MUNCIE, Ind. – Ball State junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker (Selma, Ind./Wapahani) earned Third Team All-America honors, Baseball America announced Monday. Hazelbaker is the Cardinals’ 13^th All-American in program history and their first since Brad Miller earned second team accolades in 2006 from the America Baseball Coaches Association.

Hazelbaker, a First Team All-Mid-American Conference selection, was selected with the 138^th overall pick in the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft by the Boston Red Sox. He won the MAC regular season batting title by 23-points as he posted a .429 average on the year. He also held a 29-point advantage all players in the MAC in on-base percentage as he reached base at a .550 clip. His .429 batting average is fifth best in a single-season in Ball State history while his .550 on-base percentage is the highest mark in Ball State history.

Hazelbaker, the Cardinals’ leadoff hitter, led the league in runs (77), walks (48) and triples (8) while finishing second in the MAC in hits with 87. The all-around threat also was third in the MAC in stolen bases with 29 and fourth in the conference in slugging percentage at .724. Hazelbaker set the Ball State single-season records for runs scored, triples and on-base percentage. He finished second in NCAA Division I in on-base percentage, fourth in runs and sixth in triples.

Hazelbaker, a three-time MAC West Player of the Week, hit for the cycle in his first four at-bats against Kent State (March 27) with a first inning double, a second inning home run, a fourth inning single and a fifth inning triple. He tallied a team-high 30 multiple-hit games on the year and added 11 multiple-RBI games.

Hazelbaker is one of just two players from the MAC to be honored by Baseball America. Ohio’s Marc Krauss earned First Team All-MAC honors while San Diego State’s Stephen Strasburg was named Player of the Year.

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