College World Series: Players to watch as Texas, Auburn, more go for title

By Jordan Shusterman
FOX Sports MLB Writer

And then there were eight.

It has been a wild few weeks full of high drama and unbelievable upsets in the Division I baseball postseason, and the field has narrowed to eight teams that will compete for a national championship June 17-27 at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.

Last week in the Women’s College World Series, the Oklahoma Sooners softball team captured the program’s sixth national championship after spending the entire season as the prohibitive favorites and clear No. 1 team in the country. 

Meanwhile, in baseball, Tennessee — the team that led Div. I in both ERA and home runs and captured the attention of the national audience all season — won’t be participating in the College World Series after losing in the super-regional to Notre Dame. And last year’s national champion, Mississippi State, finished last in the SEC in 2022 and didn’t make the postseason at all. 

This baseball thing, it’s hard to predict.

All of which is to say: These eight teams have taken some incredible routes to get to this point, and any of them could win it all. 

Here are the players to know before the action gets started Friday.

3B/RHP Jack Brannigan
Notre Dame (third CWS appearance, first since 2002)

Let’s begin with the team that knocked off the mighty Vols. This postseason began in controversial fashion, as the Fighting Irish were sent to the regional hosted by Georgia Southern as the No. 2 seed, despite many analysts believing they deserved to host a regional. It clearly didn’t faze the Irish, as they handled the Statesboro region with ease before heading into Knoxville and shocking the college baseball universe with the upset of the year. 

Brannigan has been a huge part of this incredible run, as he led the team in home runs with 12, including a dramatic, go-ahead homer against Tennessee, and started the double play in the ninth inning to eliminate the Vols: 

Brannigan’s production at the plate is only more impressive when you consider that MLB teams predominantly prefer him as a pitcher. Although he has pitched in just eight games this season (and none since May 1), Brannigan’s upper-90s fastball and vicious slider have big-league teams more intrigued by his potential as a dynamite reliever than as a third baseman. 

It seems unlikely that we’ll see him on the mound in Omaha, though, as he remains much more crucial to the Notre Dame offense at this stage of the season.

Oh, and one more thing: He loves to steal home. What can’t this guy do?

Others to watch: DH Jack Zyska, LF Ryan Cole, LHP John Michael Bertrand, LHP Jack Findlay, RHP Liam Simon

1B Ivan Melendez
Texas (38th CWS appearance)

It’s hard to believe that I didn’t highlight Melendez, aka The Hispanic Titanic, when previewing last year’s College World Series, but I’m happy to get a mulligan, as the Longhorns return to Omaha for a Div. I-record 38th time. 

Melendez’s raw power is simply jaw-dropping, a pure 80 on the 20-80 scouting scale and on par with any of the most prodigious sluggers the college game has ever seen. And it doesn’t just show up in batting practice; Melendez’s 32 home runs this season are the most ever by a player in the BBCOR bat era, surpassing Kris Bryant’s mark of 31 in 2013. 

Melendez was known for his power long before he arrived in Austin; he was a junior-college All-American at Odessa College in 2019 before transferring to Texas for the 2021 season. He was excellent a year ago but leveled up in a tremendous way in 2022, leading Div. I in OPS (1.404) and, of course, dingers. 

While Melendez doesn’t offer much defensive value, it seems awfully likely that some MLB team will call his name in Rounds 2-5 of next month’s MLB Draft, and I can’t wait to see how his legendary power translates to pro ball.

Others to watch: RF Murphy Stehly, CF Douglas Hodo, SS Trey Faltine, 3B Skyler Messinger, LHP Pete Hansen, RHP Tristan Stevens

LHP Jacob Palisch
Texas A&M (seventh CWS appearance, first since 2017)

The Aggies have cruised so far this postseason, going undefeated in regional and super-regional play as they return to Omaha for the first time in five years. This is a very balanced roster without overwhelming star power, so I’m opting to put the spotlight on a reliever in Palisch who has had a fascinating trajectory in his college career. 

The Dallas native played his first four seasons at Stanford before returning closer home to play for the Aggies in 2022, and he has been one of the best lefty relievers in the country. Palisch also dominated in the prestigious Cape Cod League in the summer of 2019 but was not selected in the shortened 2020 draft and thus continued his college career.

He’ll turn 24 in August, so Palisch is much older than what MLB teams tend to covet in the draft. That said, he could be an intriguing option in the later rounds for teams that think he could pitch his way into a big-league bullpen rather quickly. More importantly for now, he’ll surely be asked to get some huge outs if the Aggies are to have a shot at winning a national championship.  

Others to watch: LF Dylan Rock, 2B Ryan Targac, 1B Jack Moss, RHP Nathan Dettmer, RHP Micah Dallas

RHP Cade Horton
Oklahoma (11th CWS appearance, first since 2010)

Horton was a two-sport star at Norman High School and committed to OU to play quarterback and baseball (as both a hitter and pitcher), which made him awfully difficult for MLB teams to sign in the 2020 draft. His college career took a turn when he needed Tommy John surgery in February 2021, wiping out his freshman year and delaying his collegiate debut until March 29, 2022. 

Since his return, Horton has played both ways for the Sooners, getting ample time at third base and on the mound. On May 21, he started against Texas Tech and allowed eight runs, ballooning his season ERA to 7.94. Since then, however, he has posted a 2.55 ERA with 25 strikeouts and just five walks in 17.2 innings pitched in three of the most important games of Oklahoma’s season, including Game 3 of the super-regional against Virginia Tech. 

Horton is peaking at the right time and will be crucial in the Sooners’ efforts to slow the top-tier offenses they’ll face in Omaha.

Because he turns 21 in August, Horton is a draft-eligible sophomore. We know he was highly touted in high school, but has he shown enough over the past three starts to warrant a high selection in this draft? Or is he better off going back to OU, pitching a full, healthy and dominant season and trying to be a slam-dunk first-rounder in 2023? How he performs in Omaha might impact that decision. 

Others to watch: SS Peyton Graham, 1B Blake Robertson, CF Tanner Tredaway, LF Kendall Pattis, LHP Jake Bennett

3B Drew Bowser
Stanford (18th CWS appearance)

The Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles has gotten plenty of attention over the past decade for producing three of the best young starting pitchers in MLB: Lucas Giolito, Max Fried and Jack Flaherty. But it might soon also be known as the high school that produced Bowser, a power-hitting third baseman who has been having a monster sophomore season for the Cardinal. 

Bowser was a highly touted prospect at Harvard-Westlake and could have gone in the top two rounds out of high school, had he wanted to start his pro career. However, his commitment to Stanford — an elite baseball program and the school that his mother, Yvette, an acclaimed TV producer, attended — was far too strong to lure him into pro ball, and now he’s one of the best players on the team some sportsbooks consider the favorite to win it all. 

Bowser has hit 12 homers in his past 16 games, bringing his season total to 18 and his OPS to .942. He still strikes out a lot, something he’ll surely look to improve upon as he enters his draft spring in 2023. But for now, he’s one of the most dangerous hitters in the College World Series, and he’ll be key for a Stanford team looking to avenge its heartbreaking, walk-off loss to Vanderbilt in last year’s CWS.

Others to watch: CF Brock Jones, OF/RHP Braden Montgomery, 1B Carter Graham, C Kody Huff, LF Eddie Park, RHP Alex Williams, LHP Ryan Bruno

3B Cayden Wallace
Arkansas (11th CWS appearance, first since 2019)

Wallace starred as a freshman on the 2021 Arkansas squad that spent much of the season as the No. 1 team in the country before losing in dramatic fashion to NC State in the super-regional. His offensive profile took another step forward this season, as he showed even more power and cut down on the strikeouts. He also played nearly every game at the hot corner after primarily playing in right field as a freshman.

Many of the top college hitters in this year’s MLB Draft come with questions about where they might play defensively in pro ball. But as a draft-eligible sophomore, Wallace stands out as an exciting hitting prospect who can unquestionably stick and excel at an important position. Look for him to hear his name called on Day 1 of the draft after he’s finished helping the Razorbacks chase a title in Omaha.

Others to watch: 2B Robert Moore, SS Jalen Battles, C Michael Turner, RHP Connor Noland, RHP Brady Tygart

1B Tim Elko
Ole Miss (sixth CWS appearance, first since 2014)

Elko gained national attention a year ago, when he returned from a torn ACL far faster than anyone would’ve thought possible to help the Rebels make a deep postseason run. Despite his heroics, though, Ole Miss came up just short, losing to Arizona in the super-regional. 

Elko returned to Oxford for his fifth year afforded by the canceled 2020 season and has been one of the best hitters in the country once again, slashing .302/.413/.656 with 22 home runs and countless clutch hits along the way. Ole Miss was the No. 1 team in the country earlier in the season, before Tennessee took over for good, so there’s ample talent on this squad. 

But Elko is the driving force, and he’ll need to keep cashing in runs for the Rebels to make noise in Omaha.

Others to watch: SS Jacob Gonzalez, LF Kevin Graham, RHP Dylan DeLucia

1B Sonny DiChiara
Auburn (sixth CWS appearances; first since 2019)

If you thought Melendez achieved cult-hero status for his monumental dingers for Texas, the legend of Sonny D has arguably grown even bigger. The 22-year-old slugger has been an absolute force for the Tigers this spring, carrying an offense that otherwise lacks star power to help head coach Butch Thompson’s squad get back to Omaha. 

As with Melendez, there was some question about how DiChiara’s production would translate after he transferred from Samford, where he enjoyed three excellent seasons against SoCon competition. But clearly, the SEC was no trouble for DiChiara, as he has put up even better numbers in 2022: His .385/.554/.792 line is bested by only three Div. I hitters, including Melendez. 

DiChiara has also been scorching hot down the stretch, with six homers in his past eight games. He’ll undoubtedly be one of the fan favorites in Omaha, no matter how far Auburn goes, and he could be an intriguing, later-round draft choice for a team that fully believes in the bat.

Others to watch: 3B Blake Rambusch, RHP Mason Barnett, RHP Blake Burkhalter

Jordan Shusterman is half of @CespedesBBQ and a baseball writer for FOX Sports. He lives in D.C. but is a huge Seattle Mariners fan and loves watching the KBO, which means he doesn’t get a lot of sleep. You can follow him on Twitter @j_shusterman_.