College Baseball Daily continues our countdown to the start of the 2014 college baseball season by checking in on the Top 100 Players in the country. We will be adding players day-by-day until we get to number one!
Number 1 on our Top 100 Countdown is North Carolina State’s Carlos Rodon. The 6-3 left-handed pitcher from Holly Springs, North Carolina was selected in the 16th round by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2011 MLB Draft.
As a freshman in 2012, Rodon had the strongest breakout season in the country for the NC State Wolfpack. In his 17 appearances, Rodon went 9-0 with an ERA of just 1.57. In his 114.2 innings pitched, Rodon struck out 135 batters while walking 41 and holding opponents to a batting average of just .176.
His success earned him a variety of awards including ACC Pitcher of the Year, ACC Freshman of the Year, Louisville Slugger National Freshman Pitcher of the Year, consensus First-Team All American honors, and he was also the first freshman in division 1 history to be a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award. Rodon spent the summer of 2012 playing for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team where he was ranked the top prospect of the team.
His sophomore season saw him go 10-3 with a 2.99 ERA in 19 starts, striking out 184 and walking 45 tossing three complete games in 132.1 innings. He set the NC State single-season record with 184 strikeouts. Since 2003, only Jered Weaver, Trevor Bauer, Tim Lincecum, Stephen Strasburg, and David Price have recorded more strikeouts in a single collegiate season. In 2013, he was named the USA Baseball Player of the Year, second team All-America from Louisville Slugger, NCBWA and ABCA, and All-ACC first team.
From a scouting perspective, Rodon is easily one of the most talked about players in college baseball. The velocity on the lefty’s fastball has touched as high as 98, and his solid frame leaves room for even more of a potential increase in velocity. In addition to his velocity, his mechanics are excellent and very consistent. He also has very solid control and excellent consistency on the mound. As the most talked about player in college baseball, Rodon comes in first on our list as the most exciting player to watch for in 2014!
You can check out the rest of our Top 100 by clicking here.
