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Alex Lodise (Photo by Eddie Kelly / ProLook Photos)
Following yesterday’s piece that dove into the top 25 draft prospects in the NCAA Tournament, today we’re simply ranking the top 25 players who could make an impact in the tournament.
While some of these players are also standout draft names, this list is far less a reflection of a player’s prospect status. Instead, it’s geared toward high-performers from throughout the 2025 season who could cash in on their short-term potential and make a big impact en route to Omaha.
1. Alex Lodise, SS, Florida State
Lodise checks every box from a performance standpoint this season. A Golden Spikes award finalist, he won ACC Player of the year, posted the nation’s eighth-best average (.415) among qualified hitters and added 17 homers. He’s driving the ball better this year and plays a premium defensive shortstop. Not only has that helped him surge into fringe first-round draft status, he’s also the biggest X-factor on a team with legitimate national championship aspirations.
2. Wehiwa Aloy, SS, Arkansas
Arkansas has achieved nearly every major milestone under Dave Van Horn besides an elusive national championship. The Razorbacks have the talent to do it this year, but they’ll need Aloy to perform if they want to break that spell. Aloy has thunderous all-fields power, plays a comfortable shortstop and was a high-performer this year in a loaded SEC—all the hallmarks of a player ready to star on the game’s biggest stage.
3. Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA
Yesterday, Cholowsky ranked as the one of the best draft prospects regardless of class, and he was also one of the most impressive performers in the nation this season despite not being draft-eligible until 2026. His 23 homers tied for third-most in the country, he won the Big Ten Player of the Year and he’s a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes award. Cholowsky was the heartbeat behind UCLA’s resurgence this season, and an impactful NCAA Tournament could set the stage for him to become one of the faces of the sport over the next 12 months.
4. Liam Doyle, LHP, Tennessee
Doyle’s “grip it and rip it” pitching style paired with one of the best fastballs in the country to overpower SEC hitters this spring, and he brings the type of heat that can carry a pitching staff all the way to Omaha. His 142 strikeouts trailed only fellow lefty Kade Anderson this year across the sport. There’s little secret about how Doyle wants to attack hitters—and his secondaries aren’t as intimidating—but he has the stuff and moxie to star over the next month.
5. Gavin Kilen, 2B, Tennessee
Tennessee has Doyle to lead its run-suppression efforts, but it will need its offense to click to help defend its national title. Enter Kilen, who hit a career-high .351/.435/.686 with 11 doubles, 15 home runs and 43 RBIs this year when he wasn’t sidelined with a hamstring injury. Kilen can collect barrels in bunches and has been a steadying presence in the Volunteer infield this year. Perhaps the NCAA Tournament can function as his true coming out party.
6. Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State
Arquette’s the latest example of how nailing the transfer portal can springboard a team into Omaha contention. The Washington transfer turned in a career year manning shortstop for the Beavers, hitting .348/.473/.676 with 14 doubles, 17 home runs and 60 RBIs across 54 games. He has bat speed and plays an excellent defense despite his larger 6-foot-5 frame. Arquette is already a mainstay at the top of draft lists. Now, he has a chance to prove himself as one of the sport’s preeminent stars in front of a national audience that may not have seen a whole lot of him thanks to Oregon State’s independent schedule this year.
7. Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State
Reese entered the transfer portal in the wake of a strong freshman year at Houston and eventually committed to Mississippi State. To say the sophomore has thrived in “Stark Vegas” would be a serious understatement, and he took home SEC Newcomer of the Year honors after hitting .371/.441/.767 with 18 doubles, 21 home runs and 66 RBIs. He’s been the best and hottest hitter on a Mississippi State team that’s playing its best baseball and an opportune time. The Bulldogs have an uphill battle ahead of them in Tallahassee, but Reese could propel them to an upset regional title.
8. Drew Burress, OF, Georgia Tech
Burress has been a star from the moment he stepped foot on campus. After a monstrous freshman season in 2024—perhaps the best of any first-year player—he didn’t miss a beat this spring and hit .339/.467/.702 with 23 doubles, 18 home runs and 61 RBIs across 57 games. A 5-foot-9 dynamo, Burress plays much bigger than his size and seems to thrive when the lights are at their brightest.
9. Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State
Perhaps no player on this list has spent more time in the spotlight than Arnold, who faced Tennessee last year in the College World Series and pitched all of this season as arguably the top pitching prospect in college baseball. Arnold wasn’t particularly sharp in Omaha last year, walking four batters and yielding eight hits over five innings, so it’s a safe bet he’s motivated to get back there and fare better in an encore. While he hasn’t been quite as sharp this season, Arnold still has premium stuff from the left side, and a dominant run through the bracket could serve as the prelude to Arnold being one of the first picks off the board in July.
10. Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma
Oklahoma needs Witherspoon to be excellent if it wants to reach Omaha. Luckily for the Sooners, Witherspoon has been up to the task for most of this season. He went 10-3 with a 2.47 ERA, and his 120 strikeouts were sixth-best in college baseball. Witherspoon throws hard, holds his velocity and has two separate breaking balls that can give hitters fits. Three years ago Oklahoma righty Cade Horton emerged as an NCAA Tournament darling before going in the first round of the draft. Is Witherspoon next?
11. Kade Anderson, LHP, LSU
Anderson was sublime this season en route to leading college baseball with 145 strikeouts over 89 innings for the Tigers. Leaning on a much-improved slider to round out his arsenal, Anderson pitched his way into becoming one of the best arms in the sport this year and pairs with RHP Anthony Eyanson (more on him shortly) to form arguably the best rotation duo in the country. That makes LSU quite a dangerous threat.
12. Andrew Fischer, 1B, Tennessee
The NCAA Tournament is a place for stars to shine, but it’s also a time for cult heroes to emerge. Fischer has a chance to check both boxes as one of the sport’s better power brokers who has a penchant for going deep in big moments. He hit 22 homers this season and has captivating pullside power. There may be some questions about his profile at the next level, but for the next few weeks, he’s as feared a hitter as any in college baseball.
13. Ike Irish, OF/C, Auburn
All Irish does is rake, and he’s the face of a resurgent Tigers program that has legit national title aspirations after winning just eight SEC games and missing the tournament completely a year ago. Irish is Auburn’s first two-time First Team All-SEC selection since Gabe Gross near the turn of the century. Irish’s all-fields approach allows him to collect hits in bunches.
14. Mason Neville, OF, Oregon
Neville didn’t enter the year with much fanfare, but now he enters the tournament as arguably the best power hitter in the field. The Oregon outfielder led all college hitters with 26 homers, and he particularly enjoys the confines of Eugene, where he hit 19 homers. That’s good news for college baseball fans looking for a toolsy, powerful outfielder to fall in love with—and bad news for anyone trying to get past the Ducks in the Eugene regional.
15. Sawyer Strosnider, OF, TCU
Following some typical freshman growing pains, Strosnider had a monstrous second half of the season and took home Big 12 freshman of the year honors after hitting .354/.426/.646 with 12 doubles, a nation-leading 10 triples, 10 home runs and 50 RBIs. He has a mighty intriguing toolset that includes plenty of bat speed, plus raw power—especially to the pull side—and a plus arm. Strosnider has been able to flash those tools in-game on a consistent basis and figures to do the same this weekend in Corvallis.
16. Marek Houston, SS, Wake Forest
Houston’s a tough out at the plate and can take away runs defensively at shortstop. He also flashed more impact early in the season after adding good weight over the offseason, although his power metrics fizzled a bit as the year progressed. Houston has the talent to rank even higher on this list and could emerge as a star of the postseason if he can rediscover his power stroke at the right time for Wake Forest, which could be tasked with facing Tennessee’s high-octane arms.
17. Liam Peterson, RHP, Florida
Based purely on stuff, Peterson is as electric as any arm in the field. He runs his fastball into the upper 90s and punched out 95 hitters over 68 innings for Florida. Peterson wasn’t quite as crisp throughout the season as other arms on this list and posted a 5.86 ERA within the SEC this year—and he also missed time with general soreness—but he certainly has the markers of a potential star postseason arm. The Gators will need Peterson to hold serve in a regional loaded with talented pitching but lackluster offense.
18. Charles Davalan, OF, Arkansas
Another portal success story, Davalan is the perfect table-setter to kickstart Arkansas’ offense to a deep tournament run. He rarely strikes out, hit for more power this year (13 homers) and finds plenty of ways to make his presence felt. Davalan was one of the biggest breakout performers of the season after hitting well in the SEC.
19. Riley Quick, RHP, Alabama
The Crimson Tide are a dangerous two seed, although it seems unlikely they can sustain a deep run if Quick isn’t up to par, considering they enter the postseason with a 5.11 staff ERA, which ranks outside the top 50 nationally. Quick has been up to the challenge for most of the season, striking out 64 batters over 56 innings, and he’s been a late riser up draft boards given his 6-foot-6, 255-pound frame and powerful arsenal. While he may not elicit as many whiffs as you’d expect given his size and raw strength, he could certainly carry a pitching staff through a tournament like this.
20. AJ Gracia, OF, Duke
Gracia served as a bellwether of sorts for a Duke team that was ice cold out of the gates, then closed the season in a much more impactful manner. The same can be said for the Blue Devils’ slugger, who is one of the hottest hitters in the country entering the tournament. Gracia’s a well-rounded offensive threat with legitimate first-round aspirations a year from now, and he has the type of skill set that can do a ton of damage in a regional format.
21. Justin Lebron, SS, Alabama
At one point this season, the Alabama sophomore seemed like he was hitting his way into potential Player of the Year conversations. He didn’t quite carry that momentum through SEC play, where he hit just .252 with an .820 OPS, but Lebron has premium tools, plays polished defense and has proven this year he can heat up fast. Those are the hallmarks of a player worth getting familiar with now, because he has a chance to go high in the draft next year, too.
22. Derek Curiel, OF, LSU
Simply getting Curiel to campus was a big recruiting win for LSU. His performance since then has only amplified what a coup that was for the Tigers’ staff. The freshman hit .336/.455/.512 with 24 extra-base hits and 45 RBIs. Curiel has a simple and rhythmic operation and has shown an advanced feel for the barrel to go along with plus bat-to-ball skills. There are no breaks in LSU’s lineup, and Curiel this year has served as a tone-setter at the top.
23. Brendan Summerhill, OF, Arizona
Summerhill makes contact in bunches, can pull the ball into the stands and is really tough to beat in the strike zone. He’s also looking to make a statement as a likely first-round pick who missed a month this year because of injury. Arizona’s path to a super runs through former Pac-12 rival Oregon. They’ll need a big weekend from Summerhill to get it done.
24. Anthony Eyanson, RHP, LSU
Eyanson is the other half of LSU’s wicked two-headed monster atop the rotation. He struck out 125 batters to just 31 walks in 84.1 innings as the Tigers’ Saturday starter. He has the stuff and moxie to thrive in big moments, and also got some relief experience in the SEC Tournament if LSU needs to deploy him in that manner throughout its postseason run. He’s talented enough to anchor plenty of other rotations, and he has quickly emerged as another potential star in Baton Rouge.
25. Caden Bodine, C, Coastal Carolina
Perhaps Coastal enters the tournament looking to prove itself after landing just the 13th overall seed and having to contend with a dangerous Florida team in its bracket. So, too, could Bodine, who has slid a bit on BA’s draft board and is among the top catchers in this year’s class. He’s a patient, contact-oriented hitter who receives high marks for his receiving—the type of player who is a pest throughout the course of a regional and could even steal a key strike or two in big moments.
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