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WF Baseball Off-season Thread

i like the mlb draft rules generally but is a bit weird when it comes to leverage / the threat to return to school. so guys with multiple years of eligibility are far more likely to return to school than rising seniors.

sullivan, hawke and mcgraw (and technically roland) would all have additional eligibility beyond this season, so probably most likely to return.

would not put it past minacci to come back and take a shot in the weekend rotation either depending on when he is drafted.

draft is july 9th, we will learn more the
 
So here's a breakdown of the roster moving into next season:

Out of eligibility:
Chase Walter
Kyle Joye

Senior/Grad/R-Jr with more eligibility:
Cole Roland (hard to say if he wants another year in college)
Reed Mascolo
Derek Crum
Adam Cecere (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)
Justin Johnson (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)
Pierce Bennett (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)

Jr:
Jake Reinisch
Bennett Lee (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)
Seth Keener (ranked #110 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Brock Wilken (ranked #24 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Teddy McGraw (ranked #81 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Crawford Wade (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)
Camden Minacci (ranked #159 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Rhett Lowder (ranked #8 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Lucas Costello

R-So/Draft eligible So:
Sean Sullivan (ranked #120 on mlb.com draft rankings, GONE)
Will Andrews
Tommy Hawke (likely gone if drafted ~ top 10 rounds)

So:
Chris Katz
Michael Massey
Josh Hartle
Gio Cueto
Nick Kurtz
Carson Cotugno
Danny Corona
Will Ray (supposedly in transfer portal)

Fr:
Joe Ariola
Evan Maloney
Jack Winnay
Zach Johnston
Hudson Lee
Ben Shenosky
Andrew Noland
Marek Houston
Jackson Kraemer

Any of the guys I listed as GONE, you should already accept are going to get drafted high enough to leave. Even if it's multiple rounds behind their projection, they'd still almost certainly go (Sullivan as a R-So is somewhat of an exception to that rule).

As far the non-ranked draft-eligible players, historically the only chance we'd have of them coming back is them being drafted outside the top ten rounds (or not at all). But even then, some of those guys will want to take whatever money they can get and start their careers.
 
If I had to project it today, here's what I would list as the weekend starting lineup for next season:

SP Josh Hartle
SP Michael Massey
SP ???

C Gio Cueto
1B Nick Kurtz
2B Danny Corona
SS Marek Houston
3B Seaver King
LF ???
CF Lucas Costello
RF ???
 
Quite a bit of roster turnover. The infield should be in good shape, but we need to hit the portal hard for OF's and at least one more good pitcher, if not two.

We are replacing a lot of hitting productivity.
 
deacon14 said:
If I had to project it today, here's what I would list as the weekend starting lineup for next season:

SP Josh Hartle
SP Michael Massey
SP ???

C Gio Cueto
1B Nick Kurtz
2B Danny Corona
SS Marek Houston
3B Seaver King
LF ???
CF Lucas Costello
RF ???
Click to expand...
King sounds like a super Util guy. Could he be an OF if JJ comes back?
 
I remember seeing something about there being a reason Hawke would want to stay one more year. I think it was somebody enrolling
 
Deacsfan27 said:
Would be really nice for us selfishly if Pierce or JJ came back.
Click to expand...
ChrisL68 said:
I remember seeing something about there being a reason Hawke would want to stay one more year. I think it was somebody enrolling
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I think it's more likely that Hawke is back than that either Pierce of JJ comes back. I think the exposure this team had, and the good seasons both Pierce/JJ had, will get them drafted high enough that they reasonably have to take it as guys with only one more year of eligibility.
 
Does anyone have any insight into the incoming freshman class? Is there anybody we should be nervous about losing to the draft?
 
deacon14 said:
Does anyone have any insight into the incoming freshman class? Is there anybody we should be nervous about losing to the draft?
Click to expand...
i haven't seen any in the top 100 HS prospects. But I believe Blake Morningstar has a chance to get drafted.
Every Pitcher we are bringing in sits low 90's. maybe one that sits upper 80's with a max 91.
Position players are all Top tier guys, maybe just below Marek from reading a couple scouting reports.

Appears to be a very strong class. Not going to get the hype of other schools because we don't over-recruit. From what I can tell...Wake likes to recruit and develop, not just get a bunch of ready as a freshman guys
 
My educated guess for conference schedule next year.

H: Clemson, FSU, Louisville, UNC, GT
A: Notre Dame, NCSU, BC. UVA Miami/VT

Last year we played: Duke A, Pitt A, Miami H and VT H

So we will almost assuredly have GT, UNC and Virginia and one of those 4 above. Probably not Duke we played them two years in a row.

In 2022, we played UNC and GT on the road, so those should be home and Va at home so that should be on the road.

We need another road series and of the remaining teams we played Miami and VT at home last year so it should be one of those two.
 
Would Hawke stay if we took his brother? His brother is leaving UNC and is in the portal.
 
Wakegrad said:
Would Hawke stay if we took his brother? His brother is leaving UNC and is in the portal.
Click to expand...
He has some options as a draft eligible sophomore. If he doesn’t like his offer then he can come back and still get a competitive one next year to convince him to not return for his senior year.
 
ChrisL68 said:
My educated guess for conference schedule next year.

H: Clemson, FSU, Louisville, UNC, GT
A: Notre Dame, NCSU, BC. UVA Miami/VT

Last year we played: Duke A, Pitt A, Miami H and VT H

So we will almost assuredly have GT, UNC and Virginia and one of those 4 above. Probably not Duke we played them two years in a row.

In 2022, we played UNC and GT on the road, so those should be home and Va at home so that should be on the road.

We need another road series and of the remaining teams we played Miami and VT at home last year so it should be one of those two.
Click to expand...
Are they keeping Atlantic/Coastal divisions in baseball or doing something similar to football? If the former, that looks like it should be pretty accurate to me.
 
i may be speculating into meaningless info, but the fact that hawke isn't on a cape cod league roster makes me think he's focused on the draft
 
NIL may play a role too.

MLB draft bonuses plummet after the first 10 rounds. So, as noted above, WF players drafted in the first 10 rounds are gone. Those taken after the first 10 rounds typically don't get much bonus money. So, guys like Hawke, Bennett, Lee who now have become known names in the local community might be able to get more money by staying at WF than going to the draft. That said, MLB teams evaluate on age; so, waiting a year to take a pro shot can mean giving up an opportunity to get into the show.

The next two months will be fascinating to see how WF builds the 2024 roster. This season was so special and it took a perfect storm of savvy recruiting, killing it in the portal and elite player development to build what was the most talented roster in college baseball -- don't forget that on top of the players on hand, Teddy McGraw was considered one of the best 10 pitchers in college baseball heading into the 2023 season. WF loses a ton of from that roster. That said, not many college teams, if any, will return three rising juniors as talented as Kurtz, Hartle and Massey. Add in a year of development of Marek Houston (who could be an MLB player if he develops strength) and WF should have some great pieces to build around next year.
 
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