Luke Heyer Named Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky senior infielder/outfielder Luke Heyer has been named a Golden Spikes Award semifinalist, it was announced Monday by the USA Baseball.
The award honors the top collegiate baseball player in the nation for their performance on the field and is presented in partnership with the Rod Dedeaux Foundation. The 41st Golden Spikes Award will be presented on June 28 in Los Angeles.
Heyer, from Lithia, Fla., has burst onto the scene this season with his prodigious power at the plate. He has twice been named SEC Player of the Week and also earned National Player of the Week honors earlier this season. Playing three positions defensively has not hindered his bat, as he finished the regular season batting .343 with an OPS of 1.123. He led the Southeastern Conference in home runs (18), RBI (57) and total bases (140), while ranking in the top five in doubles, runs scored and slugging percentage. He had 21 multi-hit games and 15 multi-RBI games.
Nationally, he ranks eighth in home runs, 14th in slugging percentage, 17th in total bases and 38th in RBI and has appeared amongst the leaders in those categories all season. He also has had clutch hits throughout the season, including a two-strike, two-run, game-tying homer in the ninth inning of a win over Auburn that helped the Cats defeat Tigers’ ace Casey Mize while taking the weekend series.
A ballot will be sent to the Golden Spikes Award voting body consisting of national baseball media, select professional baseball personnel, previous Golden Spikes Award winners and select USA Baseball staff, totaling a group of over 200 voters. From Monday, May 21 through Sunday, June 3, the voting body will select three semifinalists from the ballot to be named as Golden Spikes Award finalists and fan voting will simultaneously be open on GoldenSpikesAward.com. Selections made by the voting body will carry a 95% weight of each athlete’s total, while fan votes will account for the remaining 5%.
The finalists will then be announced on Wednesday, June 6. Beginning that same day through Friday, June 22, the voting body and fans will be able to cast their final vote for the Golden Spikes Award winner.
