33 - Rhett Ballard Position: Pitcher
Class: r-Junior
Height: 6' 5"
Weight: 235 lbs.
High School: SW Guilford
Hometown: High Point, N.C.
 
photo A strong, durable, athletic pitcher ... Benefited from a change in his pitching delivery prior to the 2007 season ... Switched to a submarine style and made good progress during the season ... Led the team in wins with six ... Set Virginia Tech season records for relief appearances and total appearances with 34 ... Became the first Tech relief pitcher on record to lead the Hokies in strikeouts for a season ... Fanned 74 batters in 64.1 innings ... Had an outstanding fall ... Has a chance to be a dominating pitcher as he feels more comfortable with his new arm slot ... Transferred to Tech from Liberty University in fall 2005 ... Pitched in 19 games for Tech in 2006, including six as a starter.

2006-07: Appeared in a school record 34 games, all in relief ... Went 6-2 with a save and a 4.48 earned run average ... Hit a record 21 batters, but led the team in strikeouts (74) and walked just 27 batters in 64.1 innings ... Pitched in all three games during tournament at Coastal Carolina ... Allowed just one hit and no runs in 3.2 combined innings against ODU and Pitt ... Took a loss against Coastal, allowing three hits and three runs (two earned) in 1.2 innings ... Pitched 2.1 scoreless, hitless innings for a win against The Citadel ... Struck out five in that game ... Picked up a win against North Carolina A&T ... Picked up a save and a win against Georgia Tech ... Allowed three runs in four innings in game three at NC State, but picked up a win in extra innings ... Posted a career-high seven strikeouts ... Pitched two innings with three strikeouts in a win over UNC ... Took a loss at JMU, allowing three runs on three hits in the eighth inning ... Struggled in game three against Virginia, hitting four batters in two innings and giving up four runs ... Struck out three in 1.2 innings against Clemson ... Picked up a win with three scoreless innings against Richmond ... Gave up one earned run during two appearances against Miami ... Worked six innings for a win against Liberty, allowing three runs on two hits ... Allowed just one hit during his last five appearances ... Held opponents to a .220 batting average over the course of the season.

2005-06: Pitched in 19 games ... Made his first collegiate appearance with a start against West Virginia ... Pitched just 2.1 innings, allowing six hits and four runs in a loss ... Also started at Richmond and worked 4.2 innings without a decision ... Had four strikeouts in that outing ... Started at home against JMU and pitched just 2.1 innings in a no-decision ... Came out of the pen for 1.2 innings against FSU allowing one run on two hits and striking out three batters ... Started and pitched five innings at VCU ... Gave up two runs on six hits ... Did not get a decision ... Pitched 2.2 innings of relief in game three against Boston College ... Pitched a shutout inning of relief at Radford and came back the next night with four innings versus VMI to pick up his first win ... Worked seven innings of relief against Appalachian, allowing just two unearned runs ... Started against Longwood and picked up a win, allowing one run in seven innings ... Pitched 3.1 innings of relief in game three with Duke ... Pitched one shutout inning at Clemson ... Started and picked up a win at home against VCU ... Pitched 5.2 innings ... Suffered a loss in relief against Charlotte ... Worked 4.1 innings of scoreless, hitless relief in second game at Virginia ... Finished with a 3-3 record and 6.22 earned run average.

Liberty: Was redshirted during the 2004-05 school year before transferring to Tech.

High School: Played his senior year at Southwest Guilford ... Had a 1.50 earned run average on the way to all-area and all-conference honors ... Attended Oak Hill Academy in Virginia prior to his senior year ... Was team MVP as a pitcher his junior year ... Played basketball at both schools.

Personal: Rhett Christopher Ballard ... Born 11/13/85 in Greensboro, NC ... Son of Rick and Diane Ballard ... Enrolled in residential property management.

Batting:
Year GP GS AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO IBB HBP Avg. SB-A SH SF SLG OBP
2007 34 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0-0 0 0 .000 .000

Pitching:
Year APP GS W-L SV CG SHO CBO GF IP H R ER BB K 2B 3B HR ERA AVG WP HBP KL IBB
2006 19 6 3-3 0 0 0 0 3 55.0 70 44 38 31 38 13 2 7 6.22 .314 4 3 11 0
2007 34 0 6-2 1 0 0 1 22 64.1 51 35 32 27 74 5 2 3 4.48 .220 5 21 16 5
2008 26 7 3-8 3 1 0 0 15 75.1 72 52 39 41 74 16 2 10 4.66 .250 10 21 23 4
Career 79 13 12-13 4 1 0 1 40 194.2 193 131 109 99 186 34 6 20 5.04 .260 19 45 50 9

Fielding:
Year PO A E PB PCT
2006 2 5 3 0 .700
2007 4 15 4 0 .826
2008 6 11 6 0 .739
Career 12 31 13 0 .768