DURHAM, N.C. – Mercer University junior Kyle Lewis has been named Baseball America’s Player of the Year, as announced by the publication Tuesday morning. The honor is the most renowned of Lewis’ recent slew of accolades as the 2016 MLB Draft quickly approaches.

Lewis, a 2016 Louisville Slugger First Team All-American and two-time Southern Conference Player of the Year, is the latest collegiate player to earn Baseball America’s prestigious honor, following the likes of current major league all-stars such as Kris Bryant, Stephen Strasburg, Buster Posey and David Price, among others.

Baseball America is a national publication with a focus on up-and-coming amateur and minor league players and has awarded a collegiate Player of the Year since 1981.

“Being named Baseball America’s Player of the Year is a huge accomplishment for me,” Lewis said. “It’s especially satisfying to go out and play as hard as I can without thinking about stats and results. I’ve tried to be of the mindset that results will take care of themselves, and this provides me that reassurance.”

Lewis is the first player in SoCon history to be recognized with the honor and is the third player from the state of Georgia to do so, joining Georgia Tech’s Jason Varitek (1994) and Mark Teixeira (2000).

In addition to the Player of the Year nod and being named a Louisville Slugger All-American last week, the Mercer centerfielder is a semifinalist for USA Baseball’s Golden Spikes Award and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s Dick Howser Trophy, presented by Easton Foundations. Both awards honor the nation’s top player, as selected by the respective organizations.

The Snellville, Ga., product is also projected by numerous publications as one of the top picks in the MLB Draft, which will air on MLB Network and MLB.com at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 9.

“It’s a great day for Kyle Lewis and Mercer University – this is an honor that couldn’t be given to a better person on and off the field,” said head coach Craig Gibson. “This is one of the top honors he’s received to this point and he should be proud of what he’s achieved.”

After finding success in the Cape Cod League last summer, Lewis returned to Macon as a unanimous preseason All-American and led the nation’s top power-hitting program with 20 home runs and 72 RBIs, which rank sixth and fifth nationally.

Lewis ranks second nationally with a program-record 66 walks and while ranking top-15 nationally in batting average (.395) and top-six nationally in on-base percentage percentage (.535) and runs (70). He compiled a 48-game on-base streak and 27 multi-hit performances this season.

He also helped the Bears to a 38-23 record – Mercer’s seventh straight season with 35 wins or more – and a second-straight SoCon regular season championship.

Samford's Quinn named second-team All-American

DURHAM, N.C. – For the second time in a week, Samford's Heath Quinn received All-America honors from a major national publication Tuesday as the Bulldogs' junior slugger from Birmingham, Alabama, was named to Baseball America's second team, it was announced by the organization.

Tuesday's honor marked Quinn's second All-America accolade in six days. On Thursday, the Bulldogs' first-team All-Southern Conference right fielder was named a third-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball. One day prior, Quinn was named a semifinalist for the 2016 Golden Spikes Award, which is awarded to the top amateur baseball player in the country.

Quinn finished the 2016 campaign with a .343 batting average, 21 home runs and a school-record 77 RBIs. The Bulldogs' all-time, single-season leader in RBIs (77) was also named to the SoCon Championship all-tournament team.

In his illustrious three-year career at Samford, Quinn has already compiled 44 home runs, 48 doubles, 168 runs, 181 RBIs and a stellar .334 batting average.

Also joining Quinn on the Baseball America All-America second team on Tuesday were most notably Chris Okey from Clemson, Tennessee's Nick Senzel, Louisville's Corey Ray, Virginia's Matt Thaiss and Mississippi State's Dakota Hudson.