The George Mason baseball team has won 280 games over the past eight seasons, and just once in that span have they had a losing record. That tradition of excellence should continue in 2011 despite a number of changes in both the lineup and the rotation. The season begins Friday at 4 p.m. at USC Upstate. Live audio is slated for more than 50 games this season, including this weekend's contests.

The Patriots lost an All-American shortstop, a .400-hitting third baseman and a .364-hitting first baseman to graduation, and a defensively-minded starting catcher to injury. But plenty of offense returns.

The outfield is the most veteran spot on the team. Shane Davis, a two-time All-CAA selection at designated hitter, will start the season in left field. Last year the senior hit .283 with nine homers and 45 RBI. Jeremy Haas returns in center. The redshirt junior batted .314 last season with 20 doubles while going 9 of 10 on the base paths. He was second on the team in steals, doubles, and walks, with 31. In right will be Dan Schafferman . The junior hit .280 last year after a slow start, and he put together the program's first-ever six-hit game.

Brig Tison , a second-team All-CAA utility player hit .367 with a team-high 15 steals on 16 attempts last year. After playing multiple positions, he will move to third base full time this year. Moving from second to shortstop this year is Chris Cook . The sophomore batted .280 last season in 100 at-bats while committing just three errors.

At first base and catcher will be a pair of first-year players as transfer Zack Helgeson will play at first, and Jake Leonardo , a transfer who earned a medical redshirt last year, will be behind the plate. Helgeson made a name for himself as a high school senior when he won the Power Showcase Home Run Derby. He comes to Mason from Pitt Community College. Leonardo transferred from Neosho Community College after being named first-team All-Conference and second-team All-Region as a sophomore.

The one spot in the field that's still up for grabs is second base. Sophomore Nick Allen is fighting with freshmen Blaise Fernandez and Jordan Hill for that spot. All three will see significant time on the field as Allen will also play left field and designated hitter while Fernandez can DH and Hill can play short and third. Allen hit .271 last year in 96 at-bats.

Two other freshmen, Mick Foley and Andrew Sable , will add depth in the field. Foley is a first baseman/outfielder while Sable is a middle infielder. Additionally, Jake Kalish , a two-way player, could see some at-bats at designated hitter.

The weekend rotation has two returners in the form of redshirt sophomore lefty Chris O'Grady , and junior righthander Ryan Pfaeffle . O'Grady, a CAA All-Rookie selection in 2010, was 3-1 last year in eight starts with a 4.06 ERA, the best starter's ERA on the team. He held the opposition to a .264 batting average and walked just 19 batters in 62 innings. Pfaeffle was 3-3 with a 5.48 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 47 and two-third innings.

The third spot in the weekend rotation will see a battle between sophomore Nick Kendrick , who started five games last year, and two players who were relievers last season - redshirt senior T.J. O'Grady and redshirt junior A.J. Johnson . O'Grady only pitched 11 and one-third innings last year while Johnson had six saves and a 2-2 mark in 20 appearances. Kendrick can slide to a mid-week spot in the rotation if he's not pitching on Sunday while Johnson and T.J. O'Grady would both move to the back-end of the bullpen.

Other options beside Kendrick for the mid-week starting role are Kalish, Garret Marin and Jake Kleine . Kleine, a junior, transferred from Neosho C.C., while Marin redshirted last year. Kalish is a true freshman from Shrewsbury, N.J. and his older brother plays for the Boston Red Sox.

Joining either Johnson or O'Grady at the back-end of the bullpen will be Brandon Kuter . Last year, the sophomore made nine appearances out of a deep and talented bullpen. Kalish also will be available for late-inning work on weekends.

Middle innings will belong to redshirt junior Branden Bartlett and freshman Neight Hoffa , while freshmen Brandon Lindsey and Michael Bowie, and redshirt freshman Sean Cabrera will provide significant depth. In the middle of the season, the Patriots will hope to get back Kevin Lingerman , a redshirt sophomore who is still recovering from an injury that kept him out all of 2010.

The 2011 season will begin with three games in Spartanburg, S.C. as the Patriots play USC Upstate, Xavier and Wofford. A mid-week tilt at Longwood follows before a four-game series to open the home slate on the final weekend in February. Mason will play at Mount St. Mary's before its final non-conference weekend series, a three-game set with Niagara. The Patriots will play a home-and-home series with Richmond the following week before opening conference play with three games at Delaware.

Mason also will be at William & Mary, Hofstra, Old Dominion and Georgia State in conference play while hosting UNC Wilmington, James Madison, VCU, Towson and Northeastern. The Patriots have home-and-home mid-week games set with Coppin State, Georgetown, George Washington and Maryland while playing at home against Navy and Rider and on the road at UMBC and North Carolina State.