Baseball Southern Conference

Lewis earns another player of the year honor

OMAHA, Neb. – Former Mercer University outfielder Kyle Lewis was named the TD Ameritrade College Home Run Derby Player of the Year on Sunday evening, an honor that comes one year after he participated in the 2015 derby at the site of the College World Series.

Lewis, the No. 11 overall pick by the Seattle Mariners in the 2016 MLB Draft on June 9, has now been honored with four national player of the year awards following his stellar junior campaign in which he established himself as one of college baseball’s premier players.

He was named the winner of USA Baseball’s Golden Spikes Award on Thursday and has additionally been honored as Baseball America’s National Player of the Year and the American Baseball Coaches Association’s Player of the Year.

The consensus first-team All-American led the Bears to a second straight Southern Conference regular-season title and their seventh straight season with 35 wins or more this past spring while leading the nation’s second-best power-hitting team with 20 home runs and 72 RBIs.

Lewis ranked top-six nationally in home runs, RBIs, walks (66), on-base percentage (.535) and runs (70) while ranking top-15 nationally in batting average (.395). The Snellville, Ga., native was also named the SoCon Player of the Year for a second straight season.

The seventh annual TD Ameritrade Home Run Derby was held Sunday night as well at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb., the site of the College World Series. Lewis participated in last year’s event, joining other top power-hitting players from around the nation.