Brief

Bibona up for award

UC Irvine senior pitcher Danny Bibona is among 50 players on the preseason Golden Spikes Award watch list.

Bibona is one of six candidates who finished among the 30 semifinalists for the 2009 award.

Bibona, the 2009 Big West Pitcher of the Year, ranked fifth in the country with 12 wins. He was 12-1 with a 2.63 earned-run average as a junior, when he earned All-American honors.

The southpaw struck out 108 in 106 innings to help UCI win the Big West championship and earn the No. 1 national ranking late in the regular season.

The final list of 30 will then be sent to a voting body consisting of select professional baseball personnel, past USA Baseball national team coaches, select members of the media, former USA Baseball sports information directors, and current USA Baseball staff.

Fan voting will once again be a part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2010.

As part of this selection process all voters will be asked to choose five players from the list of 30 names. The five finalists will be announced June 8.

The 2010 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award will be presented July 13 on an award show via live telecast from Anaheim on GoldenSpikesAward.com, USABaseball.com and MLB.com in conjunction with All-Star FanFest.

— From staff reports