After an exciting regional round featuring a lot of future MLB talent, the next round of the NCAA Division-1 baseball tournament kicks off this weekend with the super regionals. 16 teams play in this round – each competing in a three-game series for their right to a spot in the College World Series next week. The matchups this weekend are as follows:
UConn @ 8 Florida State (Fri-Sun)
Evansville @ 1 Tennessee (Fri-Sun)
West Virginia @ 4 North Carolina (Fri-Sun)
Kansas State @ 12 Virginia (Fri-Sun)
10 NC State @ 7 Georgia (Sat-Mon)
Oregon @ 3 Texas A&M (Sat-Mon)
Florida @ 6 Clemson (Sat-Mon)
15 Oregon State @ 2 Kentucky (Sat-Mon)
The regional round featured 40+ MLB Pipeline top 100 draft prospects, and although the field has been narrowed significantly, the super regional round still features 24. I mentioned some of the higher-end prospects we’ll see in the super regionals like Charlie Condon, Travis Bazzana, and Jac Caglianone in my recent article highlighting the regional round. There are plenty more prospects to get into, even outside of MLB Pipeline’s top 100, but here are a few of my favorites including some underrated names.
MLB Draft Prospects at Super Regionals
Florida State’s 1-2 punch
Third basemen Cam Smith and outfielder James Tibbs headline FSU’s lineup, providing a combination of hit tool and power back-to-back out of the two and three hole. Both players are projected as mid to late first-rounders, as I personally have Smith going 16th overall to the Marlins and Tibbs going 29th overall to the Diamondbacks. The two of them get on base at a ridiculous rate, both sporting an OBP north of .480 and walk-to-strikeout ratios that really help their projection at the next level. They’ve combined for 41 home runs (16 for Smith and 25 for Tibbs) thus far, with Tibbs taking advantage of his elite pull-side power, while Smith makes his money using the gaps.
Smith is personally my top third baseman due to his 55-grade defensive tool that likely keeps him at the hot corner long term. Tibbs on the other hand does lack with the glove due to his below-average athleticism that might end up in a move to first base at the next level. Regardless, look for this duo to do damage to UConn this weekend.
Tennessee tops the charts
Tennessee comes in ranked #1 in the country, and to no surprise they own the most draft prospects likely to go within the first three rounds. Second baseman Christian Moore and third baseman Billy Amick are the Volunteers’ headliners, with the two of them ranked back to back at #25 and #26 on MLB Pipeline. I have Moore going 17th overall to the Brewers and Amick 20th overall to the Blue Jays. Both had huge junior years in Knoxville in 2024. Amick posted an impressive line of .310/.394/.667 along with 21 home runs, but it was Moore who really made a name for himself with a line of .378/.449/.780 and 29 home runs. His home run on Saturday against Indiana broke Tennessee’s single-season home run record.
Amick had two of his own during the regional round. The rest of Tennessee’s squad includes #63 ranked right-handed pitcher Drew Beam, #64 ranked first baseman Blake Burke, #65 ranked outfielder Kavares Tears, and #72 ranked outfielder Dylan Dreiling. Burke, Tears, and Dreiling all sport an OPS north of 1.000 with 15+ home runs, while Drew Beam is Tennessee’s staple in their rotation and has one of the better shots among pitching prospects to make it as a big league starter.
Two more potential 5-tool stars
If not for Condon, Bazzana, and Caglianone’s ridiculous 2024 campaigns, we very well could be talking about these two players as the #1 and #2 overall picks in the draft this July. That happens to be the middle infielder J.J. Wetherholt out of West Virginia and the outfielder Braden Montgomery out of Texas A&M. Both played big roles in their team’s regional victories as Montgomery had a casual 6-15 weekend with a home run while Wetherholt had a 3-6 day in the clincher on Sunday against Grand Canyon. Wetherholt actually came into the season as the projected #1 overall pick, however, a nagging hamstring injury reduced some of his stock. Nevertheless, the ceiling is pretty high for last year’s Big-12 player of the year. Wetherholt has been regarded as the best “pure hitter” in this year’s draft class with a 70-grade hit tool.
Everything checks out with the bat as he hits to all fields with some power that has yet to be tapped into. He’s a plus baserunner as well, along with an above average glove at either shortstop or second base. As for Braden Montgomery, this is one of the more well-rounded outfielders in the draft. Not only does he have elite power as a switch hitter, but he also has one of the best arms in the outfield as it comes with a 70 grade. His speed is average at best, so he’ll stick in right field in pro ball, but I don’t doubt he has the instincts to take over in center when needed. As for the bat, the line speaks for itself – .322/.452/.733 with 27 home runs. I have him going sixth overall to the Royals and Wetherholt going eighth overall to the Angels.
The top catcher remaining
The final player I want to briefly highlight is Jacob Cozart, the catcher out of North Carolina State. I’m huge on drafting the right catcher and I love this year’s class, with guys like Caleb Lomavita, Walker Janek, and Malcolm Moore. Along with these guys, Cozart is regarded as one of the better all-around backstops in the draft and is the top one remaining in the tournament. He has a plus bat and glove, while scouts are confident that one, if not both can play at the next level. He’s hit to the tune of a .291/.427/.571 line on the year with 16 home runs.
He’s bigger for a catcher, standing at 6’3″, 220 pounds, but displays solid athleticism behind the plate despite his size. The glove earns a 55 grade while his arm earns a 50 grade with a 32.5 CS%, so I think his skills behind the plate will be good enough for him to get regular at-bats in pro ball where the hit tool can develop even more. The bat was fairly quiet during regionals as he went 2-8, but did draw six walks along the way, so he’s seeing the ball well. I would expect him to make some noise this weekend against Georgia.
There are plenty more players we could get to, but these are some of the guys I’ll have my eye on this weekend. The super regional round provides a lot of electric baseball, so it will be fun to see these players performing when the stakes are at their highest!
Main Image: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports
