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Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Top Vanderbilt baseball prospects to know for 2025 MLB Draft
Vanderbilt baseball has several players likely to be selected in the 2025 MLB Draft. The Commodores have had at least four players selected in every draft since 2004. In 2024, Vanderbilt did not have a first-round pick for the first time since 2018 but had seven players selected overall, including six in the top 10 rounds. Vanderbilt is likely to see 4-6 players selected from the 2025 roster. Several incoming high school signees could be selected as well. Here are the top names with Commodores ties to watch for: Top Vanderbilt baseball prospects for 2025 MLB Draft LHP JD Thompson MLB Pipeline rank: No. 66 Thompson was seen as a likely second-round pick entering the season and his stock remained there as he put up similar numbers to 2024, albeit this time in a Friday night role. In three seasons with the Commodores, Thompson put up a 4.28 ERA and 219 strikeouts in 164 career innings. In 2025, he tied for seventh nationally with 122 strikeouts. Thompson's fastball, which gets up to 96 mph, is his best pitch, and he's an above-average strike-thrower as well. Most believe Thompson lands in the second round, the same range where teammates Bryce Cunningham and Carter Holton went a year ago. OF RJ Austin MLB Pipeline rank: No. 112 After a strong sophomore season that saw him hit .335 while leading the SEC in stolen bases, Austin regressed in his junior year to numbers more similar to what he put up as a freshman. He hit .257 with just two home runs. The good news is that he proved he can play center field, even winning the Rawlings Gold Glove award in his first year at the position. Although that has hurt Austin's draft stock, most believe that Austin's athleticism and defensive ability will get him selected in the fourth or fifth round. RHP Cody Bowker MLB Pipeline rank: No. 187 Bowker's stock is a bit polarizing, as some analysts see him as worthy of a top-five round pick, while others think he belongs in the back half of the top 10 rounds. After transferring from Georgetown, Bowker had a successful season in Vanderbilt's rotation. He took every turn in the rotation and had a 4.38 ERA with 99 strikeouts in 72 innings. His fastball is his best pitch, getting up to 95 mph from a low arm slot. But he had trouble going deep into games, as he completed five innings in just five of his 16 starts. RHP Sawyer Hawks MLB Pipeline rank: No. 225 Hawks is an under-the-radar prospect despite receiving multiple All-American nods after a season in which he had a 1.60 ERA, a 4-0 record and eight saves in 18 appearances, with a 59-11 strikeout to walk ratio. After transferring from Air Force, then missing most of 2024 with injury, Hawks remade his pitch mix in 2025 to include a fastball, slider and changeup along with his curve. He likely fits in rounds 6-10. 1B Riley Nelson MLB Pipeline rank: Unranked Nelson has a decision to make, as there will certainly be pro teams interested in him, but will they be interested enough to buy him out of a senior year? Nelson was Vanderbilt's best hitter in 2025, hitting .344 with a 34:36 walk-to-strikeout ratio, and he performed just as well in SEC play. But he doesn't have big power (eight home runs) and MLB teams often shy away from first basemen without double-digit homers. ROSTER RESET What Tim Corbin's 2026 Vanderbilt baseball roster looks like before MLB draft, after transfer portal deadline Top 2025 MLB Draft prospects among Vanderbilt baseball signees RHP Seth Hernandez MLB Pipeline rank: No. 3 Hernandez, a pitcher whose fastball touches 98 mph, is seen by some as a top-five talent and by others as a mid-first rounder. Either way, Hernandez won't make it to campus, barring an unexpected development. OF Slater de Brun MLB Pipeline rank: No. 24 de Brun is a 5-foot-9 center fielder who projects as a leadoff profile. He's a spark plug type that Vanderbilt has traditionally loved, but the pros love him too, and he's seen as a likely first-round pick. If he does go in the first round, he won't make it to campus. OF Sean Gamble MLB Pipeline rank: No. 27 Gamble is already 19 and is seen as being less polished than some of the other top high-school prospects, so he has a lower draft stock than de Brun and thus more likelihood of going to school. However, some still view Gamble as a first-round pick. SS Cooper Flemming MLB Pipeline rank: No. 82 Through most of the spring, Flemming has been viewed as likely to go to school, but he's risen late up draft boards with some even believing he could go in the first round. He's a 6-3, left-handed hitting shortstop, but he needs to add weight to become the best version of himself. LHP Talon Haley MLB Pipeline rank: No. 91 Haley is a polished left-hander with a low-90s fastball and a good curveball, but he is one of the oldest high-school prospects in the class and has an extreme injury history. He's a second- or third-rounder on talent, but age and concerns about the medicals could lead teams to shy away. Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@ or on X @aria_gerson. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt baseball MLB Draft prospects to know for 2025
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mets select UCF shortstop Antonio Jimenez in third round of 2025 MLB Draft
The Mets selected Central Florida shortstop Antonio Jimenez with the 102nd overall pick (Round 3) in the 2025 MLB Draft. Jimenez, 21, played 55 games last season for UCF after transferring from Miami. The 6-foot-1 infielder had 14 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, and 51 RBI while slashing .329/.407/.575 with a .982 OPS in 207 at-bats. He was struck out 46 times to 25 walks and added 11 steals on 14 attempts. Advertisement In his lone season with the Knights, the right-handed swinging shortstop had 18 multi-hit games and 14 multi-RBI games while posting a 24-game on-base streak and a 12-game hitting streak. Jiminez was named to the All-Big 12 Second Team. The Hialeah native began his college career with the Hurricanes in 2024, appearing in 45 games, but struggled at the plate. He had just 18 hits in 99 at-bats (.182) with seven doubles and two home runs for a .313 slugging percentage and .613 OPS. The No. 102 selection carries a slot value of $752,000. The Mets did not pick between the Competitive Balance Round A and late in the third round due to signing Juan Soto, who was a free agent who received a qualifying offer. (The signing also meant New York forfeited their second-and fifth-highest selections and $1 million from their 2026 international bonus pool.) Earlier on Sunday, the Mets took another infielder in Michigan second baseman Mitch Voit with their first pick of the draft at No. 38 overall.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tracking Vanderbilt baseball players, signees picked in 2025 MLB Draft
Vanderbilt baseball figures to have several players selected in the 2025 MLB Draft, along with likely multiple high school signees who will be picked. At least four Commodores have been selected in every draft since 2004, and the program's 151 total draft picks over the past 20 years are the most of any college program. Advertisement Vanderbilt's top draft prospects are JD Thompson and RJ Austin. Other players who could get selected include Cody Bowker, Sawyer Hawks, Riley Nelson and Levi Huesman. Players selected in the top 10 rounds are highly likely to sign with the teams that drafted them, while those drafted outside the top 10 rounds sometimes choose not to sign. The 2025 MLB Draft will be 20 rounds held over two days, down from the three days it has typically occupied. Day 1 on July 13 (5 p.m. CT, ESPN and MLB Network) consists of the first three rounds, while rounds 4-20 will take place July 14 (10:30 a.m. CT, Top prospects Top Vanderbilt baseball prospects to know for 2025 MLB Draft Advertisement Here are all the Vanderbilt players and signees selected. This story will be updated. Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@ or on X @aria_gerson. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Vanderbilt baseball: Tracking Commodores players, signees in 2025 MLB Draft
Reuters
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
LSU earns most-watched sweep in best-of-three MCWS era
June 24 - LSU not only added to its resume as a college baseball power, the program also continued to be a solid television viewing draw with ratings numbers for the Men's College World Series released Monday. LSU's championship series against Coastal Carolina at Omaha, Neb., was the most-watched two-game sweep in the 10 occurrences of the best-of-three format, according to Sports Media Watch. The two games averaged 2.5-million viewers on ESPN, slightly down from an average of 2.82-million viewers for last year's three-game series between Tennessee and Texas A&M. Sunday's Game 2, when LSU earned a 5-3 victory, had an average of 2.8-million viewers, slightly behind last season's Game 2 that averaged 2.92 million in a contest that was not a clincher. The 2025 Men's College World Series final series ranked No. 4 in viewership since the best-of-three series started in 2003. LSU has been involved in three of the top four final series in that span with the 2023 title over Florida ranked as the most watched with an average of 2.86-million viewers. The entire Men's College World Series this year averaged 1.2 million viewers, the third largest since 2011. --Field Level Media
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Texas 1B Jaquae Stewart enters the NCAA transfer portal
A 10th player has entered the NCAA transfer portal and departed the Texas Longhorns program since the end of the season with sophomore first baseman Jaquae Stewart the latest departure on Friday. The 5'10, 227-pounder played for former Texas star pitcher Adrian Alaniz at Sinton along with catcher Rylan Galvan before signing with Houston Christian in the 2023 recruiting class as the No. 23 first baseman nationally, according to Perfect Game. Advertisement In going through fall baseball with the Huskies, Stewart attracted the attention of the Aggies coaching staff when he got a hit off flame-throwing right-hander Chris Cortez, who went on to become a second-round draft pick the next summer. So when Stewart hit .346 with 15 home runs and 62 RBI at Northwest Florida State College and new Texas head coach Jim Schlossnagle was in desperate need of left-handed bats after arriving from College Station, Stewart joined the Longhorns program. When injuries afforded Stewart a chance to start 13 games among 23 appearances for Texas in 2025, he wasn't able to take advantage, slashing .149/.273/.255 with one home run and five RBI while striking out 18 times in 47 at bats (38.3 percent). Looking to upgrade the available options at first base with Kimble Schuessler out of eligibility, Texas landed Wichita State transfer Josh Livingston out of the portal on Wednesday. Advertisement More from
