Still think basketball and auto racing are all that come out of the Hoosier State?  The college baseball season opens this week, and former Indiana preps are playing from Yale to Arizona State, and at plenty of stops in between.  A quick glance at NCAA Division I rosters turns up ex-Indiana high school players at 54 schools around the country.  

Five of those teams are among the nation’s top 25, according to Baseball America – Kentucky (ranked 2nd), Vanderbilt (18^th), Louisville (19^th), Indiana (20th) and Central Florida (22^nd).    

Kentucky’s starting catcher is sophomore T.J. Collett, who was drafted by the Minnesota Twins out of Terre Haute North High School in 2016. Left-hander Zack Thompson, another second-year man, went 8-3 last year for the Wildcats with a 3.45 earned run average.  Thompson, a Wapahani High School alumnus, was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 11^th round of the 2016 draft. 

Louisville’s starting second baseman, junior Devin Mann, is a Columbus North High School graduate.  Baseball America named Mann to its preseason second-team All-America squad.  Junior right-hander Bryan Hoeing, one of the Cardinals’ top returnees, was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2015.  Hoeing is a Batesville High School product.  Joining him in Louisville this season is another Batesville alum, catcher Zach Britton, considered one of the Cardinals’ top newcomers. 

Indiana, the Big Ten’s top team, is chock full of homegrown talent.  The offense is powered by junior third baseman Luke Miller (Cowan), senior outfielder Logan Sowers (McCutcheon) and sophomore outfielder Matt Gorski (Hamilton Southeastern).  Miller was selected in the 31^st round of last year’s draft while the San Diego Padres drafted Sowers in 2014 (31^st round). 

Fourth-year coach Chris Lemonis’s pitching staff includes junior Pauly Milto (Roncalli) along with sophomores Andrew Saalfrank (Heritage) and Cal Krueger (Jasper).  Milto and Krueger are right-handers while Saalfrank is a southpaw.  Another lefty, sophomore Cameron Beauchamp (Peru), could step up big for IU.  

Vanderbilt right-hander Reid Schaller, a redshirt freshman who played for Lebanon High School, joins the Commodores after sitting out all of 2017 due to elbow surgery. 

Central Florida’s pitching staff gets a boost this season from junior right-hander J.J. Montgomery (Lawrence Central), a junior college transfer from Northwest Florida State.  The San Francisco Giants selected Montgomery in the 33^rd round of the 2016 draft. 

Not included in this list are players from NCAA Division II teams like Southern Indiana and the University of Indianapolis, Division III squads like DePauw and Earlham, and NAIA clubs like Indiana Southeast, Indiana Tech and Huntington.   

The Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles, ranked 19^th in Div. II by Collegiate Baseball, went 32-21 last year.  Holdovers include catcher Logan Brown (Mount Vernon);  outfielder Drake McNamara (Mount Vernon);  infielders Jacob Fleming (Evansville Mater Dei), Nathan Kuester (South Spencer), Sam Griggs (Evansville Memorial) and Nick Gobert Jasper);  and pitchers Austin Krizan (Mount Vernon), Tyler Hagedorn (Evansville North) and Chase Partain (Evansville Mater Dei).  

One more Division II player to watch:  Purdue-Northwest outfielder Larry Crisler (Gary Bishop Noll/Snead State), a 36^th-round pick by the Atlanta Braves in 2014.   

Collegiate Baseball rates Indiana Southeast 19^th among NAIA teams, with Indiana Tech ranked 22^nd.  

Former Indiana preps playing for Indiana Southeast are reliever Gage Rogers (Bloomington South/High Point U.) and outfielder Cody Maloon (Terre Haute North).  

Indiana Tech’s roster includes utility player Glen McClain (Fremont) and third baseman Matt Bandor (Fort Wayne Northrop), a preseason All-America pick.  

Right-hander Tarrin Beachy (Westview) is one of Huntington’s top prospects. 

Former Indiana high school players on NCAA Division I rosters: 

Arizona State:  Fr. INF Adisyn Coffey (Delta HS)              

Army:  So. OF Jacob Hurtubise (Zionsville HS) 

Ball State:  RS Fr. Tim Blankenberger (Northwestern HS), Sr. RHP Brendan Burns (Hamilton Southeastern HS), Sr. RHP/OF Colin Brockhouse (Fort Wayne Northrop HS), Fr. OF/RHP Drey Jameson (Greenfield-Central HS), Jr. RHP Nick Floyd (Jimtown HS), Jr. RHP T.J. Harmon (McCutcheon HS), RS Fr. Griffin Hulecki (Fishers HS), So. LHP Lukas Jaksich (Andrean HS/St. Joseph’s College), Sr. SS Justin Kirkpatrick (Pendleton Heights HS/Vincennes Univ.), Fr. RHP Chayce McDermott (Pendleton Heights HS), RS Jr. Zach Milam (Terre Haute North HS), Fr. 2B Noah Navarro (Avon HS), So. LHP Mike Pachmayer (Hamilton Southeastern HS), So. INF Noah Powell (Mount Vernon-Fortville HS/St. Joseph’s College), So. LHP Garett Simmons (Churubusco HS/SUNY-Buffalo). Fr. 1B/3B Rhett Wintner (Carmel HS)  

Belmont:  Sr. INF Ben Kocher (Zionsville) 

Brown:  So. RHP Dustin Baird (Perry Meridian HS) 

Butler:  Fr. INF Andy Bennett (Fishers HS), So. 3B/C Connor Christman (Noblesville HS), Sr. INF/RHP Garrett Christman (Noblesville HS), So. OF Harrison Freed (Westfield HS), Fr. LHP Joe Graziano (Lake Central HS), RS Sr. INF Michael Hartnagel (Brownsburg HS), Fr. 1B Justin Hensley (Brebeuf Jesuit HS), So. C Duncan Hewitt (Lawrence North HS), Sr. OF Tyler Houston (Brownsburg HS), Jr. RHP Quentin Miller (Pendleton Heights HS), RS Jr. LHP Connor Mitchell (Plainfield HS), Fr. RHP Jack Myers (Cathedral HS), So. RHP Ryan Pepiot (Westfield HS), So. RHP Jack Pilcher (Zionsville HS) 

Central Florida:  RS Sr. RHP Nick McCoy (Central Noble HS), RHP J.J. Montgomery (Lawrence Central HS/Northwest Florida State U.) 

Central Michigan:  Jr. C Blake Cleveland (Nappanee HS), Fr. RHP Michael Madura (Munster HS) 

Cincinnati:  Sr. OF Treg Haberkorn (Leo HS), Fr. LHP Garrett Schoenle (Fort Wayne Northrop HS) 

Coastal Carolina:  Jr. RHP Dave Inman (Terre Haute West Vigo HS) 

Dayton:  So. INF Nick Andriole (Cathedral HS), So. INF/RHP Jordan Cox (Zionsville HS), Fr. RHP Aaron Ernst (Carmel HS), Jr. C Trey Fulton (Floyd Central HS), So. OF Mitchell Garrity (Perry Meridian HS/Purdue U.), So. INF Brantley Johnson (Cathedral HS), Sr. LHP Mason Kutruff (Martinsville HS), Fr. C Bryce Masterson (Noblesville HS), RS So. OF/RHP Brandon Smith (Floyd Central HS), Fr. 3B Riley Tirotta (Mishawaka Marian HS), So. RHP R.J. Wagner (Zionsville HS), Fr. OF Trevor Waite (Penn HS), So. INF Takahiro Yamada (Columbus East HS) 

Eastern Illinois:  Sr. OF/LHP Logan Beaman (Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter HS), RS Jr. Hunter Clark (Penn HS), Fr. RHP Will Klein (Bloomington North HS), Fr. RHP Blake Malatestinic (Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter HS), RS Jr. C/1B Josh Turnock (Mishawaka Marian HS) 

Eastern Kentucky:  Fr. LHP/1B Jake Lewis (Providence HS) 

Eastern Michigan:  So. INF Drake Peggs (Knightstown Community HS) 

Evansville:  Fr. INF Evan Aders (Jasper HS), Fr. INF Tanner Craig (Austin HS), So. OF Kenton Crews (Heritage Hills HS), So. RHP David Ellis (Princeton Community HS), So. INF Craig Shepherd (Jasper HS), Sr. C Travis Tokarek (Zionsville HS), Fr. INF Cooper Trinkle (Columbus North HS), Jr. INF Sam Troyer (Rend Lake HS) 

Florida Atlantic:  RS So. LHP Jordan Poore (Muncie Central HS/Park Vista HS, Lake Worth, Fla.), So RHP Nick Prather (Zionsville HS) 

Florida Gulf Coast:  Sr. RHP Peyton Gray (Columbus East HS) 

Fort Wayne (formerly IPFW):  Fr. RHP Trevor Armstrong (Fort Wayne Snider HS), RS Sr. 3B/C Shannon Baker (Northridge HS), So. RHP Cameron Boyd (Fishers HS), So. OF Jacob Dickson (Portage HS), Fr. RHP Dalton Huffman (Connorsville HS), Fr. C Ben Keating (Fort Wayne Northrop HS), Sr. C Zak Kellogg (New Castle HS), Fr. SS Jack Lang (Hamilton Southeastern HS), Fr. C Andrew Lawyere (Eastbrook HS), RS Sr. Brock Logan (Northridge HS), RS So. UTL Garrett Mohler (New Haven HS), RS Sr. RHP Brandon Phelps (Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger HS), So. RHP Chase Phillips (Fort Wayne Snider), RS So. C Nathan Phillips (Yorktown HS), Fr. RHP Brian Skelton (Westfield HS), So. INF Mike Snider (Fort Wayne Northrop HS), Fr. INF Trenton Stoner (South Bend Clay HS), Fr. LHP Spencer Strobel (Avon HS), So. INF Travis Upp (LaPorte HS), Fr. RHP Cade Willard (Eastside HS), Jr. INF Brandon Yoho (Fishers HS), RS So. OF Robert Young III (Indianapolis North Central HS) 

Illinois-Chicago:  Sr. RHP Ryan Campbell (Carmel HS/Wabash Valley CC), Fr. INF Ben Tharp (Lafayette Central Catholic HS) 

Illinois State:  So. RHP Braden Niksich (Hobart HS) 

Indiana:  Fr. C Drew Ashley (Evansville Memorial HS), Fr. INF Cole Barr (Yorktown HS), So. LHP Cameron Beauchamp (Peru HS), Fr. OF Sam Crail (Sheridan HS), Fr. OF Elijah Dunham (Evansville Reitz HS), Fr. LHP Nick Eaton (Cathedral HS), So. INF Matt Gorski (Hamilton Southeastern HS), Jr. OF Logan Kaletha (Michigan City HS/John A. Logan College), So. RHP Cal Krueger (Jasper HS), Fr. RHP Matt Litwicki (Lake Central HS), Fr. RHP Austin Long (Bedford North Lawrence HS), Fr. RHP Connor Manous (Munster HS), Jr. INF Luke Miller (Cowan HS), Jr. RHP Pauly Milto (Roncalli HS), Jr. LHP Tim Herrin (Terre Haute South HS), So. LHP Andrew Saalfrank (Heritage HS), Fr. RHP Grant Sloan (Zionsville HS), Fr. LHP Tommy Sommer (Carmel HS), Sr. OF Logan Sowers (McCutcheon HS), Sr. INF Colby Stratten (Bloomington North HS), Fr. INF Justin Walker (Lafayette Jefferson HS)  

Indiana State:  RS So. RHP Donnie Ames (Terre Haute West HS/Olney Central CC), Fr. OF Nick Barrett (Terre Haute North HS), RS So. INF Nolan Brimbury (Peru HS) Jr. INF Clay Dungan (Yorktown HS), RS Sr. INF Dane Giesler (Jasper HS/Wabash Valley CC), Jr. RHP Evan Giles (Franklin HS), RS Fr. RHP Dalton Laney (Rockville HS), Sr. RHP Ethan Larrison (Shelbyville HS), RS So. OF Brandt Nowaskie (Vincennes Lincoln HS), Jr. C Bailey Partlow (Westfield HS/Pasco-Hernando State CC), Jr. LHP Triton Polley (Brownsburg HS), RS Fr. INF Jordan Schaffer (Terre Haute West HS), Jr. RHP Tyler Ward (Heritage Hills HS) 

Iowa:  So. OF Justin Jenkins (Terre Haute South HS) 

Kansas:  Fr. C/1B Nolan Metcalf (Penn HS), LHP Steve Washilewski (lives in Dyer, Ind.;  St. Rita HS, Chicago) 

Kentucky:  So. C T.J. Collett (Terre Haute North HS), So. LHP Zack Thompson (Wapahani HS) 

Lipscomb:  Fr. INF Cale Brenczewski (Fishers HS), Fr. LHP Max Habegger (Carmel HS), Fr. LHP John Nierman (Brebeuf Jesuit HS) 

Louisville:  Fr. C Zach Britton (Batesville HS), Graduate RHP Austin Conway (Delta HS/Indiana State U.), So. OF Drew Campbell (Jeffersonville HS), So. RHP Austin Dickey (New Albany HS), Jr. RHP Bryan Hoeing (Batesville HS), Jr. INF Devin Mann (Columbus North HS), So. RHP Michael McAvene (Roncalli HS) 

Manhattan:  Fr. LHP Shawn Roop (Carmel HS) 

Miami (Ohio):  RS Sr. C Spencer Dull (Hamilton Southeastern HS), Fr. OF Parker Massman (Carmel HS), Jr. LHP Zack Spears (Mt. Vernon-Fortville HS) 

Morehead State:  RS Fr. LHP Cory Conway (Noblesville HS), Jr. 1B Trevor Snyder (Fort Wayne Carroll HS) 

Nebraska:  Fr. OF/RHP Keegan Watson (New Palestine HS), Jr. C Jesse Wilkening (Hanover Central HS) 

North Carolina-Charlotte:  Sr. RHP Jonah Patten (Norwell HS/U. of Arkansas) 

Northern Illinois:  Jr. RHP William Anderson (Columbus East HS), So. LHP Eric Hammer (Tippecanoe Valley HS), Sr. C/OF Joe Jumonville (Munster HS), Fr. RHP Ty Lautenschlager (Terre Haute West HS), Fr. RHP Jack Phillips (Cathedral HS), So. RHP Nate Thomas (Mishawaka Marian HS), So. RHP Blake Walker (Bishop Chatard HS)  

Northwest Florida State:  Fr. RHP Eric Braughton (Indian Creek HS) 

Notre Dame:  Fr. INF/OF Niko Kavadas (Penn HS), Jr. INF Nick Podkul (Andrean HS) 

Ohio:  Sr. OF/INF Tony Giannini (Carmel HS), Jr. RHP Kenny Ogg (Indianapolis Lawrence Central HS) 

Ohio State:  Jr. INF Brady Cherry (Lapel HS), Fr. LHP Luke Duermit (Fishers HS), RS Sr. RHP Curtiss Irving (Greenfield-Central HS) 

Penn State:  Fr. INF/OF Mac Hippenhammer (Fort Wayne Snider HS) 

Purdue:  Sr. RHP Tanner Andrews (Tippecanoe Valley HS), So. OF Milo Beam (Westfield HS), RS Fr. Andrew Bohm (Hamilton Southeastern HS), Jr. OF Braden Giroux (McCutcheon HS), Fr. RHP Bo Hofstra (Illiana Christian HS), Fr. RHP Trent Johnson (Crawfordsville HS), Sr. 1B Evan Kennedy (Lafayette Central Catholic HS), Jr. INF Jacson McGowan (Brownsburg HS), RS Fr. LHP Matt Moore (Avon HS), Fr. OF Ben Nisle (Lake Central HS), Sr. OF Alec Olund (Lake Central HS), Fr. INF Tyler Powers (Lafayette Central Catholic HS), Sr. INF Harry Shipley (Indianapolis Cathedral HS), RS Jr. Evan Warden (Western HS), Fr. LHP Hayden Wynja (Indianapolis Heritage Christian HS) 

Saint Louis:  Fr. LHP Grant Fremion (Guerin HS)

South Carolina:  Jr. RHP Brandon Murray (Hobart HS) 

Tulane:  RS Fr. INF Kody Hoese (Griffith HS) 

Valparaiso:  Jr. INF Chase Dawson (Andrean HS), So. LHP Jarrett Hammel (South Newton HS/St. Joseoph’s College), Jr. C Scott Kapers (Mount Carmel HS), Sr. RHP Hayden Kissee (Greenfield-Central HS/Kaskaskia College), So. RHP James Meyer (Zionsville HS) 

Vanderbilt:  RS Fr. RHP Reid Schaller (Lebanon HS) 

Virginia Tech:  Fr. RHP Ryan Metz (Fishers HS) 

Wake Forest:  Fr. INF Bobby Seymour (St. John, Ind;  Mount Carmel HS, Chicago Ill.) 

Western Carolina:  Fr. INF Brett Lemmons (Morgan Township HS) 

Western Illinois:  Sr. OF Dave Dobrinich (Munster, Ind.;  Mount Carmel HS, Chicago, Ill., HS), Jr. UTL Bailey Montgomery (Vincennes HS/Wabash Valley CC), RS Fr. Carter Poiry (Hamilton Southeastern HS), So. INF/LHP Ben Sellers (Evansville Mater Dei HS) 

Western Kentucky:  Fr. LHP Chas Adams (Floyd Central HS), Graduate LHP Ryan Thurston (Madison HS) 

Western Michigan:  Jr. LHP Matt McConnell (Lafayette Harrison HS), Fr. OF Ryan Missal (Lowell HS) 

Wichita State:  Sr. RHP Chandler Sanburn (Avon HS) 

Wright State:  Sr. IF Matt Morrow (Richmond HS), RS So. RHP Caleb Sampen (Brownsburg HS) 

Xavier:  Sr. RHP Christian Glass (Columbus North HS), Jr. RHP Matt Kent (Fort Wayne Canterbury HS), Sr. OF Will LaRue (Evansville Mater Dei HS), Fr. OF Allbry Major (Indianapolis North Central HS) 

Yale:  Sr. C/INF Alex Boos (Indianapolis Cathedral HS) 

Pete Cava is the author of “Tales From the Cubs Dugout” and “Indiana-Born Major League Baseball Players:  A Biographical Dictionary, 1871-2014.”