The CBB will be holding a Q and A with our great readers about the 2008 MLB Draft around Memorial Day. We are asking our loyal readers to send us some questions and we will be answering as many questions as possible about different players around the nation. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, CBB Event, MLB Draft

Junior/SP/Ole Miss

Say it with me in a Donald Trump impression - “he’s huuuuuge”
To the tune of 6′5 - 260 as listed on the Ole Miss web site. I don’t know that he is 6′5, but 260 does not surprise me.

Lynn is underrated based on where I see him on preseason draft lists: Baseball America did not even project him going in the first round. Mymlbdraft.com does not project him going in the first round. MLBdraftsite.com has him going 44th. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, MLB Draft, Ole Miss, SEC

The CBB will be holding a Q and A with our great readers about the 2008 MLB Draft over the coming weeks. We are asking our loyal readers to send us some questions and we will be answering as many questions as possible about different players around the nation. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, CBB Event, MLB Draft

Rivals.com division Rivals High released their first ever Top 100 High School Baseball Players this week.  The rankings (found here) are topped by Griffin, GA SS Tim Beckham (pictured left), a Southern Cal commit and probable top 5 pick in the upcoming draft.  Joining him at the top are Cooper City, FL 1B Eric Hosmer (Arizona State); Long Beach, CA OF Aaron Hicks (Southern Cal); Wentzville, MO P Tim Melville (uncommitted); and Santa Ana, CA P Gerrit Cole (UCLA).  The top five are widely speculated to all go pro after the 2008 MLB Draft. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, 2009 Recruits, MLB Draft, Perfect Game, Rivals

Junior/3B/1B/Arizona State

Brett Wallace can hit - fastballs, curveballs, changeups, oranges, grapefruit, pinatas…you get the idea.
So, the obvious question is: why don’t most of the projection lists have him as a top 10 talent? I wondered the same thing - more specifically, why is there a feeling that Smoak, Hosmer, and Alonso are better 1B prospects? Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, Arizona State, CBB Column, Pac 10

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
The College Baseball Foundation and Diamond Sports are proud to bring you this week’s “National All-Star Lineup”. Outstanding individual performances have earned several ‘newcomers’ a spot in the lineup. Josh Harrison of Cincinnati boasted a perfect 10 for 10 effort. Old Dominion’s Anthony Shawler tied a school record with 18 strikeouts in one game. Matt Long (Santa Clara) and Chris Richburg (Texas Tech) both find themselves in their school’s history books as they hit for the cycle. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, College Baseball Foundation, National Awards, National Player of the Week

The following is a scouting report on the Texas Tech Red Raiders from Aman Reaka who watched them play against Kansas on April 11th-13th. We will continue to bring you scouting looks at certain teams throughout the season.

JR Roger Kieschnick 6′3, 215, RF
Kieschnick is a stud hitter with plus power who should be a first round pick in June. He is a true and legitimate power hitting prospect. He played for Team USA and even tied Pedro Alvarez for the team lead in HR’s. He is hitting .307 with 11 HR, 36 RBI, 10 Doubles, 21 K’s and 26 walks. I will be watching his stance and swing mechanics really close to see if he has many holes in his swing. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, Big 12, CBB Column, Texas Tech

Crow or Matusz, Matusz or Crow? That seems to be the question. Fortunately for comparison sake, the only similarity they really share is they are both studs.

I am not going to get into college numbers when comparing them, because most college numbers are useless. The fact that Matusz struck out 16 against San Fransisco really does no good in his future projection. Something I will bring up is the K/BB ratio because I feel it is important no matter what division or league a pitcher is in that they throw strikes and have dominating stuff; Matusz with a 71:15 ratio and Crow with a 67:11. But, Crow plays against better competition blah blah blah that it why I do not want to get into comparing college stats. They are both dominating the college ranks, enough said. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, Big 12, Missouri, MLB Draft, University of San Diego, West Coast Conference

Junior/Catcher/Florida State

Much like Gordon Beckham, a strong Junior year has caused Posey’s stock to sky rocket.

Career/ Background

Posey has been on the radar for a while, being ranked behind Justin Smoak and Reese Havens on Baseball America’s fab 50 Freshman list at #7.

His story is quite interesting, being drafted by the Angels in the 50th round as a SS, and signed by Florida State as a SS. However, he moved behind the plate after his Freshman season, not become of a lack of ability at SS, but because of the need of the team. The story goes that Coach Mike Martin saw one pitch and knew that he was gonna be an outstanding Catcher. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, ACC, CBB Column, FSU, MLB Draft

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
DALLAS — The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, working in conjunction with the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, has released the watch list of 50 candidates for the Dick Howser Trophy, given to the top player in collegiate baseball.

The membership of the NCBWA will choose the Dick Howser Trophy based on three rounds of voting. The 2008 winner will be announced at the College World Series in Omaha on Saturday, June 14, at 10:00 a.m. CDT. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, National Player of the Year, NCBWA

(Tempe, AZ) – National Player of the Year candidate Ike Davis was really slow trying to get to first base after grounding out to the shortstop in the bottom of the sixth inning on Friday night. Davis had barely gotten half way to first base by the time Oregon State had gone short to first to record the out.

Earlier in the game the entire Sun Devil team had gone out to warm up and ASU starter Mike Leake had already thrown all his warm up pitches by the time Davis made his way to first base. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, Arizona State, Injury, Pac 10

Junior/SS/University of Georgia

It is safe to say no player has earned more buzz that Gordon Beckham this year. The premier college middle infielder in this draft is shooting up draft boards. Here is the breakdown.

Career:

Freshman year: - Freshman All- American while playing in all 70 games at SS - hit .280 with 12 HR

Sophomore year: Hit 13 HR overall, while hitting .322 in SEC play

Cape Cod League: tied for league lead with 9 HR

Junior year: Up at the top of the list this year for college baseball’s best player. He has slowed down a bit, no doubt to being pitched around and seeing increased offspeed stuff. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, CBB Column, Georgia, MLB Draft, SEC

By: Willie Nicklaus
The highly regarded Class of 2007 was touted as one of the best in recent years by the scouting community, major baseball publications, and all experts alike. Those that opted for college baseball are making the impact predicted by many, including our own Brian Foley, the head man here at the College Baseball Blog. (Our Top Freshmen article from the Pre-season is available here.) Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, ACC, Arkansas, Atlantic 10, Auburn, Big 12, Big East, Boston College, Cal State Fullerton, CBB Column, Elon, Florida, Georgetown, GT, Kent State, LSU, MAC, Miami (FL), Middle Tennessee, Richmond, SEC, Southern Conference, Tennessee, Tennessee Tech, Texas, UNC, West Virginia

FROM NCBWA RELEASE
STARKVILLE, Miss. (NCBWA) - Forty-five relief pitchers are included on the midseason watch list for the fourth annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, the association announced Thursday. The award is given to the top relief pitcher in Division I college baseball.

The midseason watch list includes four players with double-figure saves totals through April 15, paced by NCAA saves leader Tyler Conn of Southern Miss. The senior lefty has 12 saves, a win and 31 strikeouts in 16 relief appearances and is one of three hurlers on the watch list who have not yielded an earned run in 2008. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, National Awards, NCBWA

Smoak played high school ball along with Matt Weiters in Goose Creek, SC - about 5 miles from where I went to college.

I have been able to follow him since his senior year of high school and have seen him play at least once every year, so I feel like I have a good idea about his progression as a player.

Background/Career:

Out of high school, Smoak was drafted in the 16th round by the A’s. He wanted $1 million to sign, and the rumor was that the A’s held firm at $950,000 (ouch Oakland). Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Top Players, CBB Column, Justin Smoak, MLB Draft, South Carolina