National Pitcher of the Year
LUBBOCK, Texas — The two pitchers leading the nation in victories also lead the initial watch list for the 2016 National Pitcher of the Year Award, presented by the National College Baseball Hall of Fame.
The award, sponsored by Diamond, will be presented on July 2 in Lubbock as part of the annual Night of Champions event.
Louisville’s Drew Harrington, a junior left-hander, and South Carolina’s Clarke Schmidt, a sophomore right-hander, are both 8-1 on the season. Harrington has pitched 58 innings through April 17, while Schmidt has pitched 65 in that time.
Schmidt also leads the nation in strikeouts with 80.
“Every year, the number of quality pitchers across the country makes compiling this list difficult, and this year is no different,” said Raymond Richardson, Pitcher of the Year Award co-chair. “We are pleased to highlight so many quality athletes, and we look forward to seeing how the rest of the season goes for these young men.”
Also on the watch list is the nation’s leader in earned run average — Thomas Hackimer, a senior right-hander at St. John’s, who has a 0.27 ERA in 33 innings — and the nation’s saves leader, Sam Donko, a junior right-hander at VCU, who has 14 saves in 19 appearances.
Five schools have three representatives on the watch list — Florida, Louisville, South Carolina, TCU and Vanderbilt. The Southeastern Conference features 16 representatives, followed by the Atlantic Coast Conference with 11.
“Having that many players from two conferences on this first list speaks to the quality of pitching in those leagues, but there are several conferences with more than one player on this list,” said Brian Melakian, Pitcher of the Year Award co-chair. “No doubt those players will factor heavily into their teams’ success as the season continues.”
For more information on the Night of Champions event, visit www.collegebaseballhall.org.
2016 National Pitcher of the Year Watch List
Name School Conference
Sam Donko VCU A10
Evan Kruczynski East Carolina AAC
Nick Hernandez Houston AAC
Seth Romero Houston AAC
Robby Howell Central Florida AAC
Jacob Stevens Boston College ACC
Pat Krall Clemson ACC
Jim Voyles Florida State ACC
Drew Harrington Louisville ACC
Kade McClure Louisville ACC
Brendan McKay Louisville ACC
Jesse Lepore Miami ACC
J.B. Bukauskas North Carolina ACC
Hunter Williams North Carolina ACC
Brian Brown North Carolina State ACC
Ryan Williamson North Carolina State ACC
Adam Haseley Virginia ACC
Connor Jones Virginia ACC
Chad Lee Stony Brook AEC
Brad Haymes Gardner-Webb Big South
Darren McCaughan Long Beach State Big West
Kyle Nelson UC Santa Barbara Big West
Evan Hill Michigan Big 10
Ryan Nutof Michigan Big 10
Cam Vieaux Michigan State Big 10
Reece Eddins Nebraska Big 10
Adam Oller Northwestern Big 10
Jack Anderson Penn State Big 10
Tyler Buffett Oklahoma State Big 12
Luken Baker TCU Big 12
Dalton Horton TCU Big 12
Brian Howard TCU Big 12
Ty Culbreth Texas Big 12
Hayden Howard Texas Tech Big 12
Davis Martin Texas Tech Big 12
Thomas Hackimer St. John’s Big East
Aaron Civale Northeastern CAA
Ryan Foster UNC Wilmington CAA
Glenn Otto Rice Conference USA
Cord Cockrell Southern Miss Conference USA
Eric Lauer Kent State MAC
Jimmy Lambert Fresno State MWC
James Karinchak Bryant NEC
Matt Anderson Morehead State OVC
Joey Lucchesi Southeast Missouri State OVC
Daulton Jeffries California Pac-12
Stephen Nogosek Oregon Pac-12
Bryce Fehmel Oregon State Pac-12
Troy Rallings Washington Pac-12
Luke Gillingham Navy Patriot
Thomas Burrows Alabama SEC
Shaun Anderson Florida SEC
Alex Faedo Florida SEC
Logan Shore Florida SEC
Dustin Beggs Kentucky SEC
John Valek III LSU SEC
Brady Bramlett Ole Miss SEC
Josh Reagan South Carolina SEC
Clarke Schmidt South Carolina SEC
Braden Webb South Carolina SEC
Brigham Hill Texas A&M SEC
Patrick Raby Vanderbilt SEC
Jordan Sheffield Vanderbilt SEC
Kyle Wright Vanderbilt SEC
Will Hibbs Lamar Southland
Kevin Hill South Alabama Sunbelt
Joseph Camacho Alabama State SWAC
Tyler Howe Alabama State SWAC
Tarik Skubal Seattle WAC
Michael Rucker BYU West Coast
A.J. Puckett Pepperdine West Coast
Corbin Burnes Saint Mary’s (Calif.) West Coast
