College Hot Sheet: 20 College Baseball Standouts From The Past Week (4/11/23)
Welcome to the College Hot Sheet! Like our pro hot sheets, the College Hot Sheet recognizes some of the top performers around the country in college baseball after each weekend of play. Carlos Collazo and Peter Flaherty contributed to the College Hot Sheet this week.
Related:
- College Top 25
- Top 2023 Draft Prospects
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Top 2024 Draft Prospects
1. Brady Ware, LHP/DH, Indianapolis
Class: 2023
What He Did: 7 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 5 BB, 11 K | 6-for-12 (.500), 1HR, 1 3B, 2 2B, 3 R, 7 RBIIn what was the best individual performance of the week, Ware tossed a no-hitter with 11 strikeouts on Friday. While that is incredibly impressive by itself, Ware also went 4-for-4 at the plate with five RBIs—in the same game! The graduate transfer has a 2.76 ERA on the mound with 26 strikeouts in 16.1 innings pitched, while also amassing a .315 average with four home runs at the plate. –PF
2. Cole Jenkins, OF, Virginia Military Institute
Class: 2023
What He Did: 8-for-14 (.571), 4 HR, 1 3B, 6 R, 6 RBIJenkins made the most of his three games for the week, going 8-for-14, with five of his eight hits going for extra bases. In Friday’s doubleheader against Western Carolina he went 6-for-10 with four home runs and six RBIs. Since April 1, Jenkins has hit five home runs and has seen his average climb from .295 to .336. –PF
3. Ethan Petry, 3B, South Carolina
Class: 2025
What He Did: 4-for-9 (.444), 2 HR, 4 R, 9 RBIPetry continues to prove himself as the best true freshman in the country. In the Gamecocks’ opening game against No. 1 Louisiana State, the 6-foot-4 Petry went 2-for-3 with two home runs and drove in an eye-popping eight runs. His first home run was his most impressive, as he pulverized an elevated 99 mph Paul Skenes fastball way out to left field in what was Skenes’ first home run allowed this spring. In the fifth inning, he dropped the barrel on a low-and-inside curveball from Micah Bucknam for his second home run of the day—this one a grand slam. Petry is now hitting .442 this season with 15 home runs and 51 RBIs. –PF
4. Jackson Baumeister, RHP, Florida State
Class: 2023
What He Did: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 14 KBaumeister had a career day last weekend against Clemson, when he set a career-high with 14 strikeouts and shut out the Tigers over seven innings. That 14-strikeout mark was the most for an ACC pitcher this season and was enough for him to earn ACC pitcher of the week honors. He touched 97 mph with the fastball, but it was his mid-70s, 12-to-6 curve that was his best swing-and-miss pitch in this game—generating 10 whiffs. -CC
5. Aiven Cabral, RHP, Northeastern
Class: 2025
What He Did: 9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 KCabral has quietly pieced together one of the most impressive seasons of any freshman arm and continued his success on Saturday with a complete game shutout against Delaware. He moves well on the mound with above-average arm speed, and although his fastball currently sits in the upper 80s to low 90s, it is easy to envision an increase in velocity moving forward. Cabral’s slider profiles to be a potential out pitch down the road as well. His ERA now sits at 1.74 this spring with an impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio of 42-to-2 in 41.1 innings pitched. –PF
6. Chad Gartland, RHP, George Mason
Class: 2024
What He Did: 9 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 KTwo starts ago, Gartland set a season high with 12 strikeouts against Rhode Island. He one-upped himself in his latest outing against Dayton, throwing a complete game shutout and striking out eight batters to just one walk. Gartland has shown good feel for a three-pitch mix this season, with a fastball around 90 mph, a slider around 80 and a changeup that checks in at 82. He’s currently rocking a 2.19 ERA and a .203 opponent average. –CC
7. Dominic Cancellieri, RHP, Creighton
Class: 2023
What He Did: 8 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 KCancellieri struck out a career-best 12 batters against Villanova on Friday. He allowed just one hit and one walk during his eight shutout innings and retired the final 21 batters he faced. Cancellieri has been used as a starter and reliever this spring, but this was just the third time he threw more than three innings in a single game. –CC
8. Dalton Fowler, LHP, Memphis
Class: 2023
What He Did: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 13 KThis past Friday, Fowler turned in his second straight scoreless outing with seven shutout innings and 13 strikeouts against Cincinnati. His fastball sat comfortably in the 91-94 mph range for the entirety of his 100-pitch outing, and it is a pitch that garnered an impressive 15 whiffs. Fowler has a long arm action and throws from nearly straight over the top, which allows him to consistently get behind the baseball and generate back spin and carry on his fastball. His slurvy slider is particularly tough against lefthanded hitters and has a miss rate of 47% on the year. As a 6-foot-6 lefthanded starter with a fastball that has topped out at 99 mph, Fowler figures to be a nice senior sign for a team in this year’s draft. –PF
9. Cade Kuehler, RHP, Campbell
Class: 2023
What He Did: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 13 KKuehler set a season high with 13 strikeouts against Presbyterian last weekend, and overwhelmed batters with his mid-90s fastball. The ultra-high riding pitch sat 95 mph in this start and touched 97, while being responsible for 12 whiffs. Keuhler lowered his ERA to 2.74 on the season and has a 33.7% strikeout rate. –CC
10. Luke Olson, RHP, Ohio
Class: 2023
What He Did: 9 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 KOlson threw a complete game shutout against Toledo Friday night, and was named MAC co-pitcher of the week for his efforts. He had plenty of success with a slider he consistently started toward the middle of the plate and watched it break off the outer edge against righthanded hitters. It’s been a bit of a rough season for Olson and this was the first game he pitched where he didn’t allow a run. He lowered his ERA from 6.45 to 5.21. –CC
11. Colton Becker, SS, Morehead State
Class: 2023
What He Did: 10-for-16 (.625), 4 HR, 2 3B, 1 2B, 9 R, 15 RBIMorehead State players have collected a number of player of the week honors this season and this time it’s Becker, who was named the OVC player of the week after going 10-for-16 with four home runs. He homered twice in a 3-for-5 performance against Ohio and then homered in back-to-back games against Canisius. He entered the week with no home runs and now leads the team with 32 RBIs, while also going 14-for-14 in stolen base attempts. –CC
12. Drue Hackenberg, RHP, Virginia Tech
Class: 2023
What He Did: 8 IP, 2 H, 1 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 11 KHackenberg turned in his best start of the season last weekend against Duke, when he didn’t allow a single earned run over eight innings, while striking out 11 batters and walking just two. It was a much-needed dominant performance for Hackenberg, who entered the weekend with a 6.51 ERA on the season and left it more than a run lower, with a 5.36 ERA. –CC
13. Ryan Hawks, RHP, Louisville
Class: 2023
What He Did: 8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 KHawks was the tone setter for the Cardinals over the weekend in what was a key sweep of then-No. 9 Boston College. The junior righthander kept the Eagles’ bats quiet all evening and attacked the strike zone while avoiding hard contact. Hawks has a deceptive delivery and throws from a low three-quarter slot with an extremely low release height. His fastball gets on to hitters quickly with riding life through the zone and arm-side run at times. Hawks lowered his ERA to 3.06 and has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 53-to-13 in 50 innings pitched this spring. –PF
14. Jacob Jenkins-Cowart, 1B/OF, East Carolina
Class: 2024
What He Did: 5-for-10 (.500), 3 HR, 1 3B, 4 R, 6 RBIJenkins-Cowart continued his outstanding play last week, going 5-for-10 with three home runs. Most notably, he went 3-for-5 with three home runs and five RBIs in a big midweek victory over North Carolina State. The 6-foot-6 outfielder has a beautiful lefthanded swing and above-average raw power, and he’s quickly becoming one of the premier 2024 draft prospects. -PF
15. Derek Bender, C/1B, Coastal Carolina
Class: 2024
What He Did: 8-for-17 (.471), 3 HR, 1 2B, 4 R, 9 RBIThe freshman backstop continues to swing a hot bat for the Chanticleers, as after another excellent week he raised his average to .383. Bender was a key reason as to why Coastal Carolina was able to pick up a nice conference series win over Georgia Southern, as he went 5-for-9 with three home runs and seven RBIs in Friday’s doubleheader. He leads a very deep Coastal Carolina lineup with 10 home runs and 47 RBIs. –PF
16. Ryan Dromboski, RHP, Pennsylvania
Class: 2024
What He Did: 7.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 15 KDromboski on Sunday set a Pennsylvania program record with 15 strikeouts across his 7.2 innings pitched in which he did not allow an earned run and surrendered just three hits. The sophomore righthander has run his fastball up to 95 mph, while his slider boasts an impressive miss rate of 55%. Dromboski’s ERA is down to 2.83 and he has collected 53 strikeouts across 35.1 innings pitched this spring. He profiles as one of the best Ivy League draft prospects in the 2024 class. –PF
17. Luke Sinnard, RHP, Indiana
Class: 2024
What He Did: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 12 KSinnard posted his second double-digit strikeout game of the season last weekend against Iowa. He needed just 94 pitches to rack up 12 strikeouts, and he didn’t allow a walk or a run over his six innings of work. Sinnard now has a 3.68 ERA and a 61-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 29.5 K-BB% is good for 11th-best in the country among Division I arms. –CC
18. Jake Gelof, 3B, Virginia
Class: 2023
What He Did: 7-for-16 (.438), 3 HR, 1 3B, 1 2B, 4 R, 9 RBIGelof was right in the middle of an offensive explosion that Virginia had against Miami in Charlottesville. He went 2-for-5 with a home run in a 14-2 blowout win on Friday and then added two more homers in a 2-for-4 effort in the series finale on Sunday, pushing his season total to 12 home runs. –CC
19. Luke Anderson, OF, Brigham Young
Class: 2025
What He Did: 7-for-14 (.500), 3 HR, 2 2B, 5 R, 6 RBIAnderson had a solid week overall, but it was his Saturday effort that placed him on this week’s College Hot Sheet. He went 5-for-5 with three home runs and two doubles to help Brigham Young take the series against San Francisco. His performance is even more impressive considering he hadn’t homered a single time entering that game, and his three-homer effort was the first by a BYU hitter since Keaton Kringlen on April 1, 2017. –CC
20. Austin Kelly, C, Lipscomb
Class: 2023
What He Did: 9-for-18 (.500), 4 HR, 1 2B, 9 R, 12 RBIKelly’s bat propelled the Bisons to a perfect 4-0 week that included a win over then-No. 17 Louisville and a sweep of North Alabama. He put together a strong weekend, as he went 5-for-13 with two home runs and eight RBIs, but his 4-for-5, two-home run performance at Louisville was Kelly’s best of the week. Kelly’s average now sits at a solid .306 and his 12 home runs lead the team. –PF
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