College baseball: NCBWA announces Dick Howser Trophy semifinalists

DALLAS - The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association has released the list of semifinalists for the 2016 Dick Howser Trophy, presented by Easton Foundations. The award, given to the top player in collegiate baseball, is based on two rounds of national voting.
 

This is the 30th year of the Dick Howser Trophy, presented by Easton Foundations. The finalists will be announced on Thursday, June 9. The 2016 award will be presented at TD Ameritrade Stadium in downtown Omaha, the home of the College World Series for the sixth year. The winner will be unveiled on MLB Network on Friday, June 17 and then a press conference with the winner will be held on Saturday, June 18 at 10 a.m. (CDT), the opening day of the 2016 CWS.
 
The candidates hail from 17 different conferences and 34 different schools. The Atlantic Coast Conference leads the way with 13 semifinalists, followed by the Southeastern Conference with eight, Big 12 with three, Sun Belt with three, Atlantic Sun, Colonial, Missouri Valley with two and Big South, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-12, Southland, Southwestern Athletic and West Coast Conferences with one each. Every position on the diamond is represented, including eight starting pitchers, five third basemen, five outfielders, four shortstops, four first basemen, four catchers, four relief pitchers, three second basemen, three utility players and three designated hitters, among this diversified group.
 
The Dick Howser Trophy, 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 by many as college 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.
 
A Florida native, Howser was twice an All-America shortstop at Florida State (1957-58), then coached the Seminoles in 1979 after a career as a major league player and coach. After one year in the college ranks, Howser returned to the majors to manage the New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals and won the World Series with the Royals in 1985. The baseball stadium on the Florida State campus is named for Howser.
 
“The Dick Howser Trophy was founded shortly after his death by a few friends of Dick’s in the St. Petersburg Area who played, coached and worked with him,” said David Feaster, chairman of the Howser Trophy Committee.  “All knew him personally and were aware of him as a tremendous player, coach and friend. The award was initially awarded at the Governors Baseball Dinner held each spring in St. Petersburg to welcome Spring Training to Florida and as time progressed, we moved the presentation to Omaha, the center of college baseball, during the World Series. I have been involved with the award for more than 25 years and have loved every minute of my involvement. I have had the opportunity to meet some great college players as well as some great young men. I am so proud of the character quality we have in our award, which makes it unique. I am also proud of our selection process by the NCBWA which is the most democratic of any award and provides a true national scope.
 
“The Dick Howser trophy is now 30 years old and growing stronger,” added Feaster.  “It is a true testimony to Dick Howser’s ability as a player, coach and gentlemen. I am proud to be associated with it.”
 
The winner's name is inscribed on the permanent trophy, a bronze bust of Howser displayed at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg - home of the Tampa Bay Rays. Both the winner and his school receive a special trophy to keep.
 
NCBWA membership includes writers, broadcasters and publicists. Designed to promote and publicize college baseball, it is the sport's only college media-related organization, founded in 1962.

Name	Position	School
Peter Alonso	1B	Florida
Luken Baker	UTL	TCU
Seth Beer	OF	Clemson
Jake Burger	3B	Missouri State
Joseph Camacho	SP	Alabama State
CJ Chatham	SS	Florida Atlantic
Zack Collins	C	Miami
Will Craig	3B	Wake Forest
Chris DeVito	C	New Mexico
Nick Feight	C	UNC Wilmington
Matt Fiedler	UTL	Minnesota
Jameson Fisher	1B	Southeastern Louisiana
Bryan Garcia	RP	Miami
Thomas Hackimer	RP	St. John’s
Darrick Hall	1B	Dallas Baptist
Drew Harrington	SP	Louisville
Kevin Hill	SP	South Alabama
Dakota Hudson	SP	Mississippi State
Connor Jones	SP	Virginia
Connor Justus	SS	Georgia Tech
Eric Lauer	SP	Kent State
Kyle Lewis	OF	Mercer
Brendan McKay	UTL	Louisville
Hunter Melton	1B	Texas A&M
Brian Mims	2B	UNC Wilmington
Dylan Moore	RP	Louisiana-Lafayette
Sheldon Neuse	SS	Oklahoma
Jake Noll	2B	Florida Gulf Coast
Corey Raley	DH	Texas Tech
Troy Rallings	RP	Washington
Corey Ray	OF	Louisville
Bryan Reynolds	OF	Vanderbilt
John Sansone	3B	Florida State
Clarke Schmidt	SP	South Carolina
Ryan Scott	OF	Little Rock
Nick Senzel	3B	Tennessee
Colton Shaver	DH	BYU
Logan Shore	SP	Florida
Nick Solak	2B	Louisville
Matt Thaiss	C	Virginia
Taylor Walls	SS	Florida State
Boomer White	3B	Texas A&M
G.K. Young	DH	Coastal Carolina