On Campus: NHSI Alumni Continue To Shine In College

The fifth edition of the National High School Invitational is taking place this week at USA Baseball’s National Training Complex in Cary, N.C. While nine players who appeared in the tournament have gone on to become first-round picks out of high school and several others are making noise in pro ball, the event also has many alumni making significant contributions at the college level.

So as this year’s tournament reaches the final rounds, we look at what some players from each year of the event have done since reaching college.

2012

Jeremy Martinez, c, Southern California (Mater Dei High, Santa Ana, Calif.)

Mater Dei returned to NHSI this year for the first time since winning the first two titles in the tournament’s history. One of the Monarchs stars those first two years was Martinez.

Martinez has continued to hit since arriving at Southern California. He is hitting .397/.489/.575 this spring. After primarily playing first base and DH in his first two years with the Trojans, he has moved back behind the plate this season.

2013

Dalton Guthrie, ss, Florida and Mike Rivera, c, Florida (Venice (Fla.) High)

Guthrie and Rivera, both sophomores at Florida, were also teammates at Venice High. They appeared in the NHSI twice, first as juniors in 2013 and again the next year. Their first appearance was their best, as the Indians went 3-1 and finished in third place.

Guthrie and Rivera have had an immediate impact in college, where both are regulars for the top-ranked Gators. Guthrie played second base last season but has slid over to shortstop this year, replacing first-rounder Richie Martin in Florida’s lineup. He is hitting .380/.412/.489. Rivera, renowned for his work behind the plate, is hitting .292/.369/.583 and leads the Gators with five home runs.

2014

Adam Haseley, of/lhp, Virginia (The First Academy, Orlando)

Along with first-rounder Foster Griffin, Haseley helped The First Academy win the 2014 championship. He threw a shutout and reached base in more than half his plate appearances in the tournament.

Haseley has continued to be impactful both on the mound and at the plate in college. He helped Virginia win the national championship last season, throwing five scoreless innings in the College World Series finals and also playing center field. He has continued in both roles again this season and is hitting .407/.505/.663 with a team-leading 31 runs. On the mound, he is 5-0, 1.75.

2015

Seth Beer, of, Clemson (Lambert High, Suwanee, Ga.)

Like Haseley, Beer starred as both a pitcher and hitter at the NHSI. In his start last year, he struck out seven batters in 6 2/3 innings and helped himself with a homer.

But Beer has long been considered a better prospect as a hitter than a pitcher. This spring, after graduating in December so he could enroll at Clemson, he has lived up to those evaluations. A month into his college career, Beer is hitting .448/.548/.940 with nine home runs. His sizzling start has helped Clemson surge to No. 17 in the Top 25 in coach Monte Lee’s first season at the school.

News and notes

Atlantic Coast Conference: Georgia Tech righthander Matthew Gorst picked up his fifth save of the season with a scoreless appearance Thursday at North Carolina. The junior has taken over as the Yellow Jackets’ closer this year and has handled the role well. He has a 20-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio and has allowed just one run in 14 1/3 innings. Coach Danny Hall said Gorst is one of the most improved Yellow Jackets this season. “He’s thrown very well,” Hall said. “He’s been real good and has had a good slider all year.” … After hitting a leadoff homer last Friday against Miami lefthander Thomas Woodrey, Louisville outfielder Corey Ray went 0-for-11 with a walk the rest of the weekend. Saturday and Sunday’s games were just the second and third time he has been held hitless this season. Even after the poor weekend, Ray is hitting .330/.392/.636 with six home runs and 23 stolen baes. Coach Dan McDonnell said when he moved Ray to the leadoff spot this spring, he told him to use whatever approach he wanted, but that after about 20 games teams would have a scouting report for his tendencies as a leadoff hitter. Having reached that point in the season, McDonnell said Ray will have to make adjustments. “These guys are a lot like the pros, where you have everything: spray charts, video, left-right (splits),” he said. “It didn’t use to be like that in college. It’s a game of constant adjustments.”

Big 12 Conference: Kansas State has used 13 freshmen this season, the most in coach Brad Hill’s 13 years with the program. DH Josh Rolette has been the best of the newcomers to date, hitting .342/.429/.466 in the first 21 games of his career. He is riding a 10-game hitting streak … Texas has become accustomed to playing in close games this season, as 13 of its first 22 games have been decided by three runs or less. The Longhorns have also played eight one-run games already this season. Texas improved to 2-6 in those games Thursday, defeating No. 5 Texas Christian, 4-3.

Big Ten Conference: Minnesota hosted on Tuesday its earliest outdoor home game since 1900, defeating Augsburg (Minn.), 10-3, at Siebert Field. Game time temperature was 54 degrees in Minneapolis. … Though Michigan State lost a series at South Florida last weekend, its first losing weekend of the season, it is the only team in the country to rank in the top 10 in both batting average (sixth) and ERA (eighth). The Spartans (15-3) go into the start of Big Ten play hitting .325/.391/.459 and with a team ERA of 2.15.

Pac-12 Conference: Oregon State catcher Logan Ice continued his hot start to the season Thursday, homering off California ace Daulton Jefferies. He was a career .261 hitter coming into this season, but the junior is hitting .429/.507/.911 with five home runs this spring. Oregon State coach Pat Casey said Ice has made strides both mentally and physically. “He’s a guy who’s stuck with the plan and really worked physically to be stronger, to be better, to put the mental part and the physical part together,” Casey said. “He worked at it until he got more consistent with his swing. He’s done a great job of being on time as a hitter.” … UCLA freshman righthander Kyle Molnar struck out eight consecutive batters Sunday against Washington State. It was the most consecutive strikeouts for a Bruins pitcher since 2006, when lefthander David Huff struck out nine batters in a row. Molnar, ranked No. 53 on last year’s BA500, is 2-1, 4.50 this season as UCLA’s Sunday starter.

Southeastern Conference: Part of No. 2 Texas A&M’s early success this season has been attributable to its defense. Through Wednesday, the Aggies ranked seventh in the nation with a .983 team fielding percentage, making just 14 errors that led to seven unearned runs. Coach Rob Childress said going into the season he couldn’t be sure how good they would be defensively, as they were breaking in a new left side of the infield. But, so far, he’s been pleased with the results. “We’ve played defense at a very high level, and I think that’s been our biggest constant all year long,” he said.

Other conferences: South Florida lost ace Jimmy Herget (10-3, 2.92) and closer Tommy Peterson (16 saves) from last year’s team regional team. So far, however, the Bulls have gotten good performances from their replacements Phoenix Sanders and Tommy Eveld, helping them win five straight series to open the season. Sanders (1-1, 2.40) is in his first season at USF after transferring from Daytona State JC (Fla.), while Eveld started his college career as a football player before joining the baseball team last year. The 6-foot-5 redshirt junior is the better prospect of the pair, capable of running his fastball up to 94 mph and showing promising secondary stuff. The biggest key to his improvement this season, coach Mark Kingston said is simply more experience on the mound. “He’s a more polished pitcher,” Kingston said. “Last year he was a football player trying to make the team. This year he’s more polished.” … Florida Gulf Coast announced Thursday first baseman Nick Rivera had surgery to repair a broken hamate bone. Rivera was the Astros’ 38th-round pick last year but chose to return for his senior season. Rivera is hitting .293/.461/.466 for the Eagles.