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DURHAM, N.C. — USA Baseball announced the semifinalists for the 2014 Golden Spikes Award on Tuesday. Twenty-one athletes from around the country were named semifinalists for the 37th Golden Spikes Award, presented to the top amateur baseball player in the U.S.
FROM CBD NEWS SOURCE
DURHAM, N.C. — USA Baseball announced the semifinalists for the 2014 Golden Spikes Award on Tuesday. Twenty-one athletes from around the country were named semifinalists for the 37th Golden Spikes Award, presented to the top amateur baseball player in the U.S.
GoldenSpikesAward.com — powered by MLB Advanced Media — will once again be the online home for the award. The website features content devoted exclusively to the GSA, including news, voting history, past winner photo galleries, and photographs and biographical information for the 2014 semifinalists. Fans can follow online at GoldenSpikesAward.com as the list of 21 players is narrowed to a group of finalists on Tuesday, June 3.
One new player was added to the list since its last release on May 8, joining 20 others from the 30-man watch list. The Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference and Atlantic Sun Conference led all conferences in watch list players, with three semifinalists each. Additionally, 11 different NCAA conferences are represented on the list. The West Coast Conference, PAC 12 Conference, Missouri Valley Conference and Big West Conference all had two athletes on the list.
Each of the 21 semifinalists represent different schools from across the country. Louisiana State’s Aaron Nola makes an appearance on the 2014 Golden Spikes Award semifinalist list after also being named a semifinalist for the award in 2013.
USA Baseball officials will announce the list of finalists for the 2014 Golden Spikes Award on Tuesday, June 3. To select the finalists, the list of semifinalists is sent to a voting body consisting of past Golden Spikes Award winners, past USA Baseball National Team coaches and press officers, members of media that closely follow the amateur game, select professional baseball personnel, and current USA Baseball staff, representing a group of more than 200 voters in total.
Fan voting will once again be a part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2014. This announcement officially marks the opening of voting for amateur baseball fans from across the country on GoldenSpikesAward.com. As part of this selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of names. Voting will be open until Friday, May 30.
Last year, University of San Diego infielder, Kris Bryant, took home the prestigious award, joining a group of recent winners that includes Mike Zunino (2012), Trevor Bauer (2011), Bryce Harper (2010), Stephen Strasburg (2009) and Buster Posey (2008).
Other past winners of the Golden Spikes Award include Terry Francona (1980), Will Clark (1985), Robin Ventura (1988), Jason Varitek (1994), J.D. Drew (1997), Mark Prior (2001), Jered Weaver (2004), Tim Lincecum (2006) and David Price (2007).
Important 2014 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award dates include:
Friday, Feb. 14: 60-man preseason watch list released, shaped by USA Baseball officials and advisors
Thursday, April 10: 50-man midseason watch list released, shaped by USA Baseball officials and advisors
Thursday, May 8: 30-man watch list, shaped by USA Baseball officials and advisors
Tuesday, May 27: Semifinalists announced, selected by USA Baseball officials; semifinalist voting begins; voters to select three
Friday, May 30: Deadline to vote for finalists, 5 p.m. ET
Tuesday, June 3: Finalists announced; finalist voting begins; voters to select one
Friday, June 13: Deadline to vote for winner, 5 p.m. ET
Thursday, July 17: Golden Spikes Award presentation
The complete 2014 Golden Spikes Award semifinalist list is as follows:
Name, Position, Class, School (in order of last name, new players bolded)
Aaron Brown, OF/LHP, Junior, Pepperdine
Michael Conforto, OF, Junior, Oregon State
Tyler Davis, RHP, Junior, Washington
Chris Ellis, RHP, Junior, Mississippi
Kyle Freeland, LHP, Junior, Evansville
Casey Gillaspie, IF, Junior, Wichita State
Daniel Gossett, RHP, Senior, Clemson
Matt Imhof, LHP, Junior, Cal Poly
Connor Joe, IF, Junior, San Diego
Michael Katz, IF, Junior, William & Mary
Nathan Kirby, LHP, Sophomore, Virginia
Jordan Luplow, OF, Junior, Fresno State
Andrew Morales, RHP, Senior, UC Irvine
Michael Murray, RHP, Sophomore, Florida Gulf Coast
Aaron Nola, RHP, Junior, Louisiana State
Max Pentecost, C, Junior, Kennesaw State
Josh Prevost, RHP, Senior, Seton Hall
A.J. Reed, LHP/IF, Junior, Kentucky
DJ Stewart, OF, Sophomore, Florida State
Sam Travis, IF, Junior, Indiana
Drew Weeks, OF/IF, Junior, North Florida
