Indiana University Athletics
2025 Baseball Preseason Watch List Central
1/8/2025 6:00:00 PM | Baseball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Before the 2025 baseball season begins, multiple Hoosiers have earned nods to multiple watch lists by the national outlets. D1 Baseball, Perfect Game, Baseball America others continue to provide important content before the campaign begins in mid-February.
Below is a list of all preseason honors and awards, highlighted by consensus preseason All-American Devin Taylor. The Hoosiers will begin their season on February 14 vs. UNLV in Surprise, Ariz.
This list will be updated throughout the preseason.
Perfect Game Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin (2nd Team)
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor – one of the premier returning players in college baseball – was named a Second Team Preseason All American by Perfect Game, the organization announced on Tuesday (Jan. 7) evening. It's Taylor's second-straight year being honored by Perfect Game in the preseason.
The Cincinnati, Ohio native followed up a fantastic freshman season in 2023 with an All-American performance in 2024. He smashed a Big Ten best 20 home runs and drove in 54 RBIs while hitting .357 on the season. He embraced the leadoff role and ended the season hitting home runs in 12 of the team's final 22 contests.
Full Release
D1 Baseball Top 10 Impact Freshman Classes
Select Indiana Athletes (No. 9)
Highlighted by a pair of talented bats in Hogan Denny (Mooresville, Ind.) and Jake Hanley (Mason, Ohio), the Indiana Baseball team will feature another loaded freshman class in 2025. First-year players are no strangers to making an immediate impact in Bloomington. Devin Taylor was the 2023 Big Ten Freshman of the Year while three Hoosiers earned Big Ten All-Freshman team nods last year. IU's had a true freshman hit 10+ home runs in each of the last three years.
D1 Baseball ranked IU's class as one of the top-10 impact groups in the entire country heading into the season. IU is the only Big Ten group featured in the list and the only northern team selected. Along with Hanley and Denny, left-handed pitcher Brayton Thomas (Fort Wayne, Ind.), infielder Cooper Malamazian (Clarendon Hills, Ill.) and right-handed pitcher Henry Brummel (Pontiac, Ill.) are all likely to play a big role at some point in the season.
Full Release
Perfect Game Class Rankings
Select Indiana Athletes
Each year, Perfect Game releases its top players by class (freshmen, sophomores, etc.). Featured among the list is five different IU players. Andrew Wiggins (No. 18) and Jasen Oliver (No. 34) made the top 101 collegiate sophomores list. Oliver was a All-Big Ten Freshman team selection in 2024 after hitting 10 home runs.
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor, a premier bat in this year's draft class, was the No. 8 ranked junior by Perfect Game. He's been an All-First Team Big Ten selection in both years of college baseball. Graduate student pitcher Ben Grable, who missed all of 2024 through injury, was the No. 68 senior from Perfect Game. He began his career at Northwestern and figures to be an impact piece in the backend of IU's bullpen.
Full Release
Perfect Game - Big Ten Preview
#5 Taylor, Devin and #2 Oliver, Jasen
Continuing with the preseason trend, Devin Taylor was named Perfect Game's Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year. He was also selected as a First Team Outfielder. Sophomore second baseman Jasen Oliver was one of three middle infield All-Big Ten Preseason selections from Perfect Game. Oliver and Taylor combined to hit 30 home runs last season with over 90 RBIs.
Full Release
Baseball America - Big Ten Preview
#5 Taylor, Devin and #12 Denny, Hogan
Devin Taylor earned his second Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year selection when Baseball America released its beginning of the season projections. The Cincinnati, Ohio native slugged 20 home runs last season and finished top-five in the Big Ten with a .357 batting average. Hogan Denny, the Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year from Mooresville, Ind., was Baseball America's Preseason Big Ten Freshman of the Year. IU's had four previous Big Ten Freshmen of the Year (Alex Dickerson - 2009, Sam Travis - 2012 and Taylor - 2023).
Full Release
D1 Baseball Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
Continuing with the trend of early season attention, Devin Taylor was named a Second Team Preseason All-American by D1 Baseball. The junior outfielder smashed a Big Ten leading 20 home runs last year and led the Hoosiers in batting average (.357) and hits (86). He was also named a Preseason All-American by Perfect Game and enters the 2025 season as the favorite to win Big Ten Player of the Year.
Full Release
Baseball America Preseason Top-25
Team
The Indiana Baseball team was ranked No. 25 in the initial Baseball America Preseason Poll on Jan. 27th. Among the players earning praise from the outlet included All-American Devin Taylor. Freshmen bats Jake Hanley and Hogan Denny are expected to boost a lineup that returns six players that started at least 40 games a season ago. The pitching staff will take a new look but added veteran arms with the likes of Gavin Seebold and Cole Gilley.
Full Release
NCBWA Preseason Top-25
Team
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) ranked the Hoosiers No. 25 in its preseason poll. It's the second different outlet (Baseball America) that IU finds itself in. Head coach Jeff Mercer and the Hoosiers are one of three Big Ten teams (Oregon, Nebraska) in the initial preseason poll. IU will play No. 7 Oregon State on opening weekend in Arizona.
Full Release
D1 Baseball Player Rankings
Select Indiana Athletes
D1 Baseball, often considered the most respected college baseball media outlet, released its preseason player rankings by position. Athletes are not ranked by pro potential but rather by production and how they affect their respective teams.
Tyler Cerny, IU's All-Big Ten shortstop, was ranked as the No. 15 shortstop in college baseball. He hit .315 as a sophomore in 2024 and smashed 10 home runs. He led the Big Ten with 24 doubles and carried the team lead in both doubles and RBIs (60). He returns to Bloomington for his third year as an every day starter.
Jasen Oliver broke onto the scene as a freshman in 2024 and has high expectations entering his sophomore season. D1 Baseball ranked him as the No. 48 overall second baseman in the country. He took the reigns of the starting spot in March and never looked back. He hit 10 home runs as a true freshman including an important go-ahead home run against Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament.
Devin Taylor had IU's highest individual ranking to date, coming in at No. 5 among outfielders in college baseball. The consensus Preseason All-American and Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year hit .357 last season and led the Big Ten with 20 home runs. He is one of six returning players from last season that made at least 40 starts for the Hoosiers.
Gavin Seebold, who transferred from Southern Indiana before the school year, was ranked the No. 122 starting pitcher by D1 Baseball. Seebold finished the 2024 season with a 7-2 record and a 3.93 earned run average. He makes the jump to the Big Ten and is expected to be in contention for a spot in the weekend rotation. The native Hoosier played his high school ball at Jeffersonville and is at his third stop in his collegiate career.
Drew Buhr is the final Hoosier to earn a preseason ranking from D1 Baseball. The sixth-year veteran was dominant in conference play last season to the tune of a 2.08 earned run average across eight outings in league action. He came in at No. 68 on D1 Baseball's preseason list of the top-100 relievers in college baseball. He is expected to continue in a long-relief role for pitching coach Dustin Glant this season.
Full Release
Baseball America Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
IU's junior outfielder earned another Preseason All-American honor with Baseball America naming him as a second team outfielder. The Cincinnati, Ohio native has gotten similar looks from Perfect Game and D1 Baseball ahead of the season.
Full Release
NCBWA Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) was the final major outlet to release Preseason All-Americans. The organization named junior outfielder Devin Taylor as a Second Team Preseason All-American, officially giving the Cincinnati native a quartet of preseason honors. He was a Preseason Second Team All-American outfielder by all four publications and enters the season as the projected Big Ten Player of the Year. He and the Hoosiers open the 2025 campaign on Friday, February 14th against UNLV.
Full Release
Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List
#5 Taylor, Devin
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor was one of 55 players named to the Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List. It's his second-straight year among the selections for the initial watch list. He's the first IU player to do so since the award began tracking honorees before the 2008 season. He joins the likes of Kyle Schwarber, Sam Travis and Alex Dickerson as IU players honored by the award in the preseason.
Full Release
Below is a list of all preseason honors and awards, highlighted by consensus preseason All-American Devin Taylor. The Hoosiers will begin their season on February 14 vs. UNLV in Surprise, Ariz.
This list will be updated throughout the preseason.
Perfect Game Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin (2nd Team)
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor – one of the premier returning players in college baseball – was named a Second Team Preseason All American by Perfect Game, the organization announced on Tuesday (Jan. 7) evening. It's Taylor's second-straight year being honored by Perfect Game in the preseason.
The Cincinnati, Ohio native followed up a fantastic freshman season in 2023 with an All-American performance in 2024. He smashed a Big Ten best 20 home runs and drove in 54 RBIs while hitting .357 on the season. He embraced the leadoff role and ended the season hitting home runs in 12 of the team's final 22 contests.
Full Release
D1 Baseball Top 10 Impact Freshman Classes
Select Indiana Athletes (No. 9)
Highlighted by a pair of talented bats in Hogan Denny (Mooresville, Ind.) and Jake Hanley (Mason, Ohio), the Indiana Baseball team will feature another loaded freshman class in 2025. First-year players are no strangers to making an immediate impact in Bloomington. Devin Taylor was the 2023 Big Ten Freshman of the Year while three Hoosiers earned Big Ten All-Freshman team nods last year. IU's had a true freshman hit 10+ home runs in each of the last three years.
D1 Baseball ranked IU's class as one of the top-10 impact groups in the entire country heading into the season. IU is the only Big Ten group featured in the list and the only northern team selected. Along with Hanley and Denny, left-handed pitcher Brayton Thomas (Fort Wayne, Ind.), infielder Cooper Malamazian (Clarendon Hills, Ill.) and right-handed pitcher Henry Brummel (Pontiac, Ill.) are all likely to play a big role at some point in the season.
Full Release
Perfect Game Class Rankings
Select Indiana Athletes
Each year, Perfect Game releases its top players by class (freshmen, sophomores, etc.). Featured among the list is five different IU players. Andrew Wiggins (No. 18) and Jasen Oliver (No. 34) made the top 101 collegiate sophomores list. Oliver was a All-Big Ten Freshman team selection in 2024 after hitting 10 home runs.
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor, a premier bat in this year's draft class, was the No. 8 ranked junior by Perfect Game. He's been an All-First Team Big Ten selection in both years of college baseball. Graduate student pitcher Ben Grable, who missed all of 2024 through injury, was the No. 68 senior from Perfect Game. He began his career at Northwestern and figures to be an impact piece in the backend of IU's bullpen.
Full Release
Perfect Game - Big Ten Preview
#5 Taylor, Devin and #2 Oliver, Jasen
Continuing with the preseason trend, Devin Taylor was named Perfect Game's Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year. He was also selected as a First Team Outfielder. Sophomore second baseman Jasen Oliver was one of three middle infield All-Big Ten Preseason selections from Perfect Game. Oliver and Taylor combined to hit 30 home runs last season with over 90 RBIs.
Full Release
Baseball America - Big Ten Preview
#5 Taylor, Devin and #12 Denny, Hogan
Devin Taylor earned his second Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year selection when Baseball America released its beginning of the season projections. The Cincinnati, Ohio native slugged 20 home runs last season and finished top-five in the Big Ten with a .357 batting average. Hogan Denny, the Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year from Mooresville, Ind., was Baseball America's Preseason Big Ten Freshman of the Year. IU's had four previous Big Ten Freshmen of the Year (Alex Dickerson - 2009, Sam Travis - 2012 and Taylor - 2023).
Full Release
D1 Baseball Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
Continuing with the trend of early season attention, Devin Taylor was named a Second Team Preseason All-American by D1 Baseball. The junior outfielder smashed a Big Ten leading 20 home runs last year and led the Hoosiers in batting average (.357) and hits (86). He was also named a Preseason All-American by Perfect Game and enters the 2025 season as the favorite to win Big Ten Player of the Year.
Full Release
Baseball America Preseason Top-25
Team
The Indiana Baseball team was ranked No. 25 in the initial Baseball America Preseason Poll on Jan. 27th. Among the players earning praise from the outlet included All-American Devin Taylor. Freshmen bats Jake Hanley and Hogan Denny are expected to boost a lineup that returns six players that started at least 40 games a season ago. The pitching staff will take a new look but added veteran arms with the likes of Gavin Seebold and Cole Gilley.
Full Release
NCBWA Preseason Top-25
Team
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) ranked the Hoosiers No. 25 in its preseason poll. It's the second different outlet (Baseball America) that IU finds itself in. Head coach Jeff Mercer and the Hoosiers are one of three Big Ten teams (Oregon, Nebraska) in the initial preseason poll. IU will play No. 7 Oregon State on opening weekend in Arizona.
Full Release
D1 Baseball Player Rankings
Select Indiana Athletes
D1 Baseball, often considered the most respected college baseball media outlet, released its preseason player rankings by position. Athletes are not ranked by pro potential but rather by production and how they affect their respective teams.
Tyler Cerny, IU's All-Big Ten shortstop, was ranked as the No. 15 shortstop in college baseball. He hit .315 as a sophomore in 2024 and smashed 10 home runs. He led the Big Ten with 24 doubles and carried the team lead in both doubles and RBIs (60). He returns to Bloomington for his third year as an every day starter.
Jasen Oliver broke onto the scene as a freshman in 2024 and has high expectations entering his sophomore season. D1 Baseball ranked him as the No. 48 overall second baseman in the country. He took the reigns of the starting spot in March and never looked back. He hit 10 home runs as a true freshman including an important go-ahead home run against Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament.
Devin Taylor had IU's highest individual ranking to date, coming in at No. 5 among outfielders in college baseball. The consensus Preseason All-American and Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year hit .357 last season and led the Big Ten with 20 home runs. He is one of six returning players from last season that made at least 40 starts for the Hoosiers.
Gavin Seebold, who transferred from Southern Indiana before the school year, was ranked the No. 122 starting pitcher by D1 Baseball. Seebold finished the 2024 season with a 7-2 record and a 3.93 earned run average. He makes the jump to the Big Ten and is expected to be in contention for a spot in the weekend rotation. The native Hoosier played his high school ball at Jeffersonville and is at his third stop in his collegiate career.
Drew Buhr is the final Hoosier to earn a preseason ranking from D1 Baseball. The sixth-year veteran was dominant in conference play last season to the tune of a 2.08 earned run average across eight outings in league action. He came in at No. 68 on D1 Baseball's preseason list of the top-100 relievers in college baseball. He is expected to continue in a long-relief role for pitching coach Dustin Glant this season.
Full Release
Baseball America Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
IU's junior outfielder earned another Preseason All-American honor with Baseball America naming him as a second team outfielder. The Cincinnati, Ohio native has gotten similar looks from Perfect Game and D1 Baseball ahead of the season.
Full Release
NCBWA Preseason All-American Team
#5 Taylor, Devin
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) was the final major outlet to release Preseason All-Americans. The organization named junior outfielder Devin Taylor as a Second Team Preseason All-American, officially giving the Cincinnati native a quartet of preseason honors. He was a Preseason Second Team All-American outfielder by all four publications and enters the season as the projected Big Ten Player of the Year. He and the Hoosiers open the 2025 campaign on Friday, February 14th against UNLV.
Full Release
Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List
#5 Taylor, Devin
Junior outfielder Devin Taylor was one of 55 players named to the Golden Spikes Preseason Watch List. It's his second-straight year among the selections for the initial watch list. He's the first IU player to do so since the award began tracking honorees before the 2008 season. He joins the likes of Kyle Schwarber, Sam Travis and Alex Dickerson as IU players honored by the award in the preseason.
Full Release
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