West Virginia sophomore second baseman JJ Wetherholt has been named a semifinalist for both the Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy.
He is one of 25 student-athletes and the only Big 12 representative among the Golden Spikes semifinalists while he is on a list of 60 semifinalists for the Howser.
Wetherholt also becomes just the second Mountaineer to be named a Golden Spikes semifinalist, joining Alek Manoah in 2019. Harrison Musgrave and Ryan McBroom were also named to the initial watchlist in 2014.
The Mars, Pennsylvania native currently leads all Power 5 players with a .447 batting average, second-highest in the country. He also leads the Big 12 with 35 stolen bases and is just the fourth player since 2002 to have at least 35 extra base hits and 35 stolen bases in a season.
In addition to batting average and stolen bases, Wetherholt leads the Mountaineers in home runs (15), RBI (56), runs (65), doubles (21), and OPS (1.296).
Fan voting will again play a part in the Golden Spikes Award in 2023. Amateur baseball fans can vote for their favorite players on GoldenSpikesAward.com, beginning on May 22 with the naming of the semifinalists. USA Baseball will announce the finalists for the award on June 7, and fan voting will once again open at GoldenSpikesAward.com before closing on June 21.
To stay up to date on the 2023 Golden Spikes Award, visit GoldenSpikesAward.com and follow @USAGoldenSpikes on Instagram and Twitter.
The 2023 Golden Spikes Award timeline is as follows:
• June 5: Golden Spikes Award semifinalists fan voting ends
• June 7: Golden Spikes Award finalists announced and fan voting begins
• June 21: Golden Spikes Award finalists’ fan voting ends
• June 25: Golden Spikes Award winner announced
The Dick Howser Trophy, presented by The Game Headwear, given in memory of the former Florida State University All-America shortstop and major league player and manager, who died of brain cancer in 1987, is regarded as baseball's most prestigious award. Criteria for consideration of the trophy include performance on the field, leadership, moral character and courage, qualities that were exemplified by Dick Howser's life.
The finalists will be announced on Thursday, June 8. The 2023 award will be presented at Charles Schwab Field in downtown Omaha, the home of the College World Series for the 11th year. The winner will be unveiled on MLB Network on Thursday, June 15, in the 9 a.m. (CDT) hour. A Friday, June 16 press conference with the winner will be held at 10 a.m., the opening day just prior to the first game of the 76th NCAA College World Series.
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