2017 All-America Teams
Oregon State and North Carolina entered the NCAA Tournament as the top two ranked teams in the country, and they combined to produce five first-team All-Americans.
Joining North Carolina with three honorees across all three All-America teams are Kentucky and Louisville. Seven schools—Florida, Louisiana State, Missouri State, Oregon State, Southern Mississippi, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest—had two players honored. In all, 35 schools are represented on the All-America teams.
Five players from the Preseason-All America first team also made the postseason first team: second baseman Nick Madrigal, third baseman Jake Burger, DH Keston Hiura, lefthander/first baseman Brendan McKay and righthander J.B. Bukauskas. Outfielders Adam Haseley and Stuart Fairchild were on the second team. In all, 13 players who made the Preseason All-America teams are again honored on the postseason teams.
McKay is now a three-time first-team All-American. Burger and Haseley are the only other players to repeat as All-Americans this season. Both were honored on the third-team last year.
The All-America team selected by Baseball America staff. Capsules by Teddy Cahill and Michael Lannana. Statistics compiled by Justin Perline
Editor’s Note: After a report surfaced in The Oregonian on Thursday morning that Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich pleaded guilty to sexually molesting a 6-year-old female family member when he was 15, Baseball America has decided to remove Heimlich from our All-America team.
C David Banuelos
Long Beach State
Banuelos is known mostly for his ability behind the plate, and he was named Big West Conference defensive player of the year. He shut down opponents’ running games, throwing out 18 of 29 (62 percent) basestealers. The junior took a step forward offensively this spring, hitting .297/.376/.484 with seven home runs to lead Beach to super regionals.
1B Brent Rooker
Mississippi State
An all-Southeastern Conference honoree a year ago, Rooker raised his game in his redshirt-junior season. He was the SEC player of the year and hit .395/.498/.827 with 23 home runs and 18 stolen bases, leading the country in slugging percentage and ranking second in hits. Rooker led Mississippi State to super regionals for the second year in a row.
2B Nick Madrigal
Oregon State
The sophomore has been the sparkplug for the best team in the country this spring. The Pacific-12 Conference player of the year, Madrigal makes the most of his 5-foot-8 frame, putting together disciplined at-bats and showcasing a dynamic offensive tool set. He hit .380/.443/.537, walked more than he struck out and made just four errors.
3B Jake Burger
Missouri State
Burger tapped into his prodigious power to hit more than 20 home runs for the second straight year, thus becoming the second Bear to have back-to-back 20-homer seasons. The Missouri Valley Conference player of the year, the junior helped Missouri State reach super regionals for the second time in three years by hitting .335/.451/.665 with 22 home runs.
SS Logan Warmoth
North Carolina
The Tar Heels shortstop carried a strong 2016 second half and summer in the Cape Cod League into this spring, where he showed improved power at the plate. Hitting a career-high 10 home runs and batting .336/.404/.554, Warmoth also fields the position well enough that most evaluators believe he’ll stick there at the next level.
OF Greg Deichmann
Louisiana State
Like Brent Rooker, Deichmann opted to return to school after being drafted last year. The junior hit .322/.430/.614 with a Louisiana State-high 19 home runs and showed greater selectivity at the plate. He also made a smooth transition from first base to right field, where he collected six assists and showed improved mobility.
OF Adam Haseley
Virginia
A two-way player throughout his career at Virginia, Haseley took a step forward offensively this season while holding down a spot in the Cavaliers’ rotation. The junior won the Atlantic Coast Conference batting title, hitting .390/.491/.659 with 10 stolen bases. He also hit a team-high 14 home runs, doubling his total from his first two college seasons.
OF Stuart Fairchild
Wake Forest
Fairchild led a high-powered Wake Forest offense, helping the Demon Deacons reach super regionals for the first time since 1999. He hit .359/.438/.645 with 17 home runs and 20 stolen bases, capped by a virtuoso regional performance. The junior also earns rave reviews in center field, where he did not make an error this season.
DH Keston Hiura
UC Irvine
An elbow injury has limited Hiura to DH duties since last April, but it hasn’t limited him any at the plate. He hit .442/.567/.693 with eight home runs, nine stolen bases and 50 walks. The Big West Conference player of the year was leading the country in batting and on-base percentage after winning the “slash-stat” triple crown in his conference.
UT Brendan McKay
Louisville
For the third year in a row, McKay earns first-team All-America honors as a utility player. The Cardinals ace and cleanup hitter excelled in both roles. The junior was named Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year after going 9-3, 2.31 with 131 strikeouts in 97.1 innings on the mound and hitting .356/.476/.683 with 17 home runs at the plate.
SP J.B. Bukauskas
North Carolina
The North Carolina Friday starter has been a hot commodity since high school, boasting a fastball that can touch the upper 90s and the highest-graded slider in college. Bukauskas used those two pitches to carve through the Atlantic Coast Conference as its pitcher of the year, going 9-1, 2.53 with 116 strikeouts to 37 walks in 92.2 innings.
SP Steven Gingery
Texas Tech
Building off a solid freshman season in an Omaha club’s weekend rotation, Gingery seized Texas Tech’s ace role, going 10-1, 1.58 for the Big 12 Conference regular-season champs. The lefty struck out 107 to 29 walks in 91.1 innings, and with other members of his pitching staff battling injuries, Gingery proved to be a workhorse, thriving even in a hitter’s park.
SP Cory Abbott
Loyola Marymount
Few pitchers in college baseball made a leap like Abbott, who added a slider after watching video of Noah Syndergaard’s grip of the pitch and became one of the nation’s top starters for the Lions. He ranked in the top 15 in the country in wins, ERA, strikeouts and strikeouts per nine innings (11.9), and threw in March the first prefect game in program history.
SP Jake Thompson
Oregon State
On almost any other staff, Thompson would be the ace. But at Oregon State, he’s one of several. Healthy for an entire season, Thompson went 13-0, 1.30 for the Beavers, striking out 106 n 110.2 innings. The redshirt junior has always had stuff, with a fastball that touches the mid-90s and a hard, biting slider. In 2017, he put that arsenal to good use.
RP Josh Hiatt
North Carolina
A year after not pitching for the Tar Heels—he redshirted after failing to make the roster—a determined Hiatt seized the closer’s role and allowed only one run in 30.2 Atlantic Coast Conference innings. He appeared in 17 of those 30 games. Hiatt posted 13 saves overall, with a 1.90 ERA and 64 strikeouts in 52 innings. His changeup is a legitimate plus pitch.
RP Wyatt Marks
Louisiana-Lafayette
Though the Ragin’ Cajuns didn’t advance to regional play this year, Marks is by no means to blame. The junior was as dominant as it gets in the back of the bullpen, leading the country with nine-inning ratios of 15.17 strikeouts and 4.4 hits. He struck out a whopping 100 batters in 59.1 innings, posting seven saves and a 2.28 ERA.
Baseball America has selected a College All-America team for more than 30 years. This year’s selections were made by BA staff after the regionals, weighing the performance of players throughout the spring. While our Preseason All-America teams, which are voted on by major league scouting directors, are forward looking, with an emphasis on talent and potential, these teams are meant to look at the results of the 2017 season. We take into account evaluations from countless coaches and scouts, as well as statistical performance to create the teams.
First Team | |||||||||||||
Pos. Name, School | Yr | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | |
C David Banuelos, Long Beach State | Jr. | .297 | .376 | .484 | 192 | 31 | 57 | 7 | 29 | 17 | 42 | 5 | |
1B Brent Rooker, Mississippi State | R-Jr. | .395 | .498 | .827 | 243 | 57 | 96 | 23 | 82 | 45 | 54 | 18 | |
2B Nick Madrigal, Oregon State | So. | .380 | .443 | .537 | 216 | 49 | 82 | 4 | 34 | 21 | 13 | 15 | |
3B Jake Burger, Missouri State | Jr. | .333 | .448 | .662 | 240 | 69 | 80 | 22 | 65 | 42 | 36 | 3 | |
SS Logan Warmoth, North Carolina | Jr. | .336 | .404 | .554 | 271 | 60 | 91 | 10 | 49 | 28 | 47 | 18 | |
OF Greg Deichmann, Louisiana State | Jr. | .322 | .430 | .614 | 233 | 49 | 75 | 19 | 69 | 47 | 51 | 5 | |
OF Stuart Fairchild, Wake Forest | Jr. | .359 | .438 | .645 | 248 | 64 | 89 | 17 | 67 | 29 | 49 | 20 | |
OF Adam Haseley, Virginia | Jr. | .390 | .491 | .659 | 223 | 68 | 87 | 14 | 56 | 44 | 21 | 10 | |
DH Keston Hiura, UC Irvine | Jr. | .442 | .567 | .693 | 199 | 48 | 88 | 8 | 42 | 50 | 38 | 9 | |
UT Brendan McKay, Louisville | Jr. | .356 | .476 | .683 | 202 | 54 | 72 | 17 | 56 | 45 | 35 | 2 | |
Pos. Name, School | Yr | W | L | ERA | G | CG | SV | IP | H | BB | SO | AVG | |
SP J.B. Bukauskas, North Carolina | Jr. | 9 | 1 | 2.53 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 93 | 62 | 37 | 116 | .188 | |
SP Steven Gingery, Texas Tech | So. | 10 | 1 | 1.58 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 60 | 29 | 107 | .186 | |
SP Cory Abbott, Loyola Marymount | Jr. | 11 | 2 | 1.74 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 98 | 61 | 28 | 130 | .173 | |
SP Jake Thompson, Oregon State | R-Jr. | 13 | 0 | 1.30 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 111 | 69 | 34 | 106 | .180 | |
RP Josh Hiatt, North Carolina | R-Fr. | 4 | 2 | 1.90 | 32 | 0 | 13 | 52 | 31 | 20 | 64 | .168 | |
RP Wyatt Marks, Louisiana-Lafayette | Jr. | 2 | 1 | 2.28 | 30 | 0 | 7 | 59 | 29 | 25 | 100 | .144 | |
UT Brendan McKay, Louisville | Jr. | 9 | 3 | 2.31 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 97 | 61 | 33 | 131 | .178 | |
Second Team | |||||||||||||
Pos. Name, School | Yr | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | |
C Joey Morgan, Washington | Jr. | .324 | .427 | .500 | 182 | 28 | 59 | 5 | 45 | 30 | 35 | 1 | |
1B Evan White, Kentucky | Jr. | .368 | .450 | .627 | 204 | 47 | 75 | 9 | 40 | 24 | 31 | 5 | |
2B Braden Shewmake, Texas A&M | Fr. | .333 | .377 | .545 | 255 | 42 | 85 | 11 | 67 | 14 | 28 | 11 | |
3B Drew Ellis, Louisville | R-So. | .362 | .453 | .695 | 213 | 52 | 77 | 17 | 55 | 37 | 37 | 6 | |
SS Kevin Merrell, South Florida | Jr. | .384 | .464 | .569 | 216 | 48 | 83 | 7 | 38 | 29 | 31 | 19 | |
OF Garrett McCain, Oklahoma State | Jr. | .388 | .491 | .549 | 224 | 53 | 87 | 4 | 43 | 29 | 33 | 19 | |
OF Will Robertson, Davidson | Sr. | .336 | .404 | .648 | 244 | 58 | 82 | 18 | 44 | 19 | 29 | 4 | |
OF Matt Wallner, Southern Mississippi | Fr. | .336 | .463 | .655 | 235 | 56 | 79 | 19 | 63 | 45 | 50 | 4 | |
DH J.J. Matijevic, Arizona | Jr. | .383 | .436 | .633 | 240 | 57 | 92 | 10 | 65 | 23 | 38 | 9 | |
UT Taylor Braley, Southern Mississippi | Jr. | .313 | .461 | .587 | 230 | 62 | 72 | 17 | 61 | 63 | 50 | 6 | |
Pos. Name, School | Yr | W | L | ERA | G | CG | SV | IP | H | BB | SO | AVG | |
SP Tyler Holton, Florida State | So. | 10 | 2 | 2.22 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 105 | 63 | 25 | 132 | .166 | |
SP Alex Faedo, Florida | Jr. | 7 | 2 | 2.80 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 96 | 81 | 32 | 113 | .225 | |
SP Alex Lange, Louisiana State | Jr. | 9 | 5 | 2.87 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 103 | 94 | 34 | 124 | .240 | |
SP Kyle Wright, Vanderbilt | Jr. | 5 | 5 | 2.98 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 97 | 74 | 28 | 113 | .210 | |
RP Lincoln Henzman, Louisville | Jr. | 3 | 0 | 1.30 | 24 | 0 | 16 | 35 | 17 | 8 | 35 | .147 | |
RP Colton Hock, Stanford | Jr. | 6 | 1 | 2.08 | 27 | 0 | 16 | 48 | 36 | 11 | 35 | .211 | |
UT Taylor Brayley, Southern Mississippi | Jr. | 7 | 2 | 3.40 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 82 | 81 | 22 | 78 | .263 | |
Third Team | |||||||||||||
Pos. Name, School | Yr | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | |
C Daulton Varsho, Wisconsin-Milwaukee | Jr. | .362 | .490 | .643 | 199 | 47 | 72 | 11 | 39 | 46 | 39 | 10 | |
1B Gavin Sheets, Wake Forest | Jr. | .322 | .429 | .634 | 227 | 55 | 73 | 20 | 81 | 44 | 33 | 1 | |
2B Riley Mahan, Kentucky | Jr. | .339 | .396 | .626 | 254 | 56 | 86 | 15 | 67 | 22 | 52 | 9 | |
3B Jake Scheiner, Houston | Jr. | .346 | .432 | .667 | 243 | 50 | 84 | 18 | 64 | 27 | 41 | 8 | |
SS Jeremy Eierman, Missouri State | So. | .312 | .430 | .671 | 237 | 66 | 74 | 22 | 67 | 39 | 57 | 15 | |
OF D.J. Artis, Liberty | So. | .359 | .532 | .552 | 181 | 58 | 65 | 6 | 45 | 62 | 30 | 23 | |
OF Jeren Kendall, Vanderbilt | Jr. | .312 | .379 | .569 | 253 | 58 | 79 | 15 | 52 | 24 | 71 | 19 | |
OF Tristan Pompey, Kentucky | So. | .368 | .471 | .554 | 258 | 70 | 95 | 10 | 44 | 45 | 54 | 9 | |
DH Jake Adams, Iowa | Jr. | .335 | .417 | .747 | 245 | 55 | 82 | 29 | 72 | 29 | 57 | 5 | |
UT Jake Meyers, Nebraska | Jr. | .297 | .439 | .349 | 195 | 52 | 58 | 1 | 16 | 39 | 31 | 20 | |
Pos. Name, School | Yr | W | L | ERA | G | CG | SV | IP | H | BB | SO | AVG | |
SP Griffin Canning, UCLA | Jr. | 7 | 4 | 2.34 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 119 | 93 | 32 | 140 | .213 | |
SP David Peterson, Oregon | Jr. | 11 | 4 | 2.51 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 100 | 88 | 15 | 140 | .237 | |
SP J.P. Sears, The Citadel | Jr. | 7 | 3 | 2.64 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 95 | 69 | 27 | 142 | .204 | |
SP Casey Mize, Auburn | So. | 8 | 2 | 2.04 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 84 | 66 | 9 | 109 | .210 | |
RP Michael Byrne, Florida | So. | 2 | 4 | 1.69 | 31 | 0 | 16 | 59 | 46 | 10 | 66 | .215 | |
RP Nate Harris, Louisiana Tech | Sr. | 9 | 1 | 2.31 | 22 | 3 | 8 | 94 | 79 | 11 | 94 | .226 | |
UT Jake Meyers, Nebraska | Jr. | 8 | 2 | 3.42 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 84 | 86 | 9 | 57 | .265 |
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