Missouri State

EVAN PRATTE
Baseball, 1988-91
Inducted February 16, 2008

Evan Pratte was a co-captain for the Missouri State baseball Bears the final two seasons of his career for coach Keith Guttin as Pratte played from 1988 to 1991; one of just a handful of Bear baseballers to serve as team captain in multiple seasons. Pratte was the Bears' starting third baseman as a freshman and the St. Louis native took over at shortstop his final three seasons. A standout middle infielder with considerable pop in his bat, he played for Mid-Continent Conference Southern Division championship teams his first three years and the Bears won MCC tourney titles in 1988 and 1989. MSU finished fourth in the league in 1991 in the Bears' first year in the Missouri Valley Conference. Pratte's 1988-91 playing tenure included the only stretch of four straight 40-win seasons in Bear baseball history. Pratte was an all-conference first team selection in the MCC as a junior and in the Valley his senior season. He was also an all-district selection as a senior when he batted .352 with 10 homers and 57 runs batted in. At the time he wrapped up his Bears' playing career, Pratte was the school's career record holder in games played (220), at bats (773), hits (259), singles (190), total bases (379), sacrifice hits (18), sacrifice flies (14), assists (580) and double plays (121) and he was second on the all-time lists in runs, triples, runs batted in, game-winning RBIs, extra-base hits and walks. He had final career totals of 18 homers, 152 RBIs and a .335 batting average with 29 stolen bases. Pratte was drafted and signed by the Detroit Tigers in 1991 and spent five seasons playing in the Tigers' organization. He returned to Missouri State as an assistant coach in 1996 for two years, with the Bears capturing MVC tournament championships in both 1996 and 1997.Pratte moved in 1998 to begin a successful career as an assistant baseball coach at the University of Missouri.