The CBB continues our countdown for the 2010 College Baseball season by checking in on the Top 100 Players in the country. We will be providing one player per day until we reach number 1.
We continue the list today with number 68 in our countdown with UC-Riverside sophomore catcher Rob Brantly. He is a 6’3 195 pound catcher out of Temecula Valley California where he went to Chapparal High School. He picked up four letters in high school including being named 2007-08 First-Team All-League and 2008 First-Team All-Valley and Second-Team All-County. He was picked in the 2008 MLB Draft by the Washington Nationals with the 1378 overall selection but decided to attend UC-Riverside.
Brantly had a solid freshman campaign with the Highlanders where he appeared in 42 games starting in 35 of them. He finished with a .316 average with four homers and 23 RBI. He finished the season with a slugging percentage of .454 and had an on base percentage of .344. He was solid behind the plate making a total of three errors while throwing out runners at 23 percent. He played this summer with the La Crosse Loggers of the Northwoods League where he led the league in hitting at .346 with six homers and 34 RBI in 49 games. He also was patient at the plate by working 21 walks to have an on base percentage of .411 and slugging at .516. Baseball America rated him as the top pro prospect in the Northwoods League.
We believe Brantly will continue to develop into the 2010 season into one of the best catchers in the Big West Conference and potentially on the west coast based on his solid freshman season and outstanding summer in the Northwoods League.
You can check out the rest of our Top 100 by clicking here.
