Welcome to the Prospects Live Weekly College Baseball Roundup! Each week, we’ll bring you highlights and stories from the college baseball series happening over the weekend, MLB Draft prospect performances to note, and a recap of our analysts' incredible work nationwide!
Highlights From the Week/Weekend
Despite some ups and downs, TCU stays undefeated: Do not sleep on TCU. The Horned Frogs are now a perfect 12-0 to start the 2024 season. They participated in the College Baseball Series this weekend, where they played USC twice and Arizona State once, winning all three games. TCU has just dominated the PAC-12 this year, sweeping #20 ranked UCLA at the time and following that with wins over Arizona and Washington State. What’s wild is that TCU hasn’t been perfect on the statistical side of things either. Two-way star Payton Tolle has struggled both at the plate and on the mound and the pitching staff has a collective 4.79 ERA, but the Horned Frogs keep rolling. That’s primarily in-part due to their offense clicking on all cylinders. If Tolle gets hot and the arms take that next step as expected, TCU is going to continue to be a force.
Let’s talk about Texas A&M: Speaking of undefeated teams, Texas A&M improved to 11-0 over the weekend as they also went undefeated in the College Baseball Series, beating Arizona State twice and USC once (tough weekend for ASU and USC). The Aggies have had a much softer schedule than TCU, but nonetheless, they’ve been impressive. Braden Montgomery has been terrorizing opposing pitching as he’s hitting .410 with five home runs and 21 RBI to start the season. More on that below. Jace LaViolette is showing people why he’s widely considered the number one overall prospect for the 2025 draft, and the Aggies pitching staff has put up a combined 1.45 ERA. I think it is safe to say things are going as well as possible for the Aggies. They have a tough midweek matchup against Texas this week but then have a softer weekend schedule against the University of Rhode Island. There is a good chance we could see A&M come out of this week undefeated yet again.
Stetson upsets #4 Florida: Yes, it is a midweek game, but Florida was yet again upset by another mid-major. The Gators took a trip to Stetson to lose 7-4. Stetson’s starter Ty Van Dyke struggled, giving up four earned runs in 3.1 innings, but the bullpen kept the Gators at bay. Anthony DeFabbia went 3.2 innings of scoreless baseball, followed by Cole Stallings, who went two innings while giving up only one hit. Stetson didn’t outslug the Gators, but they kept hitting when it mattered. They scored their seven runs on eight hits, with catcher Gio Cueto and third baseman Juan De La Cruz both driving in two. The Gators bounced back later in the week taking two of three against Miami.
Luke Holman takes over as LSU’s Friday night starter: LSU announced this week that Luke Holman was going to take over as their Friday night starter, and rightfully so. Holman has been incredible for the LSU Tigers all year long, and he continued to do the same in a matchup against Texas on Friday. He went 5.2 innings pitched while giving up only three hits and striking out 12 on 91 pitches. Electric. Holman is quickly increasing his draft stock and has basically cemented himself as the ace of the Tigers staff.
MLB Draft Prospect Updates
Jonathan Santucci throws a gem against Akron: Just another day and another incredible performance for Duke left-hander Jonathan Santucci. He was brilliant against Akron, going six innings while striking out 14 and only giving up one hit. Santucci quickly shows he is the top five pitcher in this upcoming draft class.
What do Hagen Smith’s last two starts mean for his draft stock: Hagen Smith followed his 17-strikeout game with a 12-strikeout one. He went six innings and only gave up one hit (a home run) to Murray State. Smith saw a velocity increase this fall, and there were questions on whether it would stick throughout the year. It has definitely stuck. Smith has catapulted himself into a top-three pitcher in this upcoming draft class, and if he continues this in SEC play, he could see himself becoming an easy top-10 pick.
Charlie Condon is a monster: Can you say possibly 1-1 for Mr. Charlie Condon? He’s sure as hell making an argument for it. He stayed red hot this weekend, including a three-homer game against Michigan State on February 28th. He brings his season totals to an absurd .568/.636/1.273 slash line. He’s got eight home runs, five doubles, and 15 RBI in 44 at-bats. He may have one of the most, if not the most, polished bat in this class. The only question is if he can continue this in SEC play, and if last year is any indicator it is an overwhelming yes.
Jac Caglianone continues to impress: Jac Cags, as they call him, has been on everyone’s radar since last year. The two-way phenom was getting Shohei Ohtani comps last year. While that might be a bit too much, Cags is still damn good. He was on one on the mound this week as he went six innings, giving up three hits and no runs while striking out eleven against Miami. On top of that, he was 3-for-5 with a home run at the dish. Just insane. There is some risk to taking Cags in the draft, but man, it is hard to deny what he can do on both sides of the ball, especially with his insane velo on the mound and exit velos at the plate.
Trey Yesavage eight shutout innings: Yesavage continues to be a fun show on the mound for ECU. Our very own Tyler Jennings was live to watch his incredible performance against Purdue this weekend where Yesavage went eight shutout innings while striking out 11 K’s. He racked up an insane 26 whiffs. According to Tyler, his fastball was 92-96 topping out at 97 with massive carry. The slider was 83-87, changeup, 81-85, and curveball 78-79. His electric four-pitch mix is going to have teams calling early.
New Prospects Live Content
Podcast:
On The Clock - Hagen Smith’s Absolute Dominance
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C Ethan Anderson, Virginia (Jared Perkins)
OF/DH Kendall Diggs, Arkansas (Tyler Jennings/Patrick Bauer)
OF Jonathan Kim, Michigan (Tyler Jennings/Patrick Bauer)
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OF Gavin Turley, Oregon State (Tyler Jennings/Patrick Bauer)
RHP Brady Tygart, Arkansas (Tyler Jennings/Patrick Bauer)
RHP Jay Woolfolk, Virginia (Jared Perkins)