BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford baseball program held its annual First Pitch Dinner Tuesday evening in the Regions Room at Cooney Hall in the Brock School of Business.
 
Samford head coach Tony David, entering his third year in charge of the program and his 20^th season with the team overall, said he is excited about the upcoming season.
 
"This is a veteran group," David said of the 2024 team. "We had a really successful year last year. And then it's a situation where we lost some key parts, with three going to Major League Baseball that were junior pitchers that we'd love to have back, but for the most part, we return the bulk of the team. So, it's a different feeling from that standpoint than when you have a bunch of young guys. We're excited to try to build off of what we did last year and with an older group we hope to be able to follow that up."
 
After Blake Gardner, the "Voice of the Bulldogs," welcomed everyone in attendance, David made opening remarks, followed by Chaplain Brad Gowing giving the blessing. The meal was then served, which was catered by Walk On's Sports Bistreaux.
 
David then spoke about the impact the Diamond Society has on his program and gave a recap of the 2023 season that saw Samford win the Southern Conference regular season title and SoCon Tournament championship. Assistant coaches Gil Walker and Cam Shepherd then talked about the Trackman system and data analytics.
 
Associate head coach and pitching coach Tyler Shrout then spoke about how the analytics system affects the pitching staff and about what he expects to see from his pitching staff this season. David then spoke on the 2024 season and team.
 
Samford opens the 2024 season by playing host to Queens on Feb. 16. The game is set for a 4 p.m. start from Joe Lee Griffin Field.
 
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