Tomlinson One of Nation’s Elite Eight Shortstops

LUBBOCK, Texas -Former Seward County Saint and Liberal BJ and current Texas Tech junior shortstop Kelby Tomlinson has been named as one of the quarterfinalists for the Brooks Wallace Shortstop of the Year Award, the College Baseball Hall of Fame announced today. The Watch List features the top 25 Division I shortstops in the nation.

The Brooks Wallace Award, named after the former Red Raider great, annually recognizes the nation’s top shortstop and will be presented on July 3 in Lubbock, as part of the College Baseball Hall of Fame’s Night of Champions.

Tomlinson (Elgin, Okla.) has started every game at shortstop for the Red Raiders this season while batting .313 (55-for-176) with 33 runs, five doubles, 39 RBI, 35 walks and is 19-of-27 in stolen bases. Tomlinson has recorded a .424 on-base percentage and is fielding .964 (172 assists, 66 putouts, nine errors) in 48 games played.

Defensively, Tomlinson has made only one error the past 22 games and has committed just two errors in the past 28 contests. During Big 12 play, Tomlinson has made only two errors (.979) in 21 games.

He currently leads the Red Raiders with 16 multi-hit games, 10 multiple RBI contests and with 18 two-out RBI.

Tomlinson is one of only two shortstops from the Big 12 Conference (Brandon Loy, Texas) to make the Wallace Award Watch List.

ABOUT BROOKS WALLACE:
Brooks Wallace was a former Texas Tech player and assistant coach and a slick-fielding shortstop at Tech from 1977-80. A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District VII his senior year. He led the Red Raiders to their first appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament in 1980.

After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant and later as an assistant coach. In the summer of 1984, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27. The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan.

Scott Lacefield