UGA’s Condon, Arkansas’ Smith named top players
Two players who put forth recordbreaking seasons have claimed the major awards from the USA TODAY Sports Network’s All-SEC teams.
A panel of nine sportswriters who cover SEC baseball selected Georgia’s Charlie Condon as the SEC Player of the Year and Arkansas’ Hagen Smith as SEC Pitcher of the Year.
Condon led the entire country with 34 home runs and a .451 batting average. The redshirt sophomore’s power output set the NCAA record for most home runs in a single season during the BBCOR era. Georgia’s 39 wins represent the program’s most since 2019.
Smith’s 1.56 ERA and 50.2% strikeout percentage are also tops in the nation. With 150 strikeouts on the year, Smith is the Razorbacks’ all-time leader in punchouts and needs just six more to set the school’s single-season record. The powerful lefty went 9-0 and led Arkansas to an SEC West title.
Kentucky’s Nick Mingione was named SEC Coach of the Year after lifting the second SEC championship in program history. The Wildcats went 39-12 overall and 22-8 in the league to share this year’s conference title with Tennessee.
Alabama’s Justin Lebron was named Freshman of the Year, while Texas A&M’s Braden Montgomery was voted Newcomer of the Year. Both players also earned a spot on the All-SEC first team. Condon, Smith, Montgomery Florida’s Jac Caglianone, Texas A&M’s Ryan Prager and Tennessee’s Christian Moore were unanimous selections.
USA TODAY Sports Network All-SEC baseball team
Catcher: Cole Messina, South Carolina
First base: Corey Collins, Georgia Second base: Christian Moore, Tennessee
Shortstop: Justin Lebron, Alabama Third base: Charlie Condon, Georgia Outfield: Braden Montgomery, Texas A&M
Outfield:
A&M
Outfield:
Utility: Jac Caglianone, Florida Starting pitcher: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
Starting pitcher: Ryan Prager, Texas A&M
Starting pitcher: Luke Holman, LSU Relief pitcher: Evan Aschenbeck, Texas A&M
Voters: Kevin Brockway, Gainesville Sun; Benjamin Diaz, Lafayette Daily Advertiser; David Eckert, The ClarionLedger; Jackson Fuller, Southwest Times Record; Aria Gerson, The Tennessean; Cade Hampton, Tuscaloosa News; Stefan Krajisnik, The Clarion Ledger; Marc Weiszer, Athens-Banner Herald; Mike Wilson, Knoxville News Sentinel.
Jace
LaViolette, Texas
Ryan Waldschmidt, Kentucky