Former Patriot pitcher earns Player of the Week honors

Former Francis Marion University right-handed pitcher Dylan Owen, a member of the New York Mets’ AA affiliate Binghamton Mets, has been named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the week ending on July 5.

The 5-11, 185-pound hurler made a pair of starts for the B-Mets last week and posted a record of 1-0 with eight strikeouts and a 0.00 earned run average in 13.2 innings pitched.

Owen made his first appearance of the week on June 29 and pitched 7.2 shutout innings while earning a no-decision in Binghamton’s 1-0, 10-inning win over the Akron Aeros. He struck out seven batters and walked just one while giving up four hits.

The 22-year-old also did not allow a run in his second start of the week on July 4 at NYSEG Stadium, tossing six shutout innings in a 4-0 victory over the Erie SeaWolves. The Chesterfield native struck out one batter while surrendering one walk and five hits to earn his first win of the season for the B-Mets.

Owen, who was named the 2008 Florida State League Most Valuable Pitcher after going 12-6 with 116 strikeouts and a 3.43 ERA in 24 starts for the St. Lucie Mets last season, was selected by the New York Mets in the 20th round of the 2007 draft.

In his final season at Francis Marion, Owen was 10-1 with one save and a 1.14 earned run average. He struck out 121 batters in 102.1 innings pitched, walked only 19, and opponents hit just .208 against him, including a .178 figure by right-handed batters.

In three seasons at FMU, he compiled a 28-8 record with two saves, a 2.15 ERA, and a Peach Belt Conference career-record 334 strikeouts in 323 innings. Owen was named the 2007 NCAA Division II national Pitcher of the Year by two different voting groups, twice earned first-team Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association All-America honors, and was selected as the Peach Belt’s Pitcher of the Year for both 2006 and 2007.