The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
04.05.2022 | Baseball
Pete Hansen, Ivan Melendez and Murphy Stehly are all among the nation’s top players.
AUSTIN, Texas – The No. 7 Texas Baseball trio of Pete Hansen, Ivan Melendez and Murphy Stehly all landed on the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List, USA Baseball announced Tuesday. The winner of the 44th Golden Spikes Award, honoring the top amateur baseball player in the country, will be announced on Friday, June 24, on ESPN.
The watch list includes 45 total players and Texas is among just three schools with three players on the list. Last season, Ty Madden was named one of 25 semifinalists for the award.
Hansen is 5-0 this season with a 2.51 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 43 innings pitched. He has issued only eight walks this season and is holding opponents to a .199 batting average. In his last start, he pitched eight innings and allowed just one run while striking out 12 batters against Oklahoma.
Melendez is tied for second nationally with 13 home runs, while batting .387 with 40 RBI and 36 runs scored. He also ranks in the top-10 nationally in total bases (2nd), slugging percentage (6th), RBI (8th), and base on balls (8th).
Stehly leads the country with 55 hits and leads the Big 12 with a .458 batting average. He has 13 doubles, one triple and eight homers, while driving in 31 RBI and scoring 28 runs. Stehly has a hit in all but two games and has 18 games with multiple hits.
On Tuesday, May 24, USA Baseball will announce the semifinalists for the 2022 Golden Spikes Award. The list of semifinalists will then be sent to a voting body consisting of baseball media members, select professional baseball personnel, current USA Baseball staff and the previous winners of the award, representing a group of more than 150 voters. As part of this selection process, all voters will be asked to choose three players from the list of semifinalists. On June 8, USA Baseball will announce the finalists, and voting for the winner will begin that same day.
