Boonville senior baseball player Zach Ruffel knew at the end of the 2007 season that he wanted to continue his career playing baseball at the next level.

While starting the last-three years for the Boonville Pirates baseball team, Ruffel more than exceeded his expectations not to mention his coach’s by leading the team in hitting as a sophomore and junior.

However when former Boonville coach Fred Smith took the job at Central Methodist University in Fayette after the 2007 season, Ruffel knew right then that’s where he wanted to play for the next-four years.

While signing a letter of intent yesterday at the media center at Boonville High School, Ruffel said he chose CMU because it was near home and they have a great criminal justice program.

CMU baseball coach Fred Smith said he is excited to be signing Ruffel.

“Obviously we graduate D.J. Flaspohler at third so we feel that Zach is one of the best offensive players in the area, especially at third base,” Smith said. “Looking around the state he could come in and possible compete for a varsity position immediately, I think he does a lot of things well. He brings a lot of things to the table. Obviously his swing is one of the best in the state, he hits with power and he can go opposite field.
“Defensively, he has a great arm and his range is above average so we are going to work on softening those hands a little bit more. But I think mentally when he is in the game he is as good as any kid we have seen. For Zach to compete at the next level he has to have a consistent work ethic. Fifty-five games in the spring is a grind so you have to go in there every day and stick your nose in it and go to work. That’s one of the things we are going to really push with him is getting into good habits and getting into that regiment where he does those things every single day.”

See Friday's Boonville Daily News for the rest of the story.