CARY, N.C. – USA Baseball today announced the Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List, beginning the process of identifying the best amateur baseball player in the nation for the 2024 season.
The preseason list includes 55 players across high school and college baseball. The Golden Spikes Advisory Board will maintain the award’s watch list on a rolling basis, allowing athletes to play themselves into consideration for the award based on in-season performance.
“It is always an exciting time when we kick off the amateur baseball season with the announcement of the Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List,” said USA Baseball Executive Director/CEO Paul Seiler. “With baseball season right around the corner, we look forward to following along as these fifty-five student-athletes and many more compete in yet another thrilling year of amateur baseball.”
The list features eight players who were named Golden Spikes Award semifinalists a season ago, including 2023 finalist Jac Caglianone (Florida). Caglianone is joined by Charlie Condon (Georgia), Ethan Petry (South Carolina), Hagen Smith (Arkansas), and Tommy White (LSU) as 2023 semifinalists from the Southeastern Conference (SEC) on this year’s preseason list.
JJ Wetherholt (West Virginia) also earned a spot on the preseason list following a semifinalist run last spring, while a pair of Wake Forest teammates–Josh Hartle and Nick Kurtz–round out the eight semifinalists from 2023 who appear on this year’s preseason list.
Hartle and Kurtz are two of four Wake Forest players honored on the 2024 Preseason Watch List, joining Chase Burns and Seaver King to give the top-ranked Demon Deacons a list-leading four players. Tennessee follows closely with three players: Billy Amick, Drew Beam, and Christian Moore.
Beam is one of eight players appearing on the preseason list for a second consecutive year. Burns, Carter Holton (Vanderbilt), Kurtz, Vance Honeycutt (North Carolina), Sam Kulasingam (Air Force), Braden Montgomery (Texas A&M), and White all also return to the Preseason Watch List for the second season in a row.
Additionally, five players on this year’s Preseason Watch List will look to join Alex Fernandez (1990) and Bryce Harper (2010) as the only players from a non-NCAA Division I school to win the Golden Spikes Award. Jake Hjelle (Minnesota-Crookston), Tanner Reaves (Blinn CC), and Brett Sanchez (Belhaven) all represent different levels of college baseball, while high schoolers Cam Caminiti (Saguaro High School) and Konnor Griffin (Jackson Prep) also earned their spot on the Preseason Watch List.
Overall, 41 schools and 16 conferences are represented on the 2024 Preseason Watch List. In addition to Wake Forest’s four players and Tennessee’s trio, nine other schools put multiple players on the 55-man list. The SEC leads all conferences with 15 players, followed by the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) with 10 and the Big 12 Conference with nine.
LSU’s Dylan Crews is the most recent winner of the Golden Spikes Award, earning the prestigious honor after helping lead the Tigers to a College World Series title in 2023. He joins an elite group of recent winners including Ivan Melendez (2022), Kevin Kopps (2021), Adley Rutschman (2019), 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).
The 2024 Golden Spikes Award timeline is as follows:
- April 4: Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List announced
- May 20: Golden Spikes Award semifinalists announced, and fan voting begins
- June 3: Golden Spikes Award semifinalists fan voting ends
- June 5: Golden Spikes Award finalists announced, and fan voting begins
- June 21: Golden Spikes Award finalists’ fan voting ends
- June 23: Golden Spikes Award winner announced
Fan voting will again play a part in the Golden Spikes Award in 2024. Baseball fans can vote for their favorite players on GoldenSpikesAward.com, beginning on May 20 with the naming of the semifinalists. USA Baseball will announce the finalists for the award on June 5, and fan voting will once again open at GoldenSpikesAward.com before closing on June 21.
To stay up to date on the 2024 Golden Spikes Award, visit GoldenSpikesAward.com and follow @USAGoldenSpikes on Instagram and Twitter/X.
A complete list of the 55-player 2024 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List is as follows:
Name; Position; School; Conference
Matt Ager; RHP; UC Santa Barbara; Big West
Wehiwa Aloy; INF; Arkansas; SEC
Billy Amick; INF; Tennessee; SEC
Ethan Anderson; C/UTIL; Virginia; ACC
Travis Bazzana; INF; Oregon State; Pac-12
Kevin Bazzell; C/INF; Texas Tech; Big 12
Drew Beam; RHP; Tennessee; SEC
Derek Bender; C/INF; Coastal Carolina; Sun Belt
Carson Benge; OF/RHP; Oklahoma State; Big 12
Brody Brecht; RHP; Iowa; Big Ten
Chase Burns; RHP; Wake Forest; ACC
Jac Caglianone; 1B/LHP; Florida; SEC
Cam Caminiti; LHP/OF; Saguaro HS (AZ)
Cam Cannarella; OF; Clemson; ACC
Charlie Condon; 1B/OF; Georgia; SEC
Jacob Cozart; C; NC State; ACC
Kaelen Culpepper; INF; Kansas State; Big 12
Randy Flores; INF; Alabama State; SWAC
Rodney Green Jr.; OF; California; Pac-12
Konnor Griffin; OF/RHP; Jackson Prep (MS)
Lawson Harrill; OF; Campbell; CAA
Josh Hartle; LHP; Wake Forest; ACC
Jake Hjelle; OF; Minnesota-Crookston (DII); NSIC
Luke Holman; RHP; LSU; SEC
Carter Holton; LHP; Vanderbilt; SEC
Vance Honeycutt; OF; UNC; ACC
Jeremiah Jenkins; INF; Maine; America East
Ryan Johnson; RHP; Dallas Baptist; C-USA
Lebarron Johnson Jr.; RHP; Texas; Big 12
Dakota Jordan; OF; Mississippi State; SEC
Gavin Kash; INF; Texas Tech; Big 12
Seaver King; INF; Wake Forest; ACC
Sam Kulasingam; INF; Air Force; Mountain West
Nick Kurtz; OF/INF; Wake Forest; ACC
Jace LaViolette; OF; Texas A&M; SEC
Shane Lewis; OF; Troy; Sun Belt
Caleb Lomavita; C; California; Pac-12
Cole Messina; C; South Carolina; SEC
Braden Montgomery; OF/RHP; Texas A&M; SEC
Christian Moore; INF; Tennessee; SEC
Malcolm Moore; C; Stanford; Pac-12
Tyson Neighbors; RHP; Kansas State; Big 12
Griff O'Ferrall; INF; Virginia; ACC
Ethan Petry; OF/INF; South Carolina; SEC
Tanner Reaves; INF; Blinn CC (JUCO); NJCAA
Brett Sanchez; RHP; Belhaven (DIII); CCS
Nolan Schubart; OF; Oklahoma State; Big 12
Mike Sirota; OF; Northeastern; CAA
Hagen Smith; LHP; Arkansas; SEC
Devin Taylor; OF; Indiana; Big Ten
Payton Tolle; LHP/INF; TCU; Big 12
JJ Wetherholt; INF; West Virginia; Big 12
Tommy White; 3B; LSU; SEC
Trey Yesavage; RHP; East Carolina; AAC
Gage Ziehl; RHP; Miami; ACC
