College Baseball Week One Standouts: Paul Skenes Shines, Kyle Teel Gets On Track

Image credit: NWL top prospect Kyle Teel (Photo courtesy of Virginia)

College baseball’s opening weekend is always one of the most exciting weekends for any baseball fan. It’s the sign of a new season beginning, it means new prospects and teams to follow and it brings with it high-quality baseball across the country. This past weekend was no different, as multiple players hit the ground running and got off to an excellent start.

Paul Skenes, RHP, LSU

Skenes had some of the loftiest expectations of any player heading into the 2023 season. After strong freshman and sophomore seasons at Air Force, Skenes entered his name into the transfer portal before eventually settling at LSU. This fall he was one of the team’s best performers, especially on the mound, as his stuff took a big leap forward. His lethal arsenal was on full display on Friday, as he went six shutout innings while striking out 12, walking one and allowing just three hits. His fastball comfortably sat in the 95-99 mph range for the entirety of his 98-pitch outing, and his 85-87 mph slider had big-time horizontal movement and looked like a true sweeper at times. Metrically, the slider checked out as a 70-grade pitch. Skenes also mixed in a bowling ball sinker at 95-97 mph that bore in on the hands of righthanded hitters. Skenes is one of the premier arms in the country and if he can continue to turn in loud performances, he could hear his name called within the first five picks in this year’s draft.

Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest

Kurtz is fresh off an All-American campaign in which he slashed .338/.471/.637 with 14 doubles, 15 home runs, 56 RBIs and 10 more walks (48) than strikeouts (38). Coming into 2023, Kurtz was widely viewed as one of the best bats in not only the ACC, but in the entire country. His first four games were arguably the best of any offensive player in the country, as he went 6-for-12 and blasted four home runs, drove in 10 runs and walked seven times. His unique combination of huge raw power and pure hitting ability was on full display, as he drove balls all over the yard. The exclamation point was a no-doubt grand slam against Youngstown State that sailed far beyond the trees in right-center field.

Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa

Brecht, who is also a wide receiver on the Hawkeyes football team, has some of the loudest pure stuff in college baseball, with the only thing holding him back being his lack of command. There were some skeptics when Brecht was announced as Iowa’s Saturday starter, but he shut them up quickly. The righthander went five perfect innings against Quinnipiac while striking out 10. His fastball was explosive as expected, touching triple digits on the radar gun, and his curveball was sharp with big shape, getting plenty of swing and miss. What was most impressive, however, was Brecht’s command. He threw both his fastball and secondary offerings for strikes and commanded the strike zone throughout his outing. If Brecht can continue to prove that he’s a starter and flash advanced command, he will put himself squarely in the conversation to be selected in the first round of the 2024 draft.

Kyle Teel, C, Virginia

One of the top catchers in the country, Teel had an explosive weekend, going 8-for-14 over the course of three games against Navy. He walloped his first home run of the season in the process and did not strike out once. Should Teel revert back to his 2021 self on offense, a season in which he hit .335 with 11 doubles and nine home runs, he projects as a first-round pick in 2023.

Sean Sullivan, LHP, Wake Forest

After being the Friday starter at Northwestern during his freshman year, Sullivan entered the transfer portal and arrived at Wake Forest. Before the season, Coach Tom Walter said Sullivan would be used in a myriad of roles and would be the staff’s swiss army knife. In his first appearance against a solid Illinois ball club, Sullivan impressed. He hurled four shutout innings, allowed just one hit and struck out 10. He throws from a deceptive low three-quarter slot, which makes for a difficult at-bat for both righthanded and lefthanded hitters. Sullivan also has advanced pitchability and is able to land his sweeping slider for strikes. On Saturday, his fastball’s spin was up to 2,633 rpm. Sullivan is eligible for the 2023 draft, and he’s a candidate to soar up boards if he can continue to perform at a high level.

Colton Ledbetter, OF, Mississippi State

Ledbetter was one of the most highly touted bats in the transfer portal after hitting .318 with 16 doubles and 16 home runs during the 2022 season at Samford, a performance that he followed up by hitting .365 with 10 doubles, 11 home runs and winning the MVP award in the NECBL. This past weekend he continued his hitterish ways in his debut series at Mississippi State, going 6-for-13 (.462) with three doubles and one home run. He also posted a 110-plus mph exit velocity and swiped two bases, and his athleticism translated well in the outfield. 

Malcolm Moore, C, Stanford

In what was perhaps the best performance from a true freshman over the weekend, Moore went 5-for-15 with three home runs and five RBIs against Cal State Fullerton. Moore was one of the best bats in the 2022 high school class and after garnering top-two round interest in last year’s draft, he opted to attend Stanford. Moore exceeded expectations in his series debut and looks to be one of the premier freshman bats in the nation. 

Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas

Smith established himself as one of the best arms in the country during his freshman year at Arkansas, pitching his way to a 4.66 ERA with 90 strikeouts over 77.1 innings. This season he will assume a bigger role for the Razorbacks as their Friday starter, and he was thrown into the fire right away by taking on Texas on Opening Day. The southpaw did not disappoint, as he threw five shutout innings, striking out eight, walking two and allowing just one hit. He ran his fastball up to 97 and paired it with a lethal slider. Smith profiles as a potential first-round pick in 2024 and with another strong season, he will solidify himself as such. 

Nich Klemp, C, Portland

Klemp had the most hits of anyone over the weekend (13), including two home runs on opening night against Utah Tech. He followed that four-hit performance up by going a combined 7-for-8 in a Saturday doubleheader, and then went 2-for-4 in the final game of the four-game series.

Justin Wilcoxen, C, East Carolina

In 101 collegiate at-bats across two seasons, Wilcoxen hit six doubles, two home runs and drove in just nine runs. However, after earning the starting nod in each of the Pirates’ three games against George Washington to start the 2023 season, he went an astounding 10-for-14 this past weekend with three doubles, two home runs and drove in eight runs. Wilcoxen’s performance in the third and final game of the series was his loudest, as he went 3-for-4 with two doubles, one home run and four RBIs. As if his performance on offense wasn’t enough, Wilcoxen was excellent behind the dish for the entire series, even throwing out a potential base stealer.