Ray, McKay Named Golden Spikes Award Semifinalists
June 01, 2016 | Baseball
Ray hitting .320 with 15 home runs and 39 stolen bases; McKay is 11-3 on the mound with 2.25 ERA while hitting .330 with 37 RBI at the plate
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville junior outfielder Corey Ray and sophomore pitcher/first baseman Brendan McKay were named Wednesday as semifinalists for the 2016 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award.
Ray (Chicago, Illinois) and McKay (Darlington, Pennsylvania) were among the 25 student-athletes selected as semifinalists for the 39th Golden Spikes Award, sponsored by Major League Baseball and presented in partnership with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation to the top amateur baseball player in the United States.
An All-ACC First Team outfielder, Ray is hitting .320 overall with 15 home runs, 58 RBI and 39 stolen bases while starting all 59 games this season. Ray, who ranks fourth in the nation in stolen bases and is among the top 30 in home runs, also has 16 doubles, 54 runs scored and 33 walks as the everyday leadoff hitter for the ACC Atlantic Division champion Cardinals (47-12).
Selected as an All-ACC First Team honoree as both a starting pitcher and utility player, McKay has an 11-3 record on the mound with a 2.25 ERA and 109 strikeouts in 15 starts and 96.0 innings pitched. Selected as a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award for the second consecutive season, McKay has a .330 batting average with four home runs, 37 RBI and 19 doubles in 56 starts as a hitter.
GoldenSpikesAward.com – powered by MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM) – is once again the online home of the award. The website features content devoted exclusively to the Golden Spikes Award, including news, voting history, past winner photo galleries, and photographs and biographical information for the 2016 semifinalists. Fans can follow online at GoldenSpikesAward.com as the list of 25 players is narrowed to a group of finalists on Wednesday, June 13.
The Southeastern Conference leads 12 different conferences represented on the list with seven semifinalists, followed closely by the Atlantic Coast Conference with six. The PAC 12 and Southern conferences both host a pair of semifinalists while the Big 12, Big East, Colonial Athletic, Conference USA, Mid-American, Missouri Valley, Southland and West Coast conferences each have one athlete on the list.
USA Baseball officials will announce the finalists for the 2016 Golden Spikes Award on Monday, June 13. To select the finalists, the list of semifinalists is sent to a voting body consisting of past Golden Spikes Award winners, past USA Baseball National Team coaches and press officers, members of the media that closely follow the amateur game, select professional baseball personnel, and select current USA Baseball staff, representing a group of more than 200 voters in total.
Fan voting will once again be part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2016. This announcement officially marks the opening of voting for amateur baseball fans from across the country on GoldenSpikesAward.com. As part of the selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of names. Voting will be open until Wednesday, June 8.
The 2016 Golden Spikes Award winner will be named on Thursday, June 30, at a presentation in Los Angeles. The finalists and their families will be honored at the Rod Dedeaux Foundation Dinner that evening at the Jonathan Club in downtown Los Angeles.
The No.2 national seeded Cardinals open the NCAA Championship against Western Michigan on Friday at 6 p.m., ET during the first day of the NCAA Regional at Louisville's Jim Patterson Stadium. Ohio State and Wright State will open Friday's scheduled at 2 p.m.
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter (@UofLBaseball) at http://twitter.com/uoflbaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
2016 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Semifinalists
Seth Beer, OF, Fr., Clemson
Jake Burger, 3B, So., Missouri State
C.J. Chatham, SS, Jr., Florida Atlantic
Zack Collins, C, Jr., Miami
Will Craig, 1B, Jr., Wake Forest
Brett Cumberland, C, So., California
Nick Feight, C, So., UNC-Wilmington
Jameson Fisher, C/IF, R-Jr., Southeastern Louisiana
Anfernee Grier, OF, Jr., Auburn
Thomas Hackimer, P, Sr., St. Johns
Dakota Hudson, P, Jr., Mississippi State
Connor Jones, P, Jr., Virginia
Eric Lauer, P, Jr., Kent State
Kyle Lewis, OF, Jr., Mercer
Brendan McKay, IF/P, So., Louisville
Sheldon Neuse, 3B, Jr., Oklahoma
AJ Puckett, P, Jr., Pepperdine
Heath Quinn, OF, Jr., Samford
Troy Rallings, P, Sr., Washington
Corey Ray, OF, Jr., Louisville
Nick Senzel, 3B, Jr., Tennessee
Jordan Sheffield, P, R-So., Vanderbilt
Logan Shore, P, Jr., Florida
Boomer White, IF, Jr., Texas A&M
Kyle Wright, P, So., Vanderbilt
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