Trent Franzago comes to the SteepleCats along with fellow Hurricane teammate and pitcher Gray Carden from Division II Georgia Southwestern University. The Byron, Georgia native spent this past spring as the Hurricanes’ staff ace, a right-handed workhorse who will provide pitching coach Michael Vicaro with quality starts this summer.

In 2011, Franzago (5-4) led the Hurricanes in several major categories with five wins, a 2.70 starters’ ERA, as well as tying Carden with 59 strikeouts. He exhibited pinpoint control and only allowed 53 hits and 21 walks as opposing batters collectively hit .210 (second behind Carden) in 70 innings (second on the team). Franzago was a model of consistency in his first year, posting almost identical numbers against conference opponents in weekend series. He averaged seven innings per start for the whole season and finished the year with a team-high 3 complete games, all in conference play. He also logged 8 innings in three other starts. Franzago’s success was not only limited to his team as he ranked in the top 10 in numerous categories for starting pitchers in the 12-team Peach Belt Conference including ERA (7th), opponents’ batting average (3rd), hits allowed (T-3rd), and 23 runs allowed (T-2nd). He also had the Hurricanes’ single-season high with 10 strikeouts against Georgia College on April 1st.