Fire in 2022 with 16 of those coming in relief. He posted a 2.16 ERA in 25 innings of work with 36 strikeouts against 11 walks and held opponents to a .156 average against.
Ronnie Voacolo
Voacolo was 4-0 with four saves to help the Fire win the 2022 Avista NAIA World Series which included closing out the championship game with two strikeouts in a scoreless inning out of the bullpen. He posted a 1.80 ERA in 25 innings of work with 33 strikeouts and just three walks.
Logan Walters
Walters was 7-0 on the hill during the 2022 national championship season with 62 strikeouts over 40.2 innings of work in his 13 appearances. In the post season, Walters allowed six earned over 11 innings with eight strikeouts.
Jamal Wilson
After the 2017 season, right-handed arm Jamal Wilson signed with the Gary SouthShore RailCats, a three-time league champion and three-time division championship organization in the American Association. During his lone season at SEU, Wilson was 10-1 in 16 appearances on the mound with a 3.69 ERA. The Valrico native recorded 104 strikeouts in 75.2 innings, with opponents hitting just .244 against.
