LJ Mercurius, Blaine Brown & More College Baseball Data Standouts From Week 1

On The Mound

When it comes to Jackson Flora, I’ll keep this brief, as there’s surepit to be plenty written about the draft-eligible junior out of UC Santa Barbara this season. Currently ranked as the No. 2 college starter in the 2026 draft class, Flora looked a lot like No. 1 this weekend. He averaged 97 mph on his fastball, touching 100 mph with nearly seven feet of extension and a flat vertical approach angle. He also mixed in two high-spin breaking balls and a low-spin changeup.  

Many stars shone in the Shriners Children’s College Showdown this weekend, but it was Oklahoma righthander LJ Mercurius who truly announced his presence. The UNLV transfer shoved on Saturday against Oklahoma State, striking out 12 over 5.1 innings and allowing one run on three hits and two walks. Mercurius’ fastball sat 95 mph, touched 98 and had 20 inches of induced vertical break on average. He also mixed a low-spin cutter and a changeup with average vertical separation off his fastball. Mercurius is a name to follow in the coming months for the 2026 draft.   

I wrote about Liberty righthander Ben Blair last week, and he remains one of the most intriguing mid-major draft-eligible pitchers in the country. Blair received the Opening Day start for the Flames and didn’t disappoint, going six scoreless, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out eight against The Citadel. Blair has unique release traits that make him very much an under-the-radar draft prospect, possibly one ready to make a jump this spring. He sat 93-94 mph on his fastball, touching 97 with 18 inches of armside run on average from a 4.5 foot release height. It’s effectively a flat VAA two-seamer from a four-seam grip, which makes it a difficult look. Blair pairs his fastball with a wicked sweeper that sits 82-84 mph with ride and 14-16 inches of sweep.  

Texas on opening night started righthander Ruger Riojas, who may have shown how staying another year at Texas with pitching guru Max Weiner could pay off. Riojas displayed a major jump in velocity, as his four-seam fastball sat 96 mph on Friday after hovering around 93 mph in 2025. He added that velocity without sacrificing the plus ride on his heater or the quality of his fastball plane. Beyond the velocity jump, Riojas’ cutter is now harder, and his splitter is now softer with a more defined shape off his fastball. The splitter improvement could end up being an even bigger deal than the velocity jump in a few months, as it was filthy on opening night.  

Texas’ Thomas Burns could be one of the top relievers in the country this spring, and his appearance over the weekend showed why. The righthander sat 95-96 mph and got up to 98 with truly plus-plus induced vertical break. He pairs the fastball with an upper-80s cutter and a changeup. While Burns’ fastball doesn’t have outlier angle, he challenges competition with power and movement. 

Tennessee seems to have landed an interesting name in Rutgers transfer Landon Mack, who ranks 41st on our 2027 college draft board. The righthander tossed six innings, allowing one run on four hits and a walk while striking out nine. Mack mixed four pitches in a two-seam fastball, cutter, curveball and changeup. The two-seam sat 96-97 mph, touching 98 with 17 inches of armside run while generating ground balls on 84% of balls in play against it. Mack missed bats with two breaking ball shapes, with his higher-spin slider being the better of the two.     

Sophomore Aiden Sims got the start for Texas A&M on Sunday, and the righthander pitched well. Over six innings, Sims struck out seven, allowing one run on a hit and two walks. He mixed primarily three pitches in his four-seam fastball, sweeper and changeup. Sims’ fastball sits 92-93 mph with pedestrian shape and decent angles, but his secondaries are loud. His sweeper sits in the low 80s with spin rates in the 2,700-2,800 rpm range and 17 inches of sweep on average. While the sweeper is good, Sims’ changeup is the headliner. It sits 84-85 mph with negative IVB and 12 inches of armside run. The plane difference between Sims’ fastball and changeup is nearly four full degrees, which is nearly unheard of. Sims is a name to monitor in the 2027 class.

Mississippi State gave Ryan McPherson the start on Opening Day, and the sophomore righthander provided a solid performance while showcasing serious stuff. He sat 96-97 mph, touching 98 with ride and armside run. He mixed in a knee-buckling curveball at 84-85 mph with 8-9 inches of drop, as well as a changeup and a cutter in the low 90s. McPherson is another name to file away for 2027, as he’s one of the highest-profile pitchers in the sophomore class. 

Oklahoma State ran out lefty Ethan Lund on Sunday against Vanderbilt, with Lund showing swing-and-miss stuff (eight strikeouts) and poor control (six walks). Lund is here because he boasts decent velocity with ride and plus extension on his fastball to go along with two high-spin breaking balls with lots of movement.   

We have a college baseball doppelganger in Binghamton righthander Conner Griffin. There’s nothing particularly notable about Griffin’s performance outside of his name and pitch velocity. Griffin struggled with command but did top out at 100 mph over his 2.2 innings of work on Friday. He gave up three earned runs in the outing while walking six of the 17 batters he faced. 

Hitters Catching Barrels 

Wichita State’s third baseman Jayson Jones is well traveled, as he spent two seasons with Arkansas before transferring to Oklahoma State for 2025. Now with his third school, Jones made a statement on opening weekend by hitting four home runs for the Division I lead. Jones also led D-I in barrels with seven. He had ten batted-ball events this weekend at 100-plus mph and 13 hard-hit balls in play.  

Tennessee sophomore Blaine Brown put on a show on Valentine’s Day, as he sent more shots through the air than Cupid. Brown hit three home runs on Saturday across the Volunteers’ pair of games, going 8-for-14 on the weekend with four extra-base hits. Brown finished tied for second in barrels with six, as he had four batted-ball events at 109-plus mph, seven over 100 mph and 10 hard-hit balls in play.  Brown spent his freshman season at Rice before transferring to Tennessee. Athleticism is in Brown’s blood, as his father is former NFL running back Chris Brown. 

Brown wasn’t the only one with a three-home run game this weekend, as Illinois State second baseman Graham Mastros also started the season with a bang—a trio of them—by homering three times in the Redbirds’ opening game. Mastros went 5-for-12 on the weekend, collecting an extra-base hit in each game against Southeast Missouri. He caught five barrels and had four batted-ball events at 100-plus mph. While he’ll need to keep up this performance to find himself on the draft radar, this was a loud opening weekend performance. 

One of the top bats in the 2026 draft class, Mississippi State third baseman Ace Reese had a big weekend, going 5-for-12 with three doubles, a home run, four RBIs and six runs. Reese had five barrels this weekend with seven hard hits and five batted-ball events topping triple digits to live up to his ranking. 

Vanderbilt third baseman Brodie Johnston had a solid freshman campaign for the Commodores, hitting .260/.297/.534 with 15 home runs. Johnston looks like he might have leveled up in year two, as he went 6-for-12 with two doubles and three home runs at the Shriners Showdown. Johnston had five barrels, eight BBEs of 100-plus mph and nine hard-hit balls in play. He hit three home runs this weekend, all traveling over 400 feet. With easy plus power, it’s just a matter of Johnston making more consistent contact to raise his profile.

Our 29th-ranked prospect on the 2026 board, Texas A&M outfielder Caden Sorrell had a very loud opening weekend against Tennessee Tech. He went 9-for-15 with three home runs, 10 RBIs and seven runs. Sorrell had four barrels, eight BBEs above 104 mph and nine hard-hit balls in play. He showed real high-end exit velocity data with two balls in play at 114 mph, including a seventh-inning homer on Friday that traveled 422 feet. 

Texas outfielder Aiden Robbins may prove to be the jewel of the Longhorns’ transfer portal class in 2026. Robbins kicked off his Texas career going 5-for-11 with two doubles, a home run, four RBIs and four runs. He hit four barrels this weekend, with six hard-hit balls in play and two batted-ball events over 106 mph, including a double at 110 mph. Robbins showed he can do damage in the middle of a talented Longhorns lineup with plenty of protection. He should continue to see pitches hitting between Adrian Rodriguez and Carson Tinney. 

Freshman Five

We highlight five freshmen who made noise this weekend with good performances and strong metrics. 

Jordan Lodise, SS, UCF

The younger brother of current White Sox prospect Kyle Lodise and cousin of 2025 Braves second-rounder Alex Lodise, Jordan made his presence known at the top of the UCF lineup this weekend. Lodise went 5-for-9 with a home run, four walks, seven runs and five RBIs. He caught four barrels, each of which were on a ball in play above 101 mph. Lodise is a name to know for the 2028 draft.    

Anthony Pack Jr., OF, Texas

One could argue that Pack had the best weekend of any hitter in the Longhorns’ lineup. The freshman got the start in right for all three games, going 6-for-11 at the plate with two doubles, two RBIs, five runs and two walks. Pack had five hard-hit balls in play with four topping 100 mph and a max EV of 108.1 mph. Pack is a twitchy freshman getting real playing time for one of the biggest teams in the college game. If he continues to be a spark plug, he should move up the Longhorns’ lineup as the season progresses.   

Myles Upchurch, RHP, Alabama

The 6-foot-4 freshman received the start for the Crimson Tide on Saturday against Washington State, going four scoreless and allowing two hits and two walks while striking out nine. Upchurch mixed four pitches in a four-seam fastball, cutter, curveball and changeup. The four-seamer sits 92-94 mph, touching 96 with 17-18 inches of ride and around a foot of armside run from a high release. Both his curveball and changeup play well off his fastball to drive whiffs. 

Riley Goodman, RHP, South Carolina

A redshirt freshman, Goodman got the start for the Gamecocks on Opening Day, tossing 3.2 scoreless innings with four hits, two walks and five strikeouts. Goodman sat 95-96 mph, reached 97 and got 17 inches of armside run on average from a 5-foot-6 release. He mixed in a low-90s cutter and mid-80s slider with slurvy shape, as well as a few changeups.   

Jack Pezzolo, LHP, UC Davis

The 5-foot-11 lefthander got the start on Saturday against Texas and tossed four scoreless innings, striking out six, allowing two hits and walking four. Pezzolo sat 89-91 mph with plus ride from a lower release height while also mixing in a changeup at 79-81 mph. Pezzolo is way off the draft radar at the moment, but he shows an outlier amount of ride from his lower release height.