Who is ready for baseball season? Three WSU baseball players are not, reportedly leaving the team or being kicked-off it ahead of the 2011 season. David Stilley, arrested on drug charges in November, has been sent packing by Donnie Marbut. The other baseball player arrested with Stilley, pitcher Paris Shewey, had the charges against him dropped and is still with the team.
In addition to Stilley, outfield Garry Kuykendall is gone, reportedly quitting school. The center field was, apparently, having academic trouble and has left Pullman. Kuykendall hit .284 in 2010 in the leadoff spot for the Cougs.Travis Cook also left the team, though no reason was given for his departure.
If that wasn't enough baseball news for you, Chad Arnold is still recovering from an elbow injury (h/t to Brett Gleason and the Daily Evergreen) and will miss the first month of the season. The Cougar ace was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers, but chose to return to Pullman for another season.
Not exactly the best start we could've hoped for with the 2011 season on the horizon. After making the NCAA tournament, and narrowly missing the chance to make it out of the regionals, the Cougs returned almost all of the 2010 team this season. Now, with Arnold injured and the three others gone, the Cougs have some work to do to weather the storm and make it back to the NCAAs.