Arizona Baseball could be a Special Group in 2021

Omaha, NE - JUNE 28: A general view of an NCAA baseball on the field prior to game two of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arizona Wildcats and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on June 28, 2016 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Omaha, NE - JUNE 28: A general view of an NCAA baseball on the field prior to game two of the College World Series Championship Series between the Arizona Wildcats and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on June 28, 2016 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
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Armed with the fourth-ranked recruiting class in the country, and three Top 150 MLB Draft prospects, Arizona Baseball could be destined for Omaha in 2021.

The Arizona Baseball team like all other programs around the country suffered a premature end to what could very well have been a special 2020 season thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Wildcats were given quite the boost, however when Major League Baseball opted to reduce the 2020 First-Year Player Draft to 5 rounds, which only saw Arizona lose two players, conveniently both to New York City-based teams.

Arizona Wildcats
Arizona Wildcats /

Arizona Wildcats

Having a 1st round pick is never bad for recruiting purposes, and catcher Austin Wells achieved just that with his selection by the New York Yankees. The other loss was Matthew Dyer going in the 4th round to the New York Mets.

Heading into the 2020 MLB Draft, the Wildcats‘ recruiting class was ranked 8th by Baseball America, undoubtedly due to the fact at least a few of their top signees were expected to be selected and start their professional careers, bypassing Arizona.

However, with the reduced draft, Arizona saw no significant losses to their class, meanwhile, others saw departures. As a result, both Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball ranked the Wildcats recruiting class No. 4 in the country, leading the Pac-12 and all teams West of the Mississippi.

Additionally, D1Baseball.com listed three Wildcats among their Top 150 Draft Prospects for 2021. With the combination of a highly ranked recruiting class, as well as highly ranked draft prospects, there should be no way that Head Coach Jay Johnson’s squad has their sights set on anything less than a trip to Omaha in 2021.

Fourth-ranked class led by a pair of Perfect Game All-Americans

Johnson secured two huge recruits to lead his recruiting class, in Perfect Game All-Americans and Top 100 selections in Chase Davis and Daniel Susac. You can also include Baseball America Top 500 draft prospects in TJ Nichols, Jacob Berry, and Chase Silseth in that list as well. That should provide Coach Johnson some instant impact from his 2020 signing class.

Chase should add some instant impact and depth to the Wildcat outfield, arriving as the No. 9 ranked recruit nationally and No. 1 recruit out of California per Perfect Game’s ratings. With an arm that has been clocked throwing 99 MPH from the outfield, and a swing that, with some finetuning could unleash a good bit of power, and good speed to compliment.

Davis could be quite the impact player for Arizona over the next three years, with the potential to hear his name come early in the 2023 MLB Draft.

Catcher Daniel Susac heads to Tucson as the No. 7 overall best catching recruit in the Nation and No. 60 ranked recruit overall that could immediately step in and fill the void behind the plate left with Wells and Dyer moving on to the professional ranks.

Susac profiles as an immediate impact player behind the plate with a good combination of power and a big arm from behind the plate. As per Perfect Game, Susac rated in the 99th percentile in Arm Velocity, Exit Velocity, Max Barrel Speed, and Impact Momentum while coming in at the 96th percentile in pop time.

The power potential in Susac is very enticing, as the catcher profiles to be more of a contact and speed catcher, giving the Wildcats a nice compliment behind the plate.

Three named to D1Baseball.com’s 2021 Top 150 Draft Prospects

Two returning Wildcats and a D3 transfer landed on D1Baseball.com’s Top 150 Draft Prospects for the 2021 MLB Draft. Arizona was led by Junior Ryan Holgate coming in at No. 82 on the list followed by Donta Williams at No. 126, and newcomer Austin Smith at No. 137.

Holgate was in the midst of a great 2020 season at the time of its end, hitting for a .377 AVG and .459 OBP. Additionally, in the field, Holgate sported a nearly spotless .963 Fielding percentage.

Williams returns to Tucson with a very similar line to Holgate, hitting for a .348 AVG and a spectacular .527 OBP. Williams’ 2020 in the field was perfect with him recording a 1.000 fielding percentage.

A transfer with plenty of intrigue is Austin Smith. A power-throwing hurler that transferred from Division III Southwestern University, Austin arrives in Tucson with arguably the most 2020 experience.

Last year, he sported a 12-4 record with a 3.41 ERA and 179 K’s on 134.2 innings pitched. Smith has a fastball that’s touched 98, and a breaking ball sitting in the mid-to-upper ’70s.

It will be interesting to see what pitching coach Nate Yeskie can get from Austin. Plus we may finally have a nice top of the rotation arm to help take on the Pac-12 in 2021.

Baseball America is fond of the Wildcats chances in 2021

Say what you will about early rankings in college sports, but Baseball America thinks the Wildcats should be a very good team this season. Coming in at No. 12 in Baseball America’s Never Too Early 25, it could become a very exciting spring at Hi Corbett Field in 2021.

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At Zona Zealots, we’re hoping this team can live up to the hype, and finally return to Omaha where they belong! As always, Bear Down, Arizona!