July 15, 1999
Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Bats Hometown Previous School Kris Billmaier IF 5-11 190 R Woodinville, WA Woodinville HS Mike Holba 1B 6-7 210 R Lansing, IL Thornton Fractional South HS
Fall Signees Mike Glozniak RHP 6-1 180 Hinsdale, IL Hinsdale Central HS Matt Laird RHP 6-0 185 Bellaire, TX Bellaire HS Pat O'Brien RHP 6-4 200 Bath, OH Walsh Jesuit HS Peter Ogilvie RHP 6-3 200 Buffalo Grove, IL Stevenson HS Brian Stavisky OF 6-3 220 L Port Allegany, PA Port Allegany HS
The Notre Dame baseball program signed two righthander-hitting infielders to national letters of intent during the spring period: 5-11, 190-pound middle infielder Kris Billmaier (Woodinville, Wash./Woodinville HS) and 6-7, 210-pound first baseman Mike Holba (Lansing, Ill./Thornton Fractional HS). They complete a promising seven-member class that includes five fall signees: lefthanded-hitting outfielder Brian Stavisky (Port Allegany, Pa.) and righthanded pitchers Mike Glozniak (Hinsdale, Ill.), Matt Laird (Bellaire, Texas), Pat O’Brien (Bath, Ohio) and Peter Ogilvie (Buffalo Grove, Ill.).
Notre Dame loses three seniors and two drafted juniors from its 1999 squad that won the BIG EAST regular-season title and played host to an NCAA regional en route to a final record of 43-18. The 1999 seniors included catcher/DH and Irish career home run leader Jeff Wagner, righthanded pitcher Alex Shilliday and lefthander Chris McKeown. Junior shortstop Brant Ust-one of the most accomplished hitters in Irish baseball history-and junior lefty Tim Kalita (who totaled 214 career strikeouts in 214 innings) both signed with the Detroit Tigers, after being selected in the sixth and seventh round of the major-league draft.
Three of the fall signees-Laird, O’Brien and Stavisky-were named honorable mention All-Americans by USA Today while Laird played for the nation’s top-ranked team and Stavisky and O’Brien were selected in the Major League draft (as of July 15, neither player had elected to sign with the team that drafted him). Stavisky also was named a second team All-American by Baseball America (updated fall signee info. in included on p. 2).
BILLMAIER: First team all-state shortstop as a senior, batting .415 with five home runs and school-record 29 RBI (18 games) S two-year team captain S Golden Glove award as a junior S twice all-conference, all-Eastside S all-conference quarterback and defensive back as senior (also all-conference as junior DB) S two-year football captain S Woodinville’s recipient of NFL Scholar Athlete of the Year S helped baseball team finish fifth in state as a junior S led football team to 9-1 record as a senior (600-plus passing yards, 500-plus rushing yards) S his sister Brittany is a Junior Olympics gymnast S currently playing second base with U.S. Bank team in Seattle (Irish sophomore-to-be righthander Matt Buchmeier also is a member of U.S. Bank) S son of Jim and Michelle Billmaier.
Irish Head Coach Paul Mainieri: “Kris will bring a tremendous work ethic to Notre Dame. He comes from one of the top summer programs in the country and is a scrappy player who will do the little things to help Notre Dame win. He has good infield skills and will compete for a starting position. We are expecting great things from Kris.”
Billmaier: “I wanted to have the best education while providing myself with a great athletic experience. I’d never been to Notre Dame before my visit and it was very exciting to see the campus and the facilities. I really enjoyed talking with the coaches. It was obvious that they know a lot about the game.”
HOLBA:Named first team all-state by Chicago Tribune, batting .458 with 17 HRs, 10 doubles, 55 RBI and .975 slugging pct. S his 17 HRs led the state, set a school record and were three shy of the state record S set school season records for doubles and runs (58), plus career HRs (31) S led ’99 team to 29-7 record and regional finals S first four-year starter in TFSHS baseball history S three times all-conference, twice all-area S talented three-sport athlete who was named school’s Male Athlete of the Year S recruited to play college football, after earning all-state honors as a quarterbackS named Chicago Sun Times offensive football player of the year S played in North/South all-star football game S twice all-conference, all-area in basketball S basketball team MVP as a senior, averaging 13 points and eight rebounds as a center S member of the National Honor Society and an Illinois State Scholar S tallest member of a family that includes three brothers who played college football: Tom (6-6) was a reserve QB at Michigan State in the late ’80s, Bill (6-3) was a tight end at Butler in the late ’80s and Bob (6-4) played football and baseball at the Air Force Academy from ’82-’86 S playing summer baseball with Prarie Gravel S parents are Tom and Jackie Holba.
Mainieri: “Mike has the ability and work ethic to be another outstanding player from the Chicago area. He has great power and will compete at first base and DH. As Mike gets stronger and develops as a hitter, he will be very exciting to watch. He had to decide whether to play baseball or football, and we’re excited he chose Notre Dame.” S Holba: “Academics played an important part in the schools I considered. I also wanted to go somewhere that I felt I could fit in and Notre Dame was that place. Notre Dame has one of the best baseball program’s in the northern part of the country, has great facilities. I also had a great visit and like that it’s close to home.”
NOTRE DAME BASEBALL 1998 FALL SIGNEE UPDATES (July 14, 1999)
Mike Glozniak Update: Named team MVP at Hinsdale Central High School, after setting team single-season records for wins (11-1) and strikeouts (115), plus a 2.48 ERA. 35 walks and 71 hits allowed in 84.2 innings S also set school career record for innings pitcher (194), wins (22), Ks (251) and shutouts (5) S named first team all-area while repeating as all-conference pick S only player named all-DuPage County first team in ’98 and ’99 .. played in state all-star game S named to conference all-academic team S received HCHS Scholar-Athlete Award S led 1999 Red Devils to 30-7 record, including a 13-game winning streak S his 1999 stats included six home runs, 23 RBI and 24 runs scored S joined future Irish teammate Mike Holba on the Chicago Sun Times all-area team S threw 11 strikeouts while hitting two home runs in 9-3 win over Lyons Township S named an Illinois State Scholar while receiving Presidents Education Award for outstanding academic achievement S throws from two arm angles, with a fastball in the high 80s and a tough curveball.
Matt Laird Update: Named co-MVP of Bellaire High School team that went 38-2, won state title and finished No. 1 in final USA Today national rankings S named to USA Today’s annual list of honorable mention All-Americans S part of a Bellaire baseball program that has won seven state titles S he and brother Adam (a sophomore pitcher) became the latest great brother combination with the Bellaire baseball team, following the likes of Tommy and Bubba Crosby and Jose Jr. and Enrique Cruz S named all-state, all-district and all-greater Houston area and district MVP S his 1999 stats: 14-0, 1.05 ERA, 114 strikeouts, 33 walks in 80 innings, with four no-hitters, four one-hitters, nine shutouts and 43 straight inning without allowing an earned run S totaled a 29-1 career record at Bellaire S posted a 4.2 GPA in honors program S member of the National Honor Society and the National Merit Commendable S received school’s Cardinal Pride Award for Citizenship S named Houston area’s Most outstanding Baseball Scholar-Athlete S played during summer of ’99 at the USA Baseball Tournament in Orlando, Fla. S
Pat O’Brien Update: A 39-round selection of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1999 Major League draft S named to USA Today’s annual list of honorable mention All-Americans S named Division II state player of the year, after helping Walsh Jesuit win the state title S turned in impressive complete-game, four-hitter in state semi–final, versus potent Hamilton Badin (9-1) S also allowed no earned runs over three innings of relief in state title-game win over Rocky River (5-4 in eight innings) S a four-year starter with a 27-6 career record (setting school record for career wins) S helped team close season with 17 straight wins S named Beacon Journal spring male athlete of the year S his 1999 stats: 11-1 (school record for wins), 2.58 ERA, 84 strikeouts in 76 innings S also hit .357 as cleanup hitter, with 11 doubles, five home runs, 25 RBI and 17 walks S tossed a seven-hit complete game to bear Canfield in regional semi-finals (5-3) S known for unique combination of quiet confidence and fierce competitiveness S touched 92 mph with his fastball during 1999 season S considered to still have a big “upside” in his pitching ability S two-time basketball team MVP, earning honorable mention all-state honors as a senior after ranking among team leaders in rebounds, scoring and three-point shooting (as a small forward/center) S member of the National Honor Society S played for second summer with Team Ohio at Sun Belt Classic in Shawnee, Okla. (summer ’99) S currently playing with Northern Ohio summer league team S has past experience playing with or against three players who will be sophomores on the 2000 Irish team: third baseman Andrew Bushey, catcher Paul O’Toole and centerfielder Steve Stanley.
Peter Ogilvie Update: Limited to two innings of action in 1999 season due to back injury S undergoing summer rehabilitation program in preparation for his college career.
Brian Stavisky Update: Stavisky was selected in the 12th round of the Major League draft by the Montreal Expos, after concluding his stellar prep career S named a second team All-American by Baseball America S also named to USA Today’s annual list of honorable mention All-Americans S he spent the first two years of his high school baseball career playing at Oswayo Valley (in a cooperative agreement) before playing his last two seasons at Port Allegany (PAHS did not field a baseball team until the 1998 season) S named PAHS athlete of the year S led PAHS baseball team to district runner-up finish as a junior and district title as a senior (the team went 18-5) S his impressive four-year combined high stats (80 games): .582 batting average (142-for-244), a .725 on-base percentage, 46 home runs, 3 triples, 28 doubles, 79 walks, 140 runs, 160 RBI and only 11 strikeouts S set numerous season and career records at PAHS S his 1999 stats: .562 (41-for-73), .707 on-base, 16 HR, 9 2B, 19 BB, 38 R, 54 RBI, 3 Ks S also set state record with 34 walks in’98 (in 18 games), plus a .524 batting average and 11 HRs S posted a 16-3 career record as a pitcher S note: there are no conference or league baseball awards at PAHS S in two seasons at Oswego Valley, he set season and career records for runs, hits, home runs, RBI and doubles while earning league and conference MVP honors for both seasons (his career avg. at OVHS was .612) S set PAHS basketball records for career points (1,948) and rebounds (1,127), after averaging 23.5 points and 14.2 rebounds per game in 1999 .. named Northwest Pennsylvania basketball MVP for 1998-99 S a four-time all-league and big 30 all-star in basketball S also played football at PAHS as a freshman and sophomore while lettering one season in golf S captained 7baseball, basketball and golf teams during his prep career S graduated first in a class of 99, with a 3.99 GPA S playing during the summer of 1999 with the Keystone Academy team (based in DeBois, Pa.) S a third-team preseason All-American in 1999, according to Baseball America.