Why AJ Reed is Kentucky Sportsman of the Year

[caption id="attachment_172931" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Photo courtesy of NCAA.com[/caption] It might have come to a surprise to some that AJ Reed overtook Aaron Harrison and John Calipari to win Kentucky Sportsman of the Year, but it shouldn't. Harrison's late three-point shots against Louisville, Michigan and Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament were the biggest moments of the past year in Kentucky sports, but the best season unquestionably belonged to AJ Reed after sweeping every National Player of the Year award in college baseball. Reed, the SEC Male Athlete of the Year, had a historic season on the mound and at the plate. Courtesy of UK Athletics, here some highlights of the two-way star's season:

A 6-foot-4, 240-pound left-handed pitcher/first baseman, Reed charted one of the top seasons in the history of college baseball in 2014, finishing the year as the NCAA leader in homers (23), slugging (.735) and OPS (1.211). He became the first player in SEC history to lead the conference in homers and pitching wins, while going 12-2 with a 2.09 ERA on the mound and was the first player in league history to hit over 20 homers in the BBCOR (post-aluminum bat) era.

Reed impressively captured this year's honor with the largest margin of victory in the award's 34-year history. He joins Brandon Webb as the only UK baseball players to win the award after Webb had won the NL Cy Young with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Reed joins a star-studded list of Kentucky Sportsmen of the Year: 2014 – AJ Reed 2013 – Rick Pitino 2012 – Anthony Davis 2011 – Kenneth Faried 2010 – John Wall 2009 – John Calipari 2008 – Kenny Perry 2007 – Tyson Gay 2006 – Brandon Webb 2005 – Shaun Alexander 2004 – Stefan LeFors 2003 – Kenny Perry 2002 – Valley Sports Little League 2001 – Eddie Eviston 2000 – John L. Smith 1999 – James Whalen Jr. 1998 – Tubby Smith 1997 – Tim Couch 1996 – Rick Pitino 1995 – Tim Couch 1994 – Jenny Hansen 1993 – Jamal Mashburn 1992 – The Unforgettables 1991 – Cawood Ledford 1990 – Rick Pitino 1989 – David Roselle 1988 – Richie Farmer 1987 – Phil Simms 1986 – Denny Crum 1985 – Kenny Walker 1984 – Mary T. Meagher 1983 – Jerry Claiborne 1982 – Roy Kidd 1981 – Roy Kidd Within time, Reed could be as big of a name as many who won this award before him. Next year, my guess is a certain basketball team will share the honors.