CARY, N.C. — USA Baseball today announced the 25 semifinalists for its Golden Spikes Award, moving one step closer to naming the top amateur baseball player of the year. The winner of the 43rd Golden Spikes Award will be announced in July.
Twenty-two different universities are represented by the 2021 semifinalists, and the list includes 12 athletes who have played their way into consideration since the midseason list was announced on April 14.
“We are thrilled to honor these twenty-five tremendously talented student-athletes as Golden Spikes Award semifinalists in 2021,” said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball’s Executive Director and CEO. “This group of players truly showcases the elite level of amateur baseball talent in the United States as they have excelled on and off the field this season, and we are privileged to recognize their contributions to their teams and schools.”
The watch list is headlined by Henry Davis (Louisville), Sal Frelick (Boston College), Jack Leiter (Vanderbilt), Ty Madden (Texas), and Kumar Rocker (Vanderbilt), who all also earned spots on the Golden Spikes Award Preseason and Midseason Watch Lists in 2021.
Vanderbilt University is one of three schools that boasts multiple semifinalists in 2021, with East Carolina and Mississippi State also featuring two athletes on the list. In total, at least one athlete from 10 different NCAA conferences has earned semifinalist honors this year. The Southeastern Conference leads all conferences represented with six athletes named semifinalists, while five players represent the Atlantic Coast Conference, and three hail from both the Pac-12 and the Big 12.
Oregon State’s Adley Rutschman took home the prestigious award most recently in 2019, joining a group of recent winners that include Andrew Vaughn (2018), Brendan McKay (2017), Kyle Lewis (2016), Andrew Benintendi (2015), A.J. Reed (2014), Kris Bryant (2013), Mike Zunino (2012), Trevor Bauer (2011), Bryce Harper (2010), Stephen Strasburg (2009), Buster Posey (2008), and David Price (2007).
Beginning with the announcement of the semifinalists, a ballot will be sent to a voting body consisting of baseball media members, select professional baseball personnel, current USA Baseball staff and the previous winners of the award, representing a group of more than 200 voters. As part of this selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of semifinalists. On June 24, USA Baseball will announce the finalists, and voting for the winner will begin that same day.
Fan voting will once again be a part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2021. Beginning with the semifinalist announcement and continuing through the finalist round voting deadline on Tuesday, June 15, fans from across the country will be able to vote for their favorite player on GoldenSpikesAward.com.
The winner of the 43rd Golden Spikes Award will be named in July. To stay up-to-date on the 2021 Golden Spikes Award visit GoldenSpikesAward.com and follow @USAGoldenSpikes on Twitter and Instagram.
The 2021 Golden Spikes Award timeline:
June 8: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award semifinalists voting begins
June 15: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award semifinalists voting ends
June 24: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award finalists announced, voting begins
July 2: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award finalists voting ends
July: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award trophy presentation
A complete list of the 2021 Golden Spikes Award semifinalists is as follows:
Name, Position, School, Conference
Andrew Abbott; LHP; Virginia; Atlantic Coast
Tanner Allen; OF; Mississippi State; Southeastern
Jacob Berry; INF; Arizona; Pac-12
Colton Cowser; OF; Sam Houston; Southland
Henry Davis; C; Louisville; Atlantic Coast
Sal Frelick; UTL; Boston College; Atlantic Coast
Tyler Hardman; INF; Oklahoma; Big 12
Jace Jung; INF; Texas Tech; Big 12
Niko Kavadas; INF; Notre Dame; Atlantic Coast
Austin Knight; INF; Charlotte; C-USA
Kevin Kopps; RHP; Arkansas; Southeastern
Jack Leiter; RHP; Vanderbilt; Southeastern
Ethan Long; INF; Arizona State; Pac-12
Ty Madden; RHP; Texas; Big 12
Matt Mikulski; LHP; Fordham; Atlantic 10
Matheu Nelson; C; Florida State; Atlantic Coast
Doug Nikhazy; RHP; Ole Miss; Southeastern
Connor Norby; INF; ECU; American
Kumar Rocker; RHP; Vanderbilt; Southeastern
Spencer Schwellenbach; INF/RHP; Nebraska; Big Ten
Landon Sims; RHP; Mississippi State; Southeastern
Paul Skenes; C/RHP; Air Force; Mountain West
Trey Sweeney; 3B; Eastern Illinois; Ohio Valley
Gavin Williams; RHP; ECU; American
Aaron Zavala; OF; Oregon; Pac-12
