2024 College Top 25 Preview: No. 1 Wake Forest
Image credit: Nick Kurtz (Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images)
Last season: 54-12 (22-7 ACC), reached College World Series
Final ranking: No. 3
Coach (record at school): Tom Walter (420-339-1, 14 seasons)
The good news: Wake Forest returns a key group of players from last year’s team that led the program to its first College World Series appearance since 1955. Offensively, it starts with first baseman and potential No. 1 overall draft pick Nick Kurtz. The first-team All-ACC selection hit .353/.527/.784 with 10 doubles, 24 home runs and 69 RBIs. On top of his ability with the bat, Kurtz is also a great defender. Sophomore shortstop Marek Houston (.220/.328/.307) had a modest year offensively, but he is a true plus defender with silky smooth actions and a sound game clock. In what is a positive development, his offense took a step forward this fall. If he is able to be an impact bat, it makes this lineup all the more dangerous. Shifting focus to the mound, junior lefthander Josh Hartle (11-2, 2.81 ERA) will anchor the rotation. He is perhaps the best strike-thrower in the country, and his pure stuff has continued to tick up. Junior righthander Michael Massey (3-1, 2.59 ERA) joins the rotation after spending last year pitching out of the bullpen. Massey has a lethal fastball-slider combination, but his changeup has begun to develop into a quality third offering. Wake Forest also had a few big-time wins in the transfer portal. Most notably, it landed former Tennessee righthander Chase Burns (5-3, 4.25 ERA). Burns is one of the premier arms in all of college baseball and could be the first arm off the board in this July’s draft. The Demon Deacons also added former Wingate (Division-II) star Seaver King, who last year hit .411/.457/.699 and earned a spot on Team USA’s Collegiate National Team. King is an exceptional athlete and runner, which are two traits that will translate well to playing center field. On top of the star power, there are a number of players from last year’s squad that project to again be key contributors as well as a few guys who seem poised to take their game to another level. Also, keep an eye on true freshmen pitchers Haiden Leffew and Blake Morningstar as guys who could make an immediate impact in year one.
The bad news: While the Deacs return a lot of talent and landed one of the best transfer portal classes in the country, there are some big shoes to fill on both sides of the baseball. Offensively, they lose 76% (99-of-130) of the home runs they hit last year. First-round pick Brock Wilken (.345/.506/.807), sixth-round pick Tommy Hawke (.351/.459/.506), sixth-round pick Bennett Lee (.303/.435/.472), tenth-round pick Justin Johnson (.324/.424/.618) and Pierce Bennett (.353/.431/.523) are all in professional baseball, while a handful of others entered the transfer portal. On the mound, two-time ACC Pitcher of the Year and seventh overall pick Rhett Lowder (15-0, 1.87 ERA) is gone, and so is second-round pick Sean Sullivan (5-3, 2.45 ERA), third-round pick Seth Keener (8-2, 2.69 ERA) and sixth-round pick Cam Minacci (0-1, 2.78 ERA). That is a lot of firepower and production to replace, but this Wake Forest team has the personnel to try and do so.
Player to know: Keep an eye on Ball State transfer Adam Tellier (.317/.394/.515). He is a career .314/.395/.465 hitter and brings loads of experience to this year’s club. Tellier is a wiry athlete who can play all over the diamond, but expect him to hold down the hot corner this spring. He can run, has a solid feel for the barrel and has recently started to impact the ball better. He will be able to impact the game in a number of ways, and his fingerprints are sure to be all over the box score game in and game out.
Path to Omaha: Wake Forest is one of the most talented teams in college baseball. This year’s team will play with a chip on its shoulder after coming up just short in Omaha last year, and now knows what it’s like to both manage and live up to sky-high preseason expectations. If this year’s group gels the way last year’s did and is able to stay healthy, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which Wake Forest is not playing for a national championship.
| Pos. | Name | Year | AVG | OBP | SLG | AB | HR | RBI |
| C | Tate Ballestero | R-Sr. | Transfer—St. John’s | |||||
| 1B | Nick Kurtz | Jr. | .353 | .527 | .784 | 190 | 24 | 69 |
| 2B | Austin Hawke | So. | Transfer—North Carolina | |||||
| 3B | Adam Tellier | R-Sr. | Transfer—Ball State | |||||
| SS | Marek Houston | So. | .220 | .328 | .307 | 218 | 4 | 29 |
| OF | Chris Katz | So. | .206 | .346 | .413 | 63 | 3 | 16 |
| OF | Seaver King | Jr. | Transfer—Wingate (N.C.) | |||||
| OF | Jack Reinisch | Sr. | .178 | .308 | .192 | 73 | 0 | 9 |
| DH | Cam Gill | R-Sr. | Transfer—Wofford | |||||
| Pos. | Name | Class | W | L | ERA | IP | SO | SV |
| SP | Josh Hartle | Jr. | 11 | 2 | 2.81 | 102 | 140 | 0 |
| SP | Chase Burns | Jr. | Transfer—Tennessee | |||||
| SP | Michael Massey | Jr. | 3 | 1 | 2.59 | 42 | 76 | 1 |
| RP | Cole Roland | R-Sr. | 2 | 1 | 2.05 | 31 | 54 | 2 |
| RP | David Falco Jr. | R-Sr. | Transfer—Maryland | |||||
| RP | Blake Morningstar | Fr. | HS—Wyalusing, Pa. |
