Notebook: Six Cardinals Among Top 250 Prospects for 2018 MLB Draft
January 18, 2018 | Baseball
Louisville’s 2017 recruiting class earns top 10 national ranking from D1Baseball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Despite having seven players selected in the 2017 MLB Draft and saying goodbye to a highly successful senior class, the Louisville baseball team returns another talented squad for 2018, including multiple players well-positioned for this year's edition of the MLB Draft.
Six different Cardinals were named among the top 250 prospects for the 2018 MLB Draft by various publications this winter while two other players were listed as strong candidates to be selected in the first 10 rounds. Leading the way was junior outfielder Josh Stowers, who was ranked No. 41 on the Baseball America College Top 100 and No. 77 overall on Baseball America's MLB Draft Top 200. Junior righthanded pitcher Sam Bordner landed at No. 67 on the Baseball America College Top 100 and was at No. 126 among all draft prospects. Baseball America also included junior righty Riley Thompson at No. 90 on the College Top 100 and No. 175 on the Draft Top 200, while junior infielder Devin Mann was at No. 198 among all draft prospects.
The Perfect Game College Top 100 was highlighted by junior pitcher Bryan Hoeing at No. 65, while the righthander was at No. 142 on the website's MLB Draft Top 250. Stowers landed at No. 72 on the PG College Top 100 and No. 157 on the MLB Draft Top 250, while junior lefthanded pitcher Adam Wolf was rated at No. 94 on the College Top 100 and No. 202 among all draft prospects. Hoeing also led the Cardinals at No. 95 on the D1Baseball Top 100, while seven other Cardinals were outside the top 100 but considered candidates for the top 10 rounds of the draft, including graduate righthander Austin Conway and junior righty Liam Jenkins.
While the first practice session of 2018 is set for Jan. 26, Louisville is set to open its 56-game regular season schedule on Feb. 16-18 in Charleston, South Carolina with a trio of games at The Charleston Crab House Challenge hosted by The Citadel at Joseph P. Riley Park. The Cardinals will face Richmond on Feb. 16 at noon ET, The Citadel on Feb. 17 at 3 p.m., and George Mason on Feb. 18 at 11 a.m. The 2018 home-opener for Louisville is set for Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m., ET at Jim Patterson Stadium against Eastern Kentucky.
LOUISVILLE LANDS TOP 10 RECRUITING CLASS IN 2017
Along with a deep and talented class of MLB Draft eligible players in 2018, the Cardinals will also enter the upcoming season with a highly touted group of newcomers as Louisville's 2017 recruiting class was ranked as highly as No. 10 in the nation by D1Baseball. The recruiting class, which arrived on campus in August, was also ranked No. 13 by Baseball America and No. 23 by both Collegiate Baseball newspaper and Perfect Game. The 2017 class ranking marked the eighth time in the last 10 years Louisville has earned a top 25 national recruiting ranking.
SNIDER AT NO. 5 ON BASEBALL AMERICA'S TOP 10 ASSISTANT COACHES SURVEY
Last month, Baseball America released its list of the nation's top 10 assistant coaches entering the 2018 season and Louisville's Eric Snider was No. 5. The list was compiled based on a survey of more than 75 NCAA Division I head coaches, who were asked to list three top coaching prospects among the ranks of current assistants, excluding their own staffs. Overall, more than 100 coaches from more than 80 schools received at least one vote.
Here is what Baseball America had to say about Snider: "Snider came to Louisville in July 2014 after 16 seasons at Illinois. The Cardinals' hitters have thrived under his tutelage, and five have been drafted in the top two rounds in the last two years. He also has earned a reputation as an excellent recruiter and earns praise for his work ethic and teaching ability."
GET YOUR 2018 LOUISVILLE BASEBALL SEASON TICKETS NOW
Season tickets for the 2018 Louisville baseball season are on sale now and can be purchased online at GoCards.com/bsbtickets, by calling 502-GO-CARDS or by visiting the Louisville Cardinals Ticket Office, located near Gate 2 at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium (2800 South Floyd Street) on weekdays from 9 a.m., until 5 p.m.
Reserved chairback ticket packages are priced at $150 for adults (less than $4.50 per game), $120 for senior adults/youth (less than $4 per game) and $480 for a Family 4-Pack (less than $4 per game per ticket). Season tickets for the Left Field Berm are also available at $100 for adults (less than $3 per game), $80 for senior adults/youth (less than $2.50 per game) and $320 for a Family 4-Pack (less than $2.50 per game per ticket).
Single game tickets for the 2018 season will be priced at $10 for reserved chairback and $5 for berm and will be available for purchase at a later date. Season ticket packages include all regular season home games at Jim Patterson Stadium with the exception of the annual Elementary School Day game, played each March during a weekday afternoon. For Elementary School Day, season tickets will provide admission to the game but will not include a reserved seat.
With a listed capacity of 4,000, Jim Patterson Stadium has hosted six crowds of more than 6,000 fans in the last two seasons, including three in 2017. Fresh off a fourth trip to the NCAA Men's College World Series and third straight ACC Atlantic Division Championship, Louisville baseball has become the must-see event for Cardinals fans in the spring.
FOLLOWING THE CARDINALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter (@UofLBaseball) at http://twitter.com/uoflbaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.
