The height of Aaron Judge, the college he attended, the story behind the success, well, you name it. All that might be the information you’re searching right now to search the best college to pursue career in baseball.
Well, check out the universities that have a track record of attracting and developing some of today’s most important athletes.
Although it is obvious that this rating is purely subjective, a variety of aspects were taken into account. The overall number of major league players produced and the caliber of those players (All-Star selections, Hall of Famers, etc.) were among the factors taken into account for this article, with a preference given to more recent success.
Here are the top 7 college to attend to pursue baseball career.
USC
Hall of Famers: 2 (Tom Seaver, Randy Johnson)
Others of note: Mark McGwire, Dave Kingman, Fred Lynn, Bret Boone, Barry Zito, Aaron Boone
The decision to deny USC from taking the top slot was quite difficult. Naturally, Seaver and Johnson are among the best pitchers of all time in terms of dominance.
It’s not difficult to argue that USC deserves the top prize when you consider McGwire’s (583 career home runs), Lynn’s (1975 AL MVP and Rookie of the Year), Kingman’s (442 home runs), and the Boone brothers. Although USC has had more players reach The Show, Arizona State has the advantage in terms of overall players picked (455-351). (122-115).
Arizona State
Hall of Famers: 1 (Reggie Jackson)
Others of note: Barry Bonds, Dustin Pedroia, Ian Kinsler, Rick Monday, Sal Bando, Bob Horner
Arizona State has a strong history of generating MLB talent, while only having produced one Hall of Famer. No school has produced more big league home runs than the Sun Devils, who also have the most MLB All-Star choices (with Bonds’ 762 career home runs setting the standard).
Other All-Stars to emerge in the future from ASU include Paul Lo Duca (four), Pedroia (four choices), , Jason Kipnis (two), Andre Ethier (two), and Bando (four), among others.
Jackson and Bonds, who have each been an All-Star 14 times, are also alumni. Jim Palmer, a hall of famer, too temporarily enrolled at ASU before signing a professional deal and putting on his cleats for the collegiate level. More than any other institution, the ASU have trained four No. 1 overall choices in the Major League Baseball Draft.
Vanderbilt
Hall of Famers: N/A
Others of note: Sonny Gray, Walker Buehler, Bryan Reynolds, David Price, Dansby Swanson, Rip Sewell
Several more worth mentioning are Sonny Gray, Walker Buehler, Bryan Reynolds, David Price, Dansby Swanson and Rip Sewell.
As it continues to produce MLB talent, Vanderbilt is sure to move up this ranking in the years to come. The most of any school in the nation, the Commodores had 11 former players on Opening Day rosters last season.
Swanson and Price, two current No. 1 overall choices, were both produced by the institution. Additionally, Gray and Buehler have contributed to Vanderbilt’s image as a pitching powerhouse. In the 2021 MLB Draft, the university had two pitchers selected in the top 10. (Jack Leiter at No. 2 and Kumar Rocker at No. 10).
Michigan
Hall of Famers: 3 (Barry Larkin, Charles Gehringer, George Sisler)
Others of note: Bill Freehan, Jake Cronenworth, Steve Howe, Jim Abbott, Rich Hill.
Sisler played from 1915 to 1930, Gehringer’s 19-year career ran from 1924 to 1942, and the Wolverines enjoy the distinction of being the only school with three Hall of Famers, despite the fact that two of the three started their careers well before World War II.
Not that the school hasn’t recently turned out any talented individuals. Larkin was chosen for the 2012 class of the Hall of Fame. A 17-year career has been carved out for Hill. Cronenworth was an All-Star in ’21 and was in second place for the NL Rookie of the Year Award in 2020.
LSU
Hall of Famers: N/A
Others of note: DJ LeMahieu, Albert Belle, Kevin Gausman, Alex Bregman, Aaron Nola
Certainly, LSU has made a significant impact on the MLB environment today. In both 2018 and 2019, Bregman was in the top 5 of the AL MVP vote. LeMahieu followed suit in both 2019 and 2020. In 2018 and 20, Nola received a portion of the NL Cy Young Award votes. In ’21, Gausman was given Cy Young consideration.
Minnesota
Hall of Famers: 2 (Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor)
Others of note: Glen Perkins, Denny Neagle, Terry Steinbach
As one of the few universities that have produced several Hall of Famers from the major leagues, the Gophers are in exclusive company. Molitor was chosen three years after Winfield in the class of 2001.
Winfield was a standout at Minnesota not just on the basketball court but also on the baseball diamond, where the Golden Gophers competed. As for Molitor, who arrived a few years later and established a strong collegiate career of his own before being selected third overall and going on to play in the Major Leagues for 21 years.
Texas
Hall of Famers: N/A
Others of note: Huston Street, Roger Clemens, Corey Knebel, Brandon Belt, Pinky Higgins, Burt Hooton
With seven Cy Young Awards throughout a 24-year career, an MLB record, Clemens is undoubtedly the star of this story. Other big leaguers All-Star-caliber from the Longhorns, though, include Belt (167 home runs), Street (324 career saves), and Hooton (151 victories), among others.
Those are 7 best colleges to pursue career in football. Now, you won’t have to search for height of Aaron Judge, and other baseball stars to follow their path because we have compiled them for you in above post.