Longhorns 1B Ivan Melendez Receives Multiple Weekly Honors After Impressive Week at the Plate
Ivan Melendez, aptly nicknamed The Hispanic Titanic, has been on an absolute tear to start the 2022 season. Melendez has been the best hitter in an extremely potent Texas lineup, leading the charge for Texas to be one of the top offenses in the Big 12.
While he has been scorching hot to start the season, last week was arguably the best week of the season so far for Melendez. Melendez on the week racked up a staggering .625 batting average to go with a 2.152 OPS. He would also add five RBI over the week, bringing his Big 12 leading total to 38 on the season.
However, his most impressive stretch of the week came in Texas' weekend series against Texas Tech. Melendez started the series with eight hits in eight consecutive at-bats, which was punctuated by a 5-for-5 game at the plate with two home runs and four runs scored against the Red Raiders.
As a result, Melendez took home two weekly honors. He was named the Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week as well as receiving his second Big 12 Conference Player of the Week award. This is the third straight week that a Longhorn has won Big 12 Conference Player of the week, with Murphy Stehly receiving the honor last week.
After 26 games, Melendez leads the Big 12 in multiple offensive categories. He leads the conference in both home runs and RBI, with 13 and 38 respectively. Melendez also leads in runs scored, slugging percentage and OPS. Not only is Melendez a Golden Spikes candidate this season, but his decision to return for one more year of college ball has caused his draft stock to skyrocket as well.
You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98
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