Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics
Baseball America: Brooks Lee Ranked No. 3 in 2022 Draft
10/6/2020 4:03:00 PM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- Cal Poly redshirt freshman shortstop Brooks Lee is currently the top-ranked hitter in the 2022 class, according to Baseball America.
Baseball America's 2022 college rankings were compiled in consultation with Major League scouts. The list is an attempt to gauge the industry's consensus on the talent of the draft-eligible four-year college players in the country, noting that plenty will change between now and the 2022 draft.
Ranked No. 3 overall, Lee was the No. 38 player in the 2019 class coming out of high school and "has shown a potential plus-hit tool from both sides of the plate," notes Baseball America. "Lee has played just two collegiate games with Cal Poly, but had a strong showing in the Northwoods League this summer, hitting .345/.393/.473 with four home runs and seven doubles in 36 games."
Lee was used twice as a pinch-hitter during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Both plate appearances were in the Baylor series at Baggett Stadium in the final weekend prior to the suspension of the season.
Lee struck out on March 6 but laced a two-run double to the gap in right-center field in the seventh inning on March 8.
Lee missed the first 13 games of the 2020 season due to a hamstring injury suffered during preseason practice in October.
With the Willmar Stingers last summer, Lee collected eight hits in his last three games with a double in each of his last three contests. His 51 hits for the season were the second-highest total in the league and his .345 average was No. 7.
He was fourth with 35 RBIs and produced hits in 33 of his 36 contests, including multiple-hit games in eight of his last 11 starts.
The San Luis Obispo High School graduate opened his Stingers season with a 19-game hitting streak and had another streak of nine games snapped August 15. He put together a string of four two-hit games from August 9-11 and finished the year with 14 multiple-hit contests.
Baseball America admits that "there is much more uncertainty for our 2022 rankings than our current year draft rankings and that's particularly true for the college group. 2022-eligible players suffered from the shortened 2020 season as much as the 2021-eligible players did and because of that there's less of a consensus on the top players given the short amount of time to show their stuff.
Two left-handed pitchers led the way in the 2022 class, with Virginia southpaw Nate Savino jumping over Florida LHP Hunter Barco for the top spot in the country.
Vanderbilt leads all programs with eight players ranked among the top 100. Florida and Georgia Tech checked in with six players each ranked in the top 100.
In other Cal Poly baseball news:
• Justin Bridgman, who served as graduate manager at Arizona last spring following a four-year playing career at Nevada and two seasons in the Minor Leagues, was hired as a volunteer assistant coach at Cal Poly in July.
A graduate of Damonte Ranch High School in Reno, Nevada, Bridgman became a starter as a true freshman at Nevada and appeared in 203 games for the Wolf Pack, hitting .311 with 33 doubles and 75 RBIs with 33 steals. He was primarily a second baseman early in his career with the Wolf Pack before becoming a shortstop as a junior and senior.
Earning second-team All-Mountain West Conference honors as a senior with a .313 average and named to the All-Mountain West Tournament Team as a junior after hitting .351, Bridgman was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 28th round in 2017 and played for four teams in the minors -- Princeton, Hudson Valley, Charlotte and Bowling Green -- hitting .281 with 11 doubles and 34 RBIs in 100 games.
After his playing career ended, Bridgman served as a broadcaster for Reno Aces games in 2019 before he was hired to serve as Arizona's graduate manager for the 2020 season, which was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bridgman hit .445 as a senior at Damonte Ranch High and stole a school-record 42 bases. He earned first-team Reno Gazette Journal All-North, first-team All-Conference Division I Northern-Sierra and second-team All-American honors at second base.
Bridgman is a 2017 graduate of Nevada with a degree in economics.
• Former Cal Poly baseball player Mark Burdick died in late July 2020 in San Diego. He was 58 years old.
Burdick was a third baseman with the Mustangs from 1982-85. He played in 43 games as a senior in 1985, hitting .289 with four doubles, one home run and 25 RBIs.
A Loara High School graduate, Burdick played one season (1981) at Fullerton College before transferring to Cal Poly.
Burdick had a son, CJ Burdick, who pitched for the University of San Diego from 2014-17.
Baseball America's 2022 college rankings were compiled in consultation with Major League scouts. The list is an attempt to gauge the industry's consensus on the talent of the draft-eligible four-year college players in the country, noting that plenty will change between now and the 2022 draft.
Ranked No. 3 overall, Lee was the No. 38 player in the 2019 class coming out of high school and "has shown a potential plus-hit tool from both sides of the plate," notes Baseball America. "Lee has played just two collegiate games with Cal Poly, but had a strong showing in the Northwoods League this summer, hitting .345/.393/.473 with four home runs and seven doubles in 36 games."
Lee was used twice as a pinch-hitter during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Both plate appearances were in the Baylor series at Baggett Stadium in the final weekend prior to the suspension of the season.
Lee struck out on March 6 but laced a two-run double to the gap in right-center field in the seventh inning on March 8.
Lee missed the first 13 games of the 2020 season due to a hamstring injury suffered during preseason practice in October.
With the Willmar Stingers last summer, Lee collected eight hits in his last three games with a double in each of his last three contests. His 51 hits for the season were the second-highest total in the league and his .345 average was No. 7.
He was fourth with 35 RBIs and produced hits in 33 of his 36 contests, including multiple-hit games in eight of his last 11 starts.
The San Luis Obispo High School graduate opened his Stingers season with a 19-game hitting streak and had another streak of nine games snapped August 15. He put together a string of four two-hit games from August 9-11 and finished the year with 14 multiple-hit contests.
Baseball America admits that "there is much more uncertainty for our 2022 rankings than our current year draft rankings and that's particularly true for the college group. 2022-eligible players suffered from the shortened 2020 season as much as the 2021-eligible players did and because of that there's less of a consensus on the top players given the short amount of time to show their stuff.
Two left-handed pitchers led the way in the 2022 class, with Virginia southpaw Nate Savino jumping over Florida LHP Hunter Barco for the top spot in the country.
Vanderbilt leads all programs with eight players ranked among the top 100. Florida and Georgia Tech checked in with six players each ranked in the top 100.
In other Cal Poly baseball news:
• Justin Bridgman, who served as graduate manager at Arizona last spring following a four-year playing career at Nevada and two seasons in the Minor Leagues, was hired as a volunteer assistant coach at Cal Poly in July.
A graduate of Damonte Ranch High School in Reno, Nevada, Bridgman became a starter as a true freshman at Nevada and appeared in 203 games for the Wolf Pack, hitting .311 with 33 doubles and 75 RBIs with 33 steals. He was primarily a second baseman early in his career with the Wolf Pack before becoming a shortstop as a junior and senior. Earning second-team All-Mountain West Conference honors as a senior with a .313 average and named to the All-Mountain West Tournament Team as a junior after hitting .351, Bridgman was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 28th round in 2017 and played for four teams in the minors -- Princeton, Hudson Valley, Charlotte and Bowling Green -- hitting .281 with 11 doubles and 34 RBIs in 100 games.
After his playing career ended, Bridgman served as a broadcaster for Reno Aces games in 2019 before he was hired to serve as Arizona's graduate manager for the 2020 season, which was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bridgman hit .445 as a senior at Damonte Ranch High and stole a school-record 42 bases. He earned first-team Reno Gazette Journal All-North, first-team All-Conference Division I Northern-Sierra and second-team All-American honors at second base.
Bridgman is a 2017 graduate of Nevada with a degree in economics.
• Former Cal Poly baseball player Mark Burdick died in late July 2020 in San Diego. He was 58 years old.
Burdick was a third baseman with the Mustangs from 1982-85. He played in 43 games as a senior in 1985, hitting .289 with four doubles, one home run and 25 RBIs.
A Loara High School graduate, Burdick played one season (1981) at Fullerton College before transferring to Cal Poly.
Burdick had a son, CJ Burdick, who pitched for the University of San Diego from 2014-17.
Players Mentioned
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