These days, it seems more common for baseball’s top talents to commit to a college merely as a formality, then take the money and run once an MLB team drafts them.
But that’s not always the case, and even within the past 10 years there have been quite a few Major League stars that decided to pick up the books for a bit before going pro.
Josh Donaldson (Auburn)
Josh Donaldson didn’t collect many honors in college, but he has more than made up for it in the Majors. After hitting .349 for 54 RBIs in 55 games his senior year at Auburn. Donaldson was drafted by the Cubs in 2007 and eventually traded to the Athletics’ organization. With Oakland, the third baseman made the All-Star Game for the first time and twice was in the top 8 of AL MVP voting.
Since being traded to Toronto in the 2014-15 offseason, he’s been selected as an All-Star twice more, and in 2015 he led the AL in RBIs and runs. That same year he won the Silver Slugger Award, the AL Hank Aaron Award, and the AL MVP.
Chris Sale (Florida Gulf Coast)
Florida Gulf Coast isn’t exactly known as a MLB-talent factory, but maybe it will by the time Chris Sale finishes his pro career. Despite being drafted by the Rockies his senior year of high school, the Lakeland-native instead opted to go up the panhandle to FGCU. While there in 2010, Sale had an all-timer of a year, posting a 11-0 record and striking out an NCAA-best 146 batters in just 103 innings.
After being named national Pitcher of the Year, Sale was drafted by the White Sox. Since then, he’s made five ASG appearances, led the AL in strikeouts in 2015, and once had eight consecutive starts with 10 or more strikeouts.
David Price (Vanderbilt)
The 2012 AL Cy Young winner, David Price had only slightly less humble beginnings in college. Almost quitting after his freshman season, the southpaw stayed at Vanderbilt and posted an 11-1 record while striking out 194 batters in 133 â…“ innings his junior year (breaking his own school record).
After becoming the first player to sweep all the major college baseball awards, Price has gone on to have a no-less prolific career in the majors with Tampa, Detroit, Toronto, and Boston. A five-time All-Star, the Commodore led the AL in wins and ERA in 2012, the latter category again in 2015, and all of MLB in strikeouts in 2014.
Bryce Harper (College of Southern Nevada)
No prospect in recent memory has received more attention than Bryce Harper. The media frenzy for the five-tool player began in high school and followed him to the College of Southern Nevada where he earned the 2010 Golden Spikes Award in his one year of junior college ball.
Since being drafted by Washington as the number one overall pick, Harper has more than made it worth the Nationals’ while. Still just 24, Harper already has to his name the NL ROY (2012), NL Hank Aaron Award (2015), NL MVP (2015), and four All-Star selections. When it comes time to negotiate a new contract after the 2018 season, he is expected to be rewarded with the first $500 million contract in sports history. In sports betting terms, he is a punter’s dream and many sports bettors place a bet on Harper before all his games. It has become increasingly popular to place bets on mobile phones as well as playing popular mobile casino games because it is incredibly easy and there is a good chance of a real-money win.
Buster Posey (Florida State)
Now-San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey played every game his freshman year at Florida State, hitting .346 with 48 RBI and being named to the Baseball America freshman All-American team.
His junior and final season as a Seminole, Posey contributed 26 HRs, 93 RBIs, and a .463 average to his school, earning him the Dick Howser, Golden Spikes, and Collegiate Player of the Year awards. There’s not enough room here to list all Posey has accomplished since, but it includes the 2012 NL MVP, the 2012 NL batting title, a Gold Glove, and of course three World Series rings.
Kris Bryant (University of San Diego)
Another Dick Howser-Golden Spikes combo winner in college was Kris Bryant, who accomplished the feat in 2013 as a University of San Diego Torero. While at USD, Bryant led the NCAA in home runs in 2013 with 31, which was more home runs than 223 of the 296 Division I schools hit that year.
The second overall pick in the 2013 MLB draft, the third baseman made his big-league debut with the Cubs in 2015. After a homer-less April, Bryant would go on to hit 26 by season’s end, a Cubs rookie record. He would match the NL ROY he won in 2015 with NL MVP honors in 2016, along with leading the majors in WAR and of course playing a pivotal role in ending the Cubs’ 108-year World Championship drought.
