We’ve reached the NCAA Super Regional round in college baseball, as just 16 of the nation’s best teams are left standing. All the others are either sitting patiently for next season or lying down quietly for a millennial power nap. The 16 remaining teams all face off this upcoming weekend in a best-of-three series to determine which eight programs are headed to the 2023 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, the land where hopes, dreams, and corn all come to fruition. The juggernauts that are Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Auburn, Miami, Oklahaoma State, and Coastal Carolina have all been eliminated, meaning countless MLB Draft prospects are now focusing their attention on the events of July. That or they’re one of several thousand players in the transfer portal. That being said, a group of highly talented players remains in the field, including LSU’s Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews, Florida’s Wyatt Langford and Hurston Waldrep, Tennessee’s Chase Dollander, Wake Forest’s Rhett Lowder, Virginia’s Kyle Teel, and Stanford’s Tommy Troy, among numerous others. For today’s exercise, we won’t be focusing on those premier names, rather we will be taking a deep dive into five Super Regional prospects you may not yet know — but should.
Tanner Hall, RHP, Southern Miss – The Golden Eagles right-hander has been named an All-American in each of the last two seasons, making a combined 34 starts to help Southern Miss to back-to-back Super Regional berths. Last year, he went 9-3 with a 2.81 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 12.1 K/9, and 1.2 BB/9. Hall has taken a slight step back this year, but has still been dominant: 12-3, 1.02 WHIP, 9.9 K./9, 2.7 BB/9. Hall’s calling cards are his command to both sides of the plate and his changeup, his best offering as his fastball only touches upper 80s to 90. It’s a borderline plus-plus change that he pairs with a 50-heater and 50-slide piece. If anything, the main concern should be his combined 217 innings thrown each of the last two seasons. Even so, MLB Pipleine’s No. 92 draft prospect should get the ball for one of the first two games against Tennessee.
Sabin Ceballos, 3B, Oregon – After playing two seasons at San Jacinto JC in Texas, Ceballos transferred to Oregon as the No. 5-ranked junior college transfer in the country. Coming off a .338/.470/.530 line at SJJC, Ceballos has continued to swing a solid stick with the Ducks: .330/.422/.621, 16 HR, 65 RBI, 44 runs, 13.5 K%, 12.8 BB%. After going 2-for-13 with one homer in the Regional at Vanderbilt, Ceballos will be looking to increase his draft stock (No. 153 at MLB Pipeline) with a strong Super Regional showing against Oral Roberts.
Jake Gelof, INF, Virginia – I’ve discussed Gelof briefly in our 2023 pre-draft coverage, but the younger brother of Oakland prospect Zack Gelof could have his name called the highest of this bunch. Ranked No. 42 overall at MLB Pipeline, Gelof has slashed .330/.438/.735 with nearly as many walks (46) as strikeouts (48). After blasting 21 homers and 15 doubles last season, he has posted 22 big flies and 21 two-baggers in 283 trips to the plate in 2023. The bat is the major calling card (50-hit, 60-power), but he has enough arm to stick at third base and also profiles well at first as a future slug-over-hit guy. Gelof and the Hoos draw the Duke Blue Devils in the Super Regional round.
Jonah Cox, OF, Oral Roberts – Truth be told, I knew nothing about Cox before starting this blurb. He played the 2021 season at Butler Community College and the 2022 campaign at Eastern Oklahoma State College before getting to Oral Roberts for their 2023 Super Regional run. Getting his first taste of elite competition, Cox has batted .424/.481/.672 with 10 homers, eight triples, 16 doubles, 66 runs, 65 RBI, and 27 stolen bases in 30 attempts. Cox strikes out at a 15.3% clip while walking at a 9.8% rate. There’s five-tool potential with Cox, although he profiles as more of a speed and defense guy at the next level with fringey power. As the son of former MLB catcher Darron Cox, Jonah and the Golden Eagles are looking to pull off a major upset of Oregon this upcoming weekend.
Jack Mahoney, RHP, South Carolina – We close today’s column with the right-handed Mahoney, who will open the Super Regional in Gainesville with a Friday night start against Florida. Each of the years in which Mahoney has been healthy in college, he’s been a solid member of the Gamecock staff. After undergoing Tommy John surgery at the tail-end of his freshman 2021 season, Mahoney missed all of 2022. But the freshman results (3-0, 1.62 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 10.5 K/9, 2.2 BB/9) were promising, leading Mahoney to get another crack at the weekend rotation this year. Surprisingly, MLB Pipeline’s No. 115 draft prospect has made all 16 starts this season, going 7-3 with a 4.05 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 9.0 K/9, and 2.8 BB/9 in 80 innings. Those numbers are better than they look, as virtually every pitcher in the college game has struggled this season as the NCAA strike zone continues to shrink. He’s established himself as a strikeout-per-inning type with average-to-plus control, touching 97 with the heater and sitting 92-94 in starts. Mahoney pairs that with a 55-slider and 50-change, all of which will be on display Friday night against the Gators.
That’s all for this week, Razzball fam! As always, I’m happy to take this conversation into the comments section or on Twitter, where you can find me @WorldOfHobbs.
