BYU baseball recruiting: LHP Aaron Cross will transfer to the Cougars

BYU baseball has announced the signing of transfer Aaron Cross. Cross is a left-handed pitcher who most recently played with Grossmont Community College, but originally played for San Diego State prior to a serious injury.

According to East County Sports.com writer Bill Dickens, Cross underwent Tommy John surgery after his injury at San Diego State, but seems to have recovered nicely at Grossmont. Last year the lefty pitched 31 innings mostly as the closer and posted an incredible 0.29 ERA. He gave up just one earned run and six walks while striking out 41. If he can put up similar production at BYU, he will be a great asset to a pitching staff that struggled this past season.

Cross was featured in the LA Times back in 2013 for an interesting story about how he got to school every day. His grandfather, Brad drove over 200 miles/day, so that Cross could attend Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, CA, a private Catholic school with a rich baseball tradition.

All the miles his grandfather put on his car paid off as Cross was named second team all-state in California and the Trinity League Pitcher of the Year with a 9-2 record, a 0.58 ERA, and 39 strikeouts during his senior year at Mater Dei. While at Mater Dei, Cross played for former Cougar, Burt Call at Mater Dei. He was recruited by San Diego State, Arizona, San Jose State, and Utah out of high school.

Cross will have two years of eligibility left and can play immediately. Here’s what BYU coach Mike Littlewood had to say about Cross:

“Aaron brings a wealth of experience and he's committed to helping our program reach new heights... He'll play a huge role for us immediately and Cougar fans will love the energy he brings to the field.“