A Look At UVa Baseball’s Incoming Freshman Class

The University of Virginia baseball program’s class of 2015 was rated the no. 11 overall class in the nation by Baseball America. All 16 members of the class, six of whom are Virginia natives, have enrolled on Grounds.

BY THE NUMBERS

– Six freshmen hail from the state of Virginia. Coach O’Connor and company also landed three players from Pennsylvania, two from Ohio, and one each from Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Texas.

– Per the fall depth chart, the class includes…

6 Pitchers, including 4 Right-Handed Pitchers (Grant Donahue, Chesdin Harrington, Grant Sloan, Evan Sperling) and 2 Left-Handed Pitchers (Connor Eason, Daniel Lynch)
5 Infielders (Nate Eikhoff, Ryan Karstetter, Jon Meola, Andy Weber, Jack Weiller)
3 Outfielders (Doak Dozier, Ryan Hartigan, Jake McCarthy)
1 Outfielder/Right-Handed Pitcher (Cameron Simmons)
1 catcher/infielder (Cameron Comer)

– Average height of the freshmen class is 6’2.5”, including two 6’6” players in LHPs Daniel Lynch and Evan Sperling.

BASEBALL AMERICA’S 2015 MLB DRAFT PROSPECTS

Baseball America’s ranking of the Top 500 prospects (college and high school) for the 2015 Major League Baseball Draft included three prospects who are now freshmen at Virginia: INF Ryan Karstetter (no. 152), RHP Evan Sperling (no. 214), and OF Doak Dozier (no. 333).

Ten UVa recruits were ranked in their respective state’s MLB Draft prospect list by Baseball America. The state lists also included college players as well as high school players.

– Doak Dozier, OF, No. 35 in the state of Texas in a 3-star year (Solid, not spectacular year for MLB prospects)
– Connor Eason, LHP, No. 22 in Virginia in 3-star year
– Ryan Karstetter, INF, No. 29 in Florida in 4-star year (Banner year for MLB prospects)
– Daniel Lynch, LHP, No. 36 in Virginia in 3-star year
– Jonathan Meola, INF, No. 9 in New Jersey in 2-star year (Not up to par year for MLB prospects))
– Jake McCarthy, OF, No. 35 in Pennsylvania in 4-star year
– Cameron Simmons, No. 20 in Pennsylvania in 4-star year
– Grant Sloan, RHP, No. 15 in Indiana in 3-star year
– Evan Sperling, RHP, No. 7 in Virginia in 3-star year
– Jack Weiller, INF (shortstop), No. 38 in New York in a 4-star year

SPERLING, EASON HEADLINE IN-STATE HAUL

As mentioned above, the Cavaliers signed six prospects from the Commonwealth.

EVAN SPERLING, RHP, Grafton High School (Poquoson)

Sperling, a 6’6”, 205-pound prospect, is one of the most highly regarded players in this class. Virginia fans won’t see him this season, though, as the Grafton product had Tommy John surgery in late June and will red-shirt the 2015/2016 season.

Sperling told Marty O’Brien of the Daily Press that his strength on the mound is a “heavy fastball that misses bats.”

While it appears he’ll primarily be a pitcher for the Hoos, Sperling earned second-team Group 4A all-state honors at first base his senior season, when he batted .420, hit three homeruns and had 31 RBIs. On the mound, he can throw in the 90s and went 9-2 his junior season. A multisport athlete in high school, Sperling started on the varsity basketball squad three years.

In addition to Baseball America’s rankings, Perfect Game rated Sperling the no. 1 prospect in the state in the class of 2015.

CONNOR EASON (LHP, Hickory High School in Chesapeake)

First-team Group 5A all-state and Tidewater Player of the Year are among the honors 6’4”, 215-pound pitcher Connor Eason earned his senior season, when he went 8-3 with a 1.12 ERA and 74 strikeouts. Eason also played first base and hit .315 his final season at Hickory.

“What separates Connor from a lot of other kids is that he is a competitor first, so even when he doesn’t have his best stuff on that particular day he is still as tough,” Great Bridge coach Sean Townsend said to Jami Frankenberry of the Virginian Pilot. “He never wants to come off the mound when it’s his turn to pitch.”

Perfect Game rated Eason the no. 5 prospect in Virginia in the class of 2015. The standout prospect helped Hickory to a state championship in 2013/2014 and a state semifinal appearance in 2014/2015.

DANIEL LYNCH, LHP, Douglas Freeman (Richmond, VA)

Lynch verbally committed to UVa following his sophomore season, when he went 7-1 with a 1.76 ERA. As a junior Lynch complied an 8-1 record with a 1.01 ERA, but he missed two months with a back injury his senior season. Perfect Game rated the 6’6” standout as the no. 6 prospect in the state in the class of 2015.

Eric Kolenich of the Richmond Times-Dispatch described the lefty as “crafty. Lynch relies on pinpoint control, movement and varying speeds.”

Lynch reunites with former Douglas Freeman teammate Jack Gerstenmaier at UVa.

Joining Sperling, Eason, and Lynch are Nate Eikhoff, Chesdin Harrington and Ryan Hartigan.

Eikhoff, a product of Patriot High School in Nokesville, told Prepbaseballreport.com in this Q&A feature that “I feel like I will be able to offer a solid bat in the line-up and solid glove in the field” when he arrives at UVa. Eikhoff earned second-team Group 6A all-state honors as a designated hitter his senior season, when he batted .465 with four homeruns and 27 RBIs his senior season.

Eikhoff was rated the no. 12 prospect in the state in the class of 2015 by Perfect Game. Ahead of him at no. 11 is Chesdin Harrington, a 6’2”, 190-pound pitching prospect out of Patrick Henry High School in Ashland.

Harrington, a pitcher and shortstop in high school, helped the Patriots to a 15-7 record in the 2014/2015 season. A no-hitter was among the VHSCA second-team Group 5A all-state selection’s accomplishments his senior season.

Eric Kolenich described Harrington as follows in this write-up: “RHP throws between 87 to 89 mph, topping out at 92. He’s got a change-up and a curveball to keep batters off balance.”

Ryan Hartgan earned second-team Group 4A all-state honors for his senior season performance at Millbrook in Winchester.

OUT-OF-STATE NOTABLES

Arlington Heights (Arlington, TX) product Doak Dozier and IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) star Ryan Karstetter enter Virginia with high expectations.

Perfect Game USA rated the 6’2” Dozier the no. 11 high school senior prospect in Texas, describing him as a “very good athlete [who] showed outstanding hitting ability PG National. Always hits.”

Fort Worth Star Telegram reporter Ryan Osborne writes that Dozier “combines enough size to provide a power threat with the speed to play a high-demand position such as center field.”

In June, MinorLeagueBaseball.com wrote an article on “a dozen interesting players who went undrafted” in the 2015 MLB Draft. Dozier and Karstetter made the list.

Of Dozier, John Stickels wrote: “College ball could bring out the best given his above-average speed and power potential but he’ll need to improve his contact hitting ability. If he does that, he could eventually be a first-rounder.”

Of Karstetter, Stickels wrote: “Another prep familiar to scouts for his amateur circuit exploits, Karstetter is a good gloveman at third base and has a chance to hit for both power and average. He could have gone as high as the third round, but his University of Virginia scholarship spooked teams. He’ll head to college and try for another high spot in 2018. Having both Karstetter and Dozier in the lineup should be a coup for the Cavaliers.”

Karstetter attended State College High School in Pennsylvania for two years before transferring to IMG Academy, where he hit .441 with 71 hits (including 11 doubles), 38 runs and 35 RBI in two seasons. At IMG he played under former Cincinnati Reds standout Chris Sabo.

Jonathan Meola and Jake McCarthy should be familiar to Cavalier fans. Meola is the son of former Virginia and Team USA soccer great Tony Meola, while McCarthy is the younger brother of Joe McCarthy, who starred for the Hoos from 2013-2015 and is now an outfielder in the Tampa Bay Rays organization.

Meola, who hails from Toms River East in Toms River, New Jersey, committed to Coach O’Connor in the summer of 2013. The Daily Progress wrote a story on the commitment when it happened, and you can read it by clicking here.

Perfect Game described Meola as an “outstanding all-around shortstop” in its class of 2015 rankings in the state of New Jersey. The site ranked the promising infielder no. 5 in the Garden State.

McCarthy, a 6’2” lefty, turned down an opportunity to join his brother in the majors to become a Wahoo. Jake was selected no. 697 overall in the June MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. He told the Times-Tribune.com: “I respect the Pirates for giving me attention, following me throughout the spring, but I think going to the University of Virginia will make me a better player in the long run.”

McCarthy hit .442 his senior season.

John Jay Cross River (Waccabuc, N.Y.) shortstop Jack Weiller discussed why he chose UVa in this feature by PrepBaseballReport.com.

“From the moment I stepped on The Grounds, I knew Virginia was the place for me. It has the small town feel and tight-knit community that I love, along with unbelievable facilities and coaching staff that made me feel right at home. The most important thing however, was the academic opportunity. I knew that even if I didn’t play baseball, Virginia would be where I would want to go to college.”

Here is another good article on Weiller, who batted .397 with five homers, eight triples, 26 doubles, 61 RBI and 66 runs in his high school career.

Andy Weber of Aurora, Ohio, has caught the attention of Cavalier starting shortstop Daniel Pinero. Pinero called the true freshman a “hell of a player” in this piece written by Daily Progress reporter Andrew Ramspacher.

Weber received a “Student Athlete Shout Out” from USA Today High School Sports/Cleveland this past spring. As a senior, he helped the Greenmen of Aurora to a 22-6 record and an appearance in a Division 1 state semifinal last season. Weber hit .433 with six doubles and two triples and was in on 12 double plays his senior season.

Spring-Ford (Royersford, PA) head coach Bruce Brobst provided a scouting report of OF/RHP Cameron Simmons to Pac-10Sports.com. (Click here for the full article.)

“Cam Simmons is a very athletic, multi skilled player. He has tremendous physical skills. He can hit for power, steal bases, run balls down in the outfield and has an excellent throwing arm. The upside for him is – I believe he is only beginning to touch his potential as a baseball player. He has the ability to be a game changer at the plate, on the mound and from the field.”

Simmons batted .274 with 21 runs and 19 RBI his junior season. He improved his hitting his senior season, batting .452 with 22 RBI. Pitching-wise, Simmons was 5-0 with a 0.74 ERA as a junior and 3-1 with a 0.96 ERA and 27 strikeouts his senior season. GameTimePA.com described him as a “talented player who can run, hit and throw.”

After missing his entire junior season due to Tommy John surgery, Olentangy Liberty (Powell, OH) star Cameron Comer earned state and metro player of the year honors his senior season. Comer hit .457 his final year on the high school level.

A shortstop at Liberty, Comer is listed as a catcher and infielder on Virginia’s official roster.

Maryland native Grant Donahue, shown in this video discussing why he chose UVa, won six games and had a fantastic ERA (0.39) his junior season at Decatur (Berlin). As a senior he pitched in the Bayside Senior North vs South All-Star game, in which he won Most Outstanding Pitcher for the South squad.

Grant Sloan of Zionsville (IN), a 6’4″, 190-pound right-handed pitcher, went 4-1 with a 0.79 ERA his senior season according to MaxPreps.com. Opponents hit just .179 against him in 2014/2015.