NC State's freshman class has lived up to its billing.
"The program here has always been strong, but after the class we got, it should help us not only this year in our play but in the future with other recruiting classes," Ratledge said. "We’ve got some big names like Carlos and Trea who are getting a lot of exposure. That should make other recruits think, ‘This is the place for me also.’"
There are others who have contributed this season, but these six guys are the first-year players who've had the biggest impact on the season:
Turner: .343/.450/.453 (33 BB, 45-47 SB)
Fincher: .305/.369/.418
Austin: .263/.335/.331
Ratledge: .277/.354/.376
Rodon: 8-0, 1.42 ERA, 82.3 IP, 97-21 K-BB
Jernigan: 4-1, 5.66 ERA, 41.3 IP, 46-30 K-BB
Turner's incredible speed has been well-documented, but he's also got decent pop and he leads the team in walks; that's an impressive collection of skills for a true freshman. Austin has actually been the worst of the four freshman position players who get regular playing time--especially in conference play--but I like his long-term prospects a lot.
On the pitching side, Logan Jernigan has been good at striking batters out, but he hasn't had much control over where the ball is going. If he can figure that out in the future, he and Rodon can be a scary 1-2 punch.
The next couple of years will be interesting because while this team is good and has a strong foundation, there are obvious deficiencies. Can Elliott Avent and his staff find some power hitters and build a deeper pitching staff while their College World Series window remains propped open by Carlos Rodon and Trea Turner?