07/02/2008
In a season unlike any other individual has had in Florida State baseball history, junior catcher Buster Posey has added many trophies, honors and awards to his resume.
The most recent of these accolades came last Friday night as he was presented with the Johnny Bench Award in Wichita, Kan., which is presented to the nationÕs top collegiate catcher and is voted on by Division I baseball coaches.
Posey was also named a finalist in 2007, which made him the first-ever sophomore to be given that honor.
"Buster had an outstanding season and is very deserving of this award," head coach Mike Martin said. "His outstanding play both on the offensive and defensive side played a major role in helping our ball club get back to the College World Series."
His defensive skills were also honored as Posey received a Rawlings Gold Glove Award.
He finished the season with a .983 fielding percentage in 62 starts behind the plate while throwing out 40.7 percent of potential base stealers and picking off six runners.
Posey also earned a host of Player of the Year honors by the national media.
Collegiate Baseball, Baseball American and Rivals.com all named him their National Player of the Year. He also received consensus All-American honors.
While in Omaha for the College World Series, Posey also received the Dick Howser Trophy.
The St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association present the Dick Howser Trophy, named after the former Seminole player and coach.
Posey becomes the second Florida State player to win the award, following J.D. Drew in 1997.
PoseyÕs accomplishments did not go unnoticed by the coaches of the Atlantic Coast Conference, as he became the fifth Seminole to be voted the ACCÕs Player of the Year.
Drew, Marshall McDougall, John-Ford Griffin and Tony Thomas, Jr. are the four other Florida State players to receive this honor.
A rare feat was accomplished by Posey as he earned the ACCÕs version of the triple crown as he led the conference in batting average with a .463 mark, hit 26 home runs and tallied 93 RBI.
McDougall was the last FSU player to accomplish this in 1999, and it has only been done four times in ACC history.
His .463 average for the season is the best single-season average in FSU history, and he also posted four double-digit hitting streaks capped off by a 20 game streak to end the season.
Perhaps the most impressive of all of PoseyÕs accolades in the 2008 season was being named the Academic All-American of the Year.
Posey, a finance major, is a two-time member of the ACCÕs Academic Honor Roll and All-ACC Academic Team as he boasts a cumulative grade point average of 3.8.
"IÕve put in a lot of effort off the field with school and hopefully it can be a good example for younger kids out there that you can accomplish both school and athletics," Posey said. "It definitely takes discipline, but doing well in school is something I take pride in."
He is only the second Academic All-American of the Year in Florida State history, joining Garrett Johnson who received the honor in 2006 in track and field.
Posey is still up for two more awards, including the Brooks Wallace Award and the Golden Spikes Award.
The Brooks Wallace Award is presented by the College Baseball Foundation and will be announced July 2.
The Golden Spikes Award is presented by USA Baseball and will be announced July 16.
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