Arkansas SS Wehiwa Aloy wins Golden Spikes Award as top amateur player in the nation
CARY, N.C. (AP) — Arkansas shortstop Wehiwa Aloy won the Golden Spikes Award as the top amateur baseball player in the nation, USA Baseball announced Saturday.
Aloy is the third Arkansas player to take home the prize, joining Andrew Benintendi in 2015 and Kevin Kopps in 2021, and the 12th winner from the Southeastern Conference — most of any league.
Aloy, the SEC player of the year, started all 65 games this season and led the Razorbacks in almost every major offensive cateogy, including slugging percentage (.673), OPS (1.107), hits (93), doubles (19) and home runs (21). He was second on the team with a .350 batting average and 68 RBIs.
He made just five errors in 229 total chances (.978) and helped turn 31 double plays.
Aloy was named an All-American by four major publications and finished the season with a run to the College World Series semifinals. He batted .324 with eight runs, 10 RBIs and five extra-base hits in nine NCAA Tournament games.
Of the 46 previous Golden Spikes winners, six have earned Rookie of the Year honors in the major leagues, three have won the Cy Young Award, three were selected league MVP and 11 have won at least one World Series championship as a player or manager. Twenty-three previous winners have also been named to at least one All-Star Game roster as a player or manager.
Golden Spikes winners are chosen in voting by national baseball media, select professional baseball personnel, USA Baseball staff and previous winners.
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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
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