BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford baseball program has recently added seven new student-athletes for the upcoming season, head coach Tony David announced Wednesday.
 
"We could not be more excited about this group of late signees," David said. "We had a number of incoming freshmen from our original signing class, but with the combination of graduation, draft and surprise departures it became critical to add some older guys to come in and play right away. Not many programs will have lost the number of impact players we had head out the door last year, so we had to fill some of that need with experienced players to go with some good, younger returning talent already on our roster that just haven't had much playing time beyond high school."
 
Colin Ahearn (LHP, Lakeview, Mass./Univ. of Tennessee), Drew Byers (INF/RHP, Nashville, Tenn./Univ. of Notre Dame), Kace Garner (C, Brandon, Miss./Mississippi State), Maurice Hampton (OF, Memphis, Tenn./LSU), Stephen Klein (1B/LHP, Metarie, La./Delgado CC), Matthew Strand (C, Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett HS) and Brody Westbrooks (RHP, Cumming, Ga./Georgia Tech) will all join the Samford baseball program for the 2022 season.
 
"I wanted to add the best players we could find that were also the right fit for our university and program," David said. "The added bonus is they, in particular the D1 transfers, are all coming in from programs that were in the highest of levels in our sport. In each case these guys are coming from teams that last year were either in a Regional, Super Regional, Omaha or winning a National Championship. We wanted great players who have known and expect team success as well. We want to continue to win Southern Conference Championships and hopefully more. These guys will make an immediate impact."
 
Ahearn redshirted during the 2021 season at the University of Tennessee. He came to UT after a stellar career at The Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tenn., as a junior and senior, and at Taylor Academy in Marion, Mass., as a freshman and sophomore. He was undefeated on the mound in his junior and senior seasons. As a junior, he was 8-0 on the mound, while batting .356, leading the team in home runs and RBI and leading the team to a state title.
 
Ahearn was named a High School All-American by Collegiate Baseball in 2019. That same season, he was named the Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association DII-AA Player of the Year and was a finalist for the TBCAA's Mr. Baseball award.
 
"Colin had an incredible and dominant high school career and is extremely highly touted," David said. "He has a really good left-handed arm that touches some good velocity numbers. Part of a World Series team at Tennessee, Colin will have an opportunity to help us on the mound on the weekend right away."
 
Byers spent the 2021 season at Notre Dame, receiving a medical redshirt. He prepped at Ensworth High School in Nashville, Tenn., lettering four years in baseball and one in football. In 2019, Byers helped lead his team to the state semifinals for the first time in school history.
 
Byers was named a 2018, 2019 and 2020 Perfect Game Preseason All-American. He was named to the 2018 Perfect Game All-Tournament team for both the 18 and under National Championship and World Championship. His 2018, 18 and under team won the Perfect Game Summer Showdown Tournament. 
 
"We needed to add someone in the middle infield and Drew is a great fit for us here," David said. "We also plan on him helping us some on the mound with a strong arm. Drew has power potential at the plate and will have a chance to really help us in the infield immediately. He was a part of a Super Regional team at Notre Dame and a great high school program at Ensworth. He brings really good hands and range potential to the middle infield."
 
Garner spent the 2021 season with the national champion Mississippi State Bulldogs, seeing action in 11 games. Prior to Mississippi State, Garner played at Meridian Community College in Mississippi. As a sophomore in 2020, he was named the school's Outstanding Male Student-Athlete. That season, he had at least one hit in 10 of the team's 14 games in the COVID-shortened season. As a freshman in 2019, he ranked seventh in the nation in home runs with 16, and he was named first-team All-Region 23 and first-team All-Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges.
 
Garner prepped at Northwest Rankin High School. He was named a team captain and team MVP as a senior. He was a two-time All-District honoree and was named second team All-State as a senior. Garner was selected to participate in the Mississippi Crossroads All-Star Game and the State Games of Mississippi as a senior.  
 
"Kace is a second addition to have won a D1 National Championship, having done so last year on the baseball field," David said. "He has real power and will have an opportunity to impact our middle of the order, instantly replacing some of the power loss in his position and will also give us a good defensive option behind the plate."
 
Hampton played both baseball and football at LSU, starting games in both sports as a true freshman. In baseball he played in 12 of 17 games in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, starting seven contests. He batted .231 during those games. In football, he played in 21 games in two seasons, tallying 37 tackles, including 27 solo stops.
 
Hampton was a two-sport standout at Memphis University High School, becoming the first player in Tennessee history to earn Mr. Baseball and Mr. Football honors in the same season. He was listed as the nation's 29^th best baseball prospect going into the 2019 MLB Draft. He was drafted in the 23^rd round of the 2019 Draft by the San Diego Padres.
 
"Maurice is an incredibly unique athlete and player," David said. "Jumping into the SEC out of high school immediately on to the football field on a national championship winning team in an impactful way and then playing right away in the spring in baseball with next to no practice time is special. Playing baseball year-round for the first time in a long time will allow him to grow dramatically on the field. He is a great defender with a strong arm that will blend incredible speed with real power."
 
Klein comes to Samford from Delgato Community College, where he was a two-time team captain. He was named to the All-Region team as well. He batted .419 as a sophomore in 2021. In 2020, he hit .325 with an on-base percentage of .474.
 
Klein prepped at DeLaSalle High School in Metarie, La. He batted .494 as a senior in high school. Klein was a two-time All-State honoree.
 
"Stephen comes to us from Delgado where we have had another player from," David said. "He had a great career in junior college having hit for high average and some power, following a high school career where he hit almost .500. We expect him to hit for us at a high level with the bonus of being an outstanding defender with range at first base. We are excited about his potential to hit and defend."
 
Strand comes to Samford from North Gwinnett High School in Georgia. He received an impressive 9.0 grade from Perfect Game. Strand was rated as the seventh best catcher in the state of Georgia, and the 60^th best player overall in the state. Nationally, Strand was rated as the 88^th best catcher overall.
 
Strand played in the WWBA World Championships in Fort Myers, Fla., in 2020. In addition to his high school activities, Strand also played for the East Cobb Astros 18 and under team.
 
"Matthew is our only late high school addition," David said. "He is an outstanding defender that will allow us to continue to upgrade back there as a program with our depth beyond Kaden. He has good size and power potential at the plate and is another good addition."
 
Westbrooks played the last two seasons at Georgia Tech. He made six appearances in relief in 2021, and four in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. He was named to the 2019-2020 ACC Academic Honor Roll.
 
Westbrooks prepped at North Forsyth High School in Georgia. He was rated as an elite right-handed pitcher by Perfect Game. He was named a 2019 Perfect Game Honorable Mention Preseason All-American for the southeast. He was also named honorable mention 2017 and 2018 Perfect Game Preseason Underclassman All-American.
 
"Brody is a really good right-handed pitcher that saw mound time at Georgia Tech and in the ACC," David said. "He is a strike thrower with some velocity and is an outstanding student. We anticipate Brody helping us on the weekend."
 
David said he feels like these signees are good fits, not only for the Samford baseball program, by for Samford University as a whole.
 
"Our hope is that when the dust settles on year one of this transfer portal, it will be a net positive for our program," David said. "I look forward to watching and working with these guys, we appreciate them and the loyalty our returners have shown. They are all the type of young men we want representing our baseball program and Samford University."
 
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