CARY, N.C. – UNC Greensboro baseball sophomore Kennedy Jones was named to USA Baseball Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List, announced by the organization on Friday.
Only 55 athletes from both high school and college rankings were selected to be on the list, with Jones being the only one selected among the SoCon schools. The winner will be announced later this year following the 2023 season and the NCAA tournaments, in June.
In total, 40 schools and 16 conferences are represented on this year's Preseason Watch List. LSU and Tennessee lead all schools with four student-athletes appearing on the list, followed closely by Stanford with three. Seven other schools placed a pair of selections to begin their seasons: Florida, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, Virginia, and Wake Forest.
"It is a blessing," stated Jones. "First, I want to thank God and my mom, but I just want to keep playing for my team. I want to be the best teammate I can to help my team win. This season, we have some work to do. But with a week before game day, we will get there. We are working and we will be ready."
Starting the 2023 season off on a high note, the sophomore was named to the 2023 SoCon Preseason All-Conference First Team, after receiving all-conference second team honors last year.
He was also named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team, earned Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-America Team honors and was named Player of the Month for February during his freshman year.
The Norfolk, Virginia, native had an outstanding freshman campaign earning many awards, including being named the Walt Nadzak Most Outstanding Player following the SoCon Baseball Championship presented by Holston Gases last spring. During the SoCon tournament, Jones had five home runs, matching a tournament record, and was named to the SoCon All-Tournament team.
"It is really awesome to see Kennedy on the list," said UNCG head coach Billy Godwin. "It is a testament to the great year he had last year and he's a super talented player. I am excited for him and we are counting on him this season. He is our offensive leader and played every day in left field last year. He has improved defensively, so he is becoming a more complete player. I am really excited about his development."
After earning multiple nonconference awards including being selected to SoCon Sports Media Association Baseball All-Conference second team, he was voted to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Freshman All-America second team, and was selected to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings Atlantic All-Region second team.
Jones showed he could be a force at the plate and ended the 2022 season leading the conference in hits (92) and RBIs (73). He also finished the season tied for second in the SoCon in at bats (251), third with total bases (149), tied for third in triples (4), fourth in batting average (.370), and runs scored (62), tied for sixth in total plate appearances (276), and 10th in slugging percentage (.594).
A complete list of the 55-player 2023 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List is as follows:
Name; Position; School; Conference
Jeremy Adorno; RHP; Southern Arkansas; Great American
Maui Ahuna; SS; Tennessee; SEC
Drew Beam; RHP; Tennessee; SEC
Enrique Bradfield Jr.; OF;Vanderbilt; SEC
Chase Burns; RHP; Tennessee; SEC
Michael Carico; C; Davidson; A-10
Max Clark; INF; Franklin High School
Carlos Contreras; OF; Sam Houston; Western Athletic
Dylan Crews; OF; LSU; SEC
Wyatt Crowell; LHP; Florida State; ACC
Chase Davis; OF; Arizona; PAC-12
Chase Dollander; RHP; Tennessee; SEC
Hunter Elliott; LHP; Ole Miss; SEC
Kendal Ewell; OF; Kentucky; SEC
Jake Gelof; INF; Virginia; ACC
Evan Giordano; 3B; Stony Brook; CAA
Jacob Gonzalez; INF; Ole Miss; SEC
Joseph Gonzalez; RHP; Auburn; SEC
LuJames Groover III; INF; NC State; ACC
Tanner Hall; RHP; SouthernMiss; Sun Belt
Carter Holton; LHP; Vanderbilt; SEC
Vance Honeycutt; OF; UNC; ACC
Jack Hurley; OF; Virginia Tech; ACC
Mitch Jebb; INF;Michigan State; Big Ten
Walker Jenkins; OF; South Brunswick High School
Kennedy Jones; INF/OF; UNCG; SoCon
Caden Kendle; OF; UC Irvine; Big West
Sam Kulasingam; INF; Air Force; Mountain West
Nick Kurtz; INF/OF; Wake Forest; ACC
Wyatt Langford; OF; Florida; SEC
Ryan Lasko; OF; Rutgers; Big Ten
Rhett Lowder; RHP; Wake Forest; ACC
Quinn Mathews; LHP; Stanford; PAC-12
Nolan McLean; OF/INF/RHP; Oklahoma State; Big 12
John Michael Faile II; C; North Greenville; Carolinas
Braden Montgomery; OF/RHP; Stanford; PAC-12
Yohandy Morales; INF; Miami; ACC
Tre' Morgan; 1B; LSU; SEC
Jack Payton; C; Louisville; ACC
Carson Roccaforte; 1B/OF; Louisiana; Sun Belt
Will Sanders; RHP; South Carolina; SEC
Jason Savacool; RHP; Maryland; Big Ten
Nolan Schanuel; INF/OF; FAU; C-USA
Cody Schrier; INF; UCLA; PAC-12
Matt Shaw; INF; Maryland; Big Ten
Paul Skenes; UTIL/RHP; LSU; SEC
Bobby Sparling; OF; Saint Leo; SSC
Brayden Taylor; INF; TCU; Big 12 Kyle Teel; C/INF; Virginia; ACC
Tommy Troy; INF/OF; Stanford; PAC-12
Hurston Waldrep; RHP; Florida; SEC
Juaron Watts-Brown; RHP; Oklahoma State; Big 12
Levi Wells; RHP; Texas State; Sun Belt
Tommy White; 3B; LSU; SEC
Jacob Wilson; INF; Grand Canyon; Western Athletic
About Golden Spikes Award
Since 1978, USA Baseball has honored the top amateur baseball player in the country with the Golden Spikes Award. Following the first-ever presentation of the Award to Bob Horner of Arizona State, the Golden Spikes Award has been presented each year to the player who exhibits exceptional athletic ability and exemplary sportsmanship. The 2022 Golden Spikes Award winner was Ivan Melendez from the University of Texas. Past winners of this prestigious award include current Major League Baseball players such as Adley Rutschman ('19), Andrew Vaughn ('18), Brendan McKay ('17), Kyle Lewis ('16), Andrew Benintendi ('15), Kris Bryant ('13), Mike Zunino ('12), Bryce Harper ('10), and Stephen Strasburg ('09). Former Major League stars that have captured the award include Buster Posey ('08), David Price ('07), Tim Lincecum ('06), Alex Gordon ('05), Pat Burrell ('98), Mark Kotsay ('95), Robin Ventura ('88), Jim Abbott ('87), Will Clark ('85), Dave Magadan ('83), Terry Francona ('80), Tim Wallach ('79), and Horner ('78). For more information, please visit GoldenSpikesAward.com. Fans can follow the Golden Spikes Award on Twitter @USAGoldenSpikes.
About USA Baseball
USA Baseball is the national governing body for baseball in the United States and is committed to serving, protecting, and supporting the game of baseball and its 15.6 million participants. Founded in 1978, USA Baseball fields six national teams annually and is a member of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). On the diamond, USA Baseball is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the reigning World Baseball Classic champion, and its national teams have won 66 gold medals in international competition. Off the field, the organization is dedicated to the proliferation and health of the sport through the creation and management of numerous development initiatives including BASE (Baseball Athlete Safety Education), Fun At Bat, Pitch Smart, PLAY BALL and the Prospect Development Pipeline. For more information on the organization, its national teams, and development-driven initiatives, visit the official website USABaseball.com or USABDevelops.com.