The 10 best players of the College World Series participate in the MLB Draft

The Tennessee baseball team lifted the title to cap off the 2024 Men’s College World Series, but the national championship isn’t the only moment some Vols will be celebrating this summer.

This season’s College World Series champions boast some of the most promising talent for the upcoming 2024 MLB Draft.

But the Vols heading to the MLB have company among their Omaha counterparts. The entire 2024 College World Series field should be well represented in the first round of the draft, with each participant boasting at least one prospect likely to be selected in the top 50.

Billy Amick, Tennessee Volunteers – Third Base

After spending the last two college seasons at Clemson, Billy Amick transferred to Tennessee in 2024 and had a major impact on the Vols’ quest for the national title.

Amick had a .306 batting average and 23 home runs in 255 at-bats, the latter ranking him 23rd among all Division I batters last season.

MLB.com named Amick as one of the fastest-rising players in the 2024 draft, emerging from relative obscurity at Clemson and becoming a potential first-round pick after his time at Tennessee.

Jac Caglianone, Florida Gators – First baseman and left-handed pitcher

Of all the 2024 College World Series participants entering the MLB Draft, Florida’s Jac Caglianone could be selected first.

Widely considered one of the top five picks in this class, his tenure in Florida culminated with a season for the ages in which he had a .419 batting average, .875 slugged average and .544 on-base percentage.

Only Golden Spikes Award winner Charlie Condon hit more than Caglianone’s 35 home runs in 2024, including two foursomes in Omaha.

Caglianone’s college career ended with him being awarded the 2024 John Olerud Award, given to the sport’s best two-way player. Caglianone backed up his impressive performances at the plate with a 4.76 ERA in 73 2/3 innings pitched, striking out 83 batters.

Jacob Cozart, NC State Wolfpack – Catcher

Jacob Cozart’s rock-solid play behind the plate on defense continued during his three-year tenure at NC State, where his production on offense increased each season.

Cozart’s breakthrough hitter came in 2023 with a .301 batting average, .546 slugging power, 10 home runs, and 14 doubles. In 2024, Cozart’s average improved to .305, he nearly doubled his home run production with 19, and he managed more than twice as many walks (52) as he did the previous season (24).

Vance Honeycutt, North Carolina Tar Heels – Midfield

A sensational 2024 culminated in Vance Honeycutt being named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team.

Honeycutt, the 2023 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, showed an improved hitting presence all season but took it to a new level with four multi-hit games in the postseason. Honeycutt also hit six of his 28 home runs during the NCAA Tournament in 2024, including one in each of the Tar Heels’ final two College World Series games.

That power is a nice complement to Honeycutt’s speed, which earned him 29 and 28 stolen bases in 2022 and 2024, respectively, and his aforementioned stellar performance in center field.

Braden Montgomery, Texas A&M Aggies – Outfielder

Braden Montgomery achieved a remarkable feat with College World Series appearances in back-to-back seasons, albeit with two different teams. Montgomery was a catalyst for Stanford’s run to Omaha in 2023, transferred to Texas A&M and was instrumental in the Aggies’ push to the championship series.

Montgomery was one of the most consistent batters in the college rankings in both seasons, posting a .336 batting average with a .461 on-base percentage and hitting 17 home runs in his final season at Stanford. In 2024, as an Aggie, Montgomery posted a .322 batting average with a .454 on-base percentage, hitting 27 home runs and scoring the fifth-most runs of any player in the country with 85 runs.

MLB.com projects Montgomery to be Texas A&M’s highest-drafted outfielder of all time, which would put him at No. 14 overall. Some mock drafts have Montgomery returning to Northern California (at least until the franchise moves to Las Vegas) as the Athletics’ No. 4 pick.

Christian Moore, Tennessee Volunteers – Second Base

Christian Moore’s career statistics in Tennessee are staggering: A .338 batting average in 628 at-bats, a .697 slugging percentage, 160 RBI and 61 home runs after his 34 in 2024 put him in a race for the national lead.

The last of Moore’s 34 home runs in 2024 set the tone for Tennessee’s decisive College World Series and secured the standout second baseman a place in Vols history alongside names like new Baseball Hall of Fame member Todd Helton.

After an outstanding NCAA tournament, Moore is riding the wave of success and will likely be selected in the top 20 in the MLB draft.

Griff O’Ferrall, Virginia Cavaliers – Shortstop

Griff O’Ferrall, a record-setting hitter during his time at Virginia, leaves Charlottesville with 270 at-bats and a three-season batting average of .344 that never fell below .308 in any season.

O’Ferrall’s consistency at the plate led to similar results on the base paths: He captured 16 of 17 bases in all three seasons.

Most projections have O’Ferrall narrowly missing the first round, making him a likely career breakout prospect and promising prospect based on MLB Draft slot evaluation.

Cam Smith, Florida State Seminoles – Third Base

Draft-eligible sophomore Cam Smith came to Florida State and was considered a top-100 draft prospect had he chosen the pros straight out of high school. Instead, Smith honed his crease presence and proved himself at third base to become a potential top-10 draftee in 2024.

After hitting just .258 as a rookie, Smith delivered a monster .387 batting average in over 60 more at-bats in 2024, striking out 18 fewer times (48 versus 66), walking 23 more (44 versus 21), and scoring 21 more runs (57 versus 36).

Smith had two three-hit games during the NCAA Tournament, including in the Super Regional against UConn.

James Tibbs IIIFlorida State Seminoles – Outfielder

The best of three impressive seasons at Florida State was James Tibbs III’s last. After hitting .300 in 2022 and .338 in 2023, Tibbs posted an excellent .363 batting average for the Seminoles, who qualified for the College World Series. He also hit more home runs (28) in 2024 than in the previous two seasons combined (10 in 2022 and 17 in 2023).

Tibbs’ strength was never more evident than in his three-home performance in the Super Regional, the last of which came in the 12th inning of a marathon duel with UConn.

JAMES. TIBBS. THE THIRD.

The ACC Player of the Year hits his THIRD home run of the day in the 12th!

📺 ESPN | @FSUBaseball
pic.twitter.com/pR7BU5c95H

— ACCBaseball (@ACCBaseball) June 8, 2024

Tibbs is consensus rated among the top 15 in the MLB draft.

Ryan Waldschmidt, Kentucky Wildcats – Left Fielder

Ryan Waldschmidt, a sensational freshman at Charleston Southern, transferred to Kentucky last season and made an impression in 2023 with a .290 batting average and 17 stolen bases.

Waldschmidt, however, was just getting started, having established himself in SEC play with a .333 batting average, .610 slugging percentage, 25 stolen bases, 46 RBI and 14 home runs in 2024 – all career highs.

After receiving All-American honors, Waldschmidt enters the MLB draft as a potential first-round pick.

Archived footage from FloBaseball

Video footage from past seasons is archived and stored in a video library for FloBaseball subscribers to view for the duration of their subscription.

Watch Independent Baseball on FloBaseball

Follow the action from the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, Frontier League and Pioneer Baseball League whether you’re on FloBaseball.tv, the FloSports app or FloBaseball’s social media channels for select games.

Each week during the season, we’ll feature at least one “Game of the Week” from each league and stream it directly to social media. Tune in to follow the action LIVE on FloBaseball’s Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages.

Remember, you can rewatch all of your favorite moments from the season during the offseason, as video footage from each league is archived and stored in a video library for FloBaseball subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscription.

Join the conversation about college baseball on social media