University of North Carolina Athletics
Busch Named To Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List
April 10, 2018 | Baseball
Courtesy of USA Baseball
DURHAM, N.C. -- USA Baseball released its 40-player midseason Golden Spikes Award watch list on Tuesday, moving closer to naming the top amateur baseball player in the country, and North Carolina sophomore first baseman Michael Busch is among those featured. Â Presented in partnership with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation, the 41st Golden Spikes Award will be presented on June 28 in Los Angeles.
Busch has been at, or near, the top of the country in RBI all season, and currently sits second in the country with 42 RBI. The sophomore from Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, has started every game this season for the Tar Heels and leads the team in RBI (42) and home runs (8), while he is second on the team in runs scored (29), hits (40) and slugging percentage (.566).
A Tar Heel player has been named to the midseason watch list six of the last seven years, with right-handed pitcher J.B. Bukauskas and shortstop Logan Warmoth featured on the 2017 list last season.Â
The midseason watch list features 40 of the nation's top amateur players from the college ranks. The Golden Spikes Award Advisory Board will continue to maintain a rolling list of athletes, allowing players to play themselves into consideration for the award before announcing the semifinalists on May 21.
"We are excited to announce the forty players on the Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list," said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball's Executive Director and CEO. "These athletes have proven themselves worthy of consideration for this prestigious award through the eyes of the advisory board and from the overwhelming fan support through our nomination process."
In total, 13 different NCAA conferences have at least one athlete on the list, including two NCAA Division II conferences in the Gulf South Conference and the Sunshine State Conference. The Southeastern Conference leads all conferences represented on the midseason watch list with nine athletes, while seven players represent both the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Pac-12 Conference.
The defending College World Series champions, Florida, leads all schools with three athletes on the 2018 midseason watch list. Arizona State, Kentucky, NC State, Oregon State, and Southern Mississippi all placed two athletes on the list.
On Monday, May 21, USA Baseball will announce the semifinalists for the 2018 Golden Spikes Award. The list of semifinalists will then be sent to a voting body consisting of baseball media members, select professional baseball personnel, current USA Baseball staff and the 40 previous winners of the award, representing a group of more than 200 voters. As part of this selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of semifinalists. On June 6, USA Baseball will announce the finalists, and voting for the winner will begin that same day.
Fan voting will once again be a part of the Golden Spikes Award in 2018. Beginning with the semifinalist announcement and continuing through the finalist round voting deadline, fans from across the country will be able to vote for their favorite player on GoldenSpikesAward.com.
The winner of the 41st Golden Spikes Award will be named on Thursday, June 28, at a presentation in Los Angeles. The finalists and their families will be honored at the Rod Dedeaux Foundation Award Dinner that evening at Jonathan Club in downtown Los Angeles.
USA Baseball has partnered with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation to host the Golden Spikes Award since 2013. The Foundation was formed to honor legendary USC and USA Baseball Olympic team coach, Rod Dedeaux, and supports youth baseball and softball programs in underserved communities throughout Southern California.
Last year, Louisville's Brendan McKay took home the prestigious award, joining a group of recent winners that include Kyle Lewis (2016), Andrew Benintendi (2015), A.J. Reed (2014), Kris Bryant (2013), Mike Zunino (2012), Trevor Bauer (2011), Bryce Harper (2010), Stephen Strasburg (2009), Buster Posey (2008), and David Price (2007).
The 2018 Golden Spikes Award timeline:
• Monday, May 21: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award semifinalists announced, voting begins
• Sunday, June 3: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award semifinalists voting ends
• Wednesday, June 6: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award finalists announced, voting begins
• Friday, June 22: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award finalists voting ends
• Thursday, June 28: USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award trophy presentation
A complete list of the 40-player Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list is as follows:
Name, Class, Position, School, Conference
 Luken Baker; Jr.; IF/DH; TCU; Big 12
Joey Bart; Jr.; C; Georgia Tech; ACC
Seth Beer; Jr.; IF/OF; Clemson; ACC
Alec Bohm; Jr.; IF; Wichita State; American Athletic
Kyle Brnovich; So.; RHP; Elon; Colonial Athletic
Brian Brown; Sr.; LHP; NC State; ACC
Logan Browning; Sr.; LHP/OF; Florida Southern; Sunshine State
Kris Bubic; Jr.; LHP; Stanford; Pac-12
Michael Busch; So.; IF; North Carolina; ACC
Michael Byrne; Jr.; RHP; Florida; SEC
Gage Canning; Jr.; OF; Arizona State; Pac-12
Joe DeMers; Jr.; RHP; Washington; Pac-12
Colton Eastman; Jr.; RHP; Cal State Fullerton; Big West
Jeremy Eierman; Jr.; IF; Missouri State; Missouri Valley
Tyler Frank; Jr.; IF; Florida Atlantic; Conference USA
Logan Gilbert; Jr.; RHP; Stetson; Atlantic Sun
Luke Heyer; Sr.; IF/OF; Kentucky; SEC
Chris Holba; Jr.; RHP; ECU; American Athletic
Jonathan India; Jr.; IF; Florida; SEC
Jake Irvin; Jr.; RHP; Oklahoma; Big 12
Mitchell Kilkenny; Jr.; RHP; Texas A&M; SEC
Brett Kinneman; Jr.; OF; NC State; ACC
Cody Klemens; Jr.; IF; Texas; Big 12
Blaine Knight; Jr.; RHP; Arkansas; SEC
Trevor Larnach; Jr.; OF; Oregon State; Pac-12
Davis Martin; Jr.; RHP; Texas Tech; Big 12
Shane McClanahan; Jr.; LHP; South Florida; American Athletic
Keegan McGovern; Sr.; OF; Georgia; SEC
Drew Mendoza; So.; IF; Florida State; ACC
Casey Mize; Jr.; RHP; Auburn; SEC
Tristan Pompey; Jr.; OF; Kentucky; SEC
Griffin Roberts; Jr.; RHP; Wake Forest; ACC
Adley Rutschman; So.; C/IF; Oregon State; Pac-12
Nick Sandlin; Jr.; RHP; Southern Mississippi; Conference USA
Zack Shannon; Sr.; RHP/IF; Delta State; Gulf South
Brady Singer; Jr.; RHP; Florida; SEC
Bren Spillane; Jr.; IF/OF; Illinois; Big Ten
Spencer Torkelson; Fr.; IF; Arizona State; Pac-12
Andrew Vaughn; So.; IF; California; Pac-12
Matt Wallner; So.; UT; Southern Mississippi; Conference USA
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 2017 Golden Spikes Award winner was Brendan McKay from the University of Louisville. Past winners of this prestigious award include current Major League Baseball players such as Andrew Benintendi ('15), Kris Bryant ('13), Mike Zunino ('12), Trevor Bauer ('11), Bryce Harper ('10), Stephen Strasburg ('09), Buster Posey ('08), David Price ('07) Tim Lincecum ('06) and Alex Gordon ('05). Former Major League stars that have captured the award include 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 Rod Dedeaux Foundation
 The Rod Dedeaux Foundation was formed to continue Rod's spirit by supporting youth baseball and softball programs in underserved areas. Currently, inner city organizations are fighting for survival as public funding is drying up, coupled with the game's waning popularity with children in Urban areas. Through the efforts of the Foundation, youth receive more than just uniforms and renovated facilities, they receive a sanctuary from challenging environments and a support system specifically designed to build character and academic support to enable underprivileged youth to achieve their dreams. For more information, please visit DedeauxFoundation.org. About USA Baseball
USA Baseball is the national governing body for the sport of baseball in the United States and is a member of the United States Olympic Committee and the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The organization selects and trains the World Baseball Classic, Premier12 and Pan Am teams (and all other USA Baseball Professional Teams); the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team; the USA Baseball 18U, 15U and 12U National Teams; and the USA Baseball Women's National Team, all of which participate in various international competitions each year. The organization is responsible for the continued proliferation and health of the sport, and leads a number of amateur initiatives including PLAYBALL and Pitch Smart. USA Baseball also presents the Golden Spikes Award annually to the top amateur baseball player in the country. For more information, please visit the organization's official websites: USABaseball.com, PLAYBALL.org, PitchSmart.org, GoldenSpikesAward.com and USABaseballShop.com.
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