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Juco  | Rankings | 6/5/2017

Final 2017 Junior College Top 25

Photo: Chipola Athletics
 



May 23 Top 25Top 150 Junior College Prospects | Preseason Top 50 Teams

Every single year, across every single sport at any level of collegiate athletics, there are preseason rankings. Whether it's Division I NCAA football or Division III Junior College tennis; these preseason rankings are done, and someone, somewhere, will ask "Wonder if (insert No. 1 ranked school) can go wire to wire at No. 1 this year?"

Chipola did.

Ranked No. 1 by Perfect Game heading into the season, Chipola never relinquished that No. 1 spot, running the gauntlet as the No. 1 team all season long, and finishing with a National Championship a few days ago in Grand Junction, Colo. The Indians didn't take the easy path through the NJCAA DI World Series, to be sure. They had to go through the losers bracket after a second round loss to San Jac, but battled back to the championship game. Once there, they had to beat previously undefeated San Jac twice, and did so with what can only be described as a Herculean effort by ace Evan Steele in game 1, then an offensive explosion in game 2. 

Perhaps one of the more loaded rosters in recent junior college baseball memory, Chipola may have as many as 7-8 players drafted off of this one team, including PG/Rawlings JC Player of the Year Reynaldo Rivera (detailed below). Ace lefty Evan Steele and third baseman Andrew Bechtold are likely to hear their names called relatively early on Day 2 of the draft; not to mention the host of other players who will continue their college careers at the NCAA level now. 

Even more impressive than the prospect-laden roster was the team statistics, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Chipola hit .360/.467/.581 as a team, good for a team OPS of 1.048. For reference, Chipola's team OPS would rank 6th in Major League Baseball right now amongst individual OPS leaders; a truly ridiculous statistic. 

Congratulations are also due to Kankakee (Ill.) and Grossmont (Calif.); who won the NJCAA DII World Series and the CCCBA State Championship; respectively. 

Furthermore, Tyler (Texas) won the NJCAA DIII World Series, which would be impressive enough, if not for the fact that this is Tyler's 4th consecutive National Championship. The word "dynasty" is one of the more revered words in sports, and not lightly thrown around. Tyler is a dynasty of Junior College baseball, to be sure. A huge congratulations goes out to that program, as well. 

A special thank you goes out to everyone who has read these rankings weekly. I've had a fantastic time delving deep into the world of junior college baseball this season, really the first time I'd ever done so. Already looking forward to next year!

2017 Perfect Game/Rawlings Junior College Player of the Year: Reynaldo Rivera, 1b/of, Chipola (Fla.)
Committed to Mississippi State, Rivera was simply tremendous all season long for the National Champions. Rivera had truly mind-boggling, video game type numbers this season. Across nearly 250 plate appearances, Rivera slashed .438/.534/.865, good for a ridiculous OPS of 1.399, to go along with 20 doubles, 20 home runs, and 73 RBI. Rivera is signed with Mississippi State and would immediately provide a significant power presence in Starkville, but the upcoming MLB Draft may have something to say about that first. 

2017 Perfect Game/Rawlings Junior College Pitcher of the Year: Nate Pearson, rhp, College of Central Florida (Fla.)
The No. 1 junior college prospect in the country, Nate Pearson was ranked as such by Perfect Game last fall and has maintained that stock all through the season as we move towards the MLB Draft next week. Pearson was simply outstanding for CCF all season long, and as such is our JC Pitcher of the Year. Pearson threw 81 innings for CCF this spring, allowing a scant 14 earned runs total, good for an ERA of 1.56. He struck out 118 opposing hitters as well, which equates to over 13 strikeouts per nine innings, all of this done in what is one of--if not the--toughest region in all of JuCo baseball, Florida's Region 8. 


Rk. Prev. Team ST Record Conf.
1 1 Chipola FL 51-9 20-4
2 4 San Jacinto TX 48-18 28-7
3 13 Wabash Valley IL 50-15 22-5
4 14 Cowley County TX 45-18 27-9
5 12 Grossmont CA 38-8-1 22-2
6 NR Kankakee IL 54-11 N/A
7 2
Santa Rosa CA 36-11 19-5
8 3 McLennan TX 52-13 26-6
9 5 Crowder MO 54-14 N/A
10 18 Mercer County NJ 48-14 7-3
11 9 Wallace-Dothan AL 43-21 22-10
12 6 Dyersburg State TN 48-9 22-4
13 11 Parkland IL 52-9-1 30-2
14 NR Tyler TX 41-20 5-3
15 16 El Camino CA 40-11 17-5
16 8 Florence-Darlington SC 42-19 13-6
17 7 Ohlone CA 42-7 17-1
18 20 Phoenix AZ 43-22 25-15
19 15 Southern Nevada NV 45-18 28-8
20 10 Murray State OK 49-14 16-6
21 17 Pitt NC 42-9 22-2
22 22 Iowa Western IA 44-16 21-3
23 23 San Joaquin Delta CA 36-11 16-8
24 24 Santa Fe FL 38-13 19-5
25 25 Grayson TX 37-14 24-8

Dropped out: Chattahoochee Valley (19), Hinds (21) 

Juco | Story | 4/1/2026

JUCO Top 25: April 1

Troy Sutherland
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Another week of JUCO baseball and another week full of wins for No. 1 ranked Johnson County . The Cavaliers have won 18 games in a row and have swept through the Jayhawk Conference to this point, setting a new school home run record along the way. Walters State returns to the top 5 this week on the strength of a 12-game winning streak. Both McLennan and Pearl River are coming off of undefeated weeks and look like strong top 10 caliber teams, while Midland (now 30-3) continues to climb in the rankings for the third consecutive week. For the first time all year this ranking will feature 4 California schools as Palomar joins Ohlone, Fresno City and Santa Ana in the JUCO rankings. Check back in next week for an update as most of JUCO baseball is now past its halfway point in the 2026 season. RK School Week Overall 1 Johnson County (KS) 4-0 34-2 2 Gaston (NC) 2-1 35-3 3 Walters State (TN) 3-0...
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Craig Cozart
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Steve Fiorindo
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Cam McElwaney
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  667 Progress Way | Sanford, FL 32771 | 319-298-2923 www.perfectgame.org | facebook.com/perfectgameusa | @PerfectGameUSA     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   PERFECT GAME DICK’S ALL-AMERICAN CLASSIC HEADED TO CITIZENS BANK PARK IN 2026   Perfect Game makes debut at iconic Phillies venue during America’s 250th birthday celebration   Former Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel named Honorary Chairman of All-American Classic   Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Thursday, April 2, 2026) - Perfect Game, the world’s largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service, today announced that the 2026 Perfect Game DICK’S All-American Classic will be played at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, marking the first time a Perfect Game event has ever been held at the iconic home of the Philadelphia Phillies.   The game will take place on...
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Tyler Russo
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Another pair of weeks has gone by this high school season and with that we have another High School Top-50 Update. Southern states are within a few weeks of the end of the season while some northern states are just getting started this week. Through the end of the spring, we will be bringing you updates to the Top-50 along with state rankings updates coming soon. For the first time in 2026, we have a new #1 in the country as Orange Lutheran (CA) takes over the top spot after winning the NHSI. Venice (FL) came in second place at the NHSI after a thrilling game against Orange Lutheran and comes in at #2. Previous #1 team in the country St. John Bosco (CA) rounds out the top-3 and will have a big showdown against Orange Lutheran starting tonight. Barbe (LA) boasts a 26-1 record and comes in at #4 while Corona (CA) continues to string together wins and holds down the #5 spot in this update....
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