Georgia Tech always fields a talented baseball team, getting some of the most intriguing athletes in the country to play for them year after year. While some believe that with this talent Tech has underachieved the past several years, they still have one of the most consistent, successful programs in all of Division I college baseball.

This year is no different, and they have several different interesting storylines to follow this spring.

Jason Neighborgall

Neighborgall was a highly touted right-handed pitcher coming out of Riverside High School in Hillsborough, North Carolina. He regularly pitches in the mid-90s with his fastball, reaching triple digits on occasion, and he also has an outstanding, hard-breaking curveball. Neighborgall has also developed a pretty nifty changeup.

His stuff has never been in question. Since stepping onto Georgia Tech's campus, Neighborgall's control has been. During his freshman season he walked 36 batters in just over 41 innings of work. Neighborgall also threw nine wild pitches and hit seven batters in that time. He did finish second on the team in ERA (3.70) and allowed only 30 hits.

During the summer following his freshman season, Neighborgall played summer ball in the Cape Cod League. He finished the summer by being named the #10 prospect on the Cape according to Baseball America, but that was a tribute to his stuff more than his actual production. Neighborgall allowed only 15 hits and struck out 37 batters in just over 28 innings of work, but he walked 29 batters in that time.

Neighborgall's control continued to deteriorate heading into his sophomore season, and it severely limited his playing time. Appearing in just nine games over 6.2 innings, he walked 24 batters, threw 13 wild pitches and hit three batters. Neighborgall did allow only six hits and struck out 11 batters during that time, proving once again that he was virtually unhittable, but with his control opposing batters could just prop the bat on their shoulders and get on base for free.

His control continued to plague him the summer after his sophomore season, when his playing time continued to dwindle due to his inability to find the strike zone. Neighborgall decided to leave the Cape Cod League to play for the Fayetteville SwampDogs in the Coastal Plain League. By the end of the summer, his stuff once again caused him to be rated the number two prospect in the league by Baseball America, despite walking 34 batters, hitting seven others and throwing 14 wild pitches in 19 innings of work.

Clearly Neighborgall's confidence had to be taking a hit, and who knows how this downward spiral affected his psyche. Not only is the mental aspect an issue, but several scouts and coaches have questioned his mechanics as well, with those questions leading back to his prep days. However, Neighborgall entered the 2004/05 season a changed man, determined to harness his control and prove to be a reliable, consistent and productive member of a successful baseball team. His control already appeared to be significantly improved during fall practices, and so far this spring Neighborgall has appeared in three games, all starts, posting a 2-0 record with a 3.18 ERA. Over 17 innings of work he has allowed only 14 hits and six walks while striking out 18. Neighborgall has thrown three wild pitches and has hit three batters, but the improvement is evident. The hit totals are up a little from his past ratios and his strikeout totals are down a little, so it seems that he may be sacrificing some of his stuff for improved control.

Neighborgall is associated with super-agent Scott Boras, so signability may be somewhat of an issue approaching the June draft. Coming out of high school, he reportedly was asking for a three million dollar signing bonus, basically making it clear that he would be heading to college. Neighborgall turned down a generous offer from the Boston Red Sox, who drafted him in the seventh round of the 2002 draft. With his size (6'5", 215 pounds), stuff and overall athletic talent, he definitely has the total package to go within the top five to 10 overall selections. Neighborgall will need to continue to prove that he has indeed solved his control problems if he hopes to get a lucrative bonus this coming summer.

Jeremy Slayden

All Slayden has done throughout his career is hit. He started his career at Georgia Tech by hitting .348 as a freshman, while setting the all-time freshman home run mark at Tech with 18 bombs. Slayden's 37 bombs at Oakland High School in Murfreesboro, Tennessee are second all-time in the state to Todd Helton's 38 home runs as a prep athlete. He hit .275 in the Cape Cod League the summer after his freshman year, .294 as a sophomore, .231 on the Cape during the summer of 2003, and was hitting .281 before suffering a season ending shoulder injury last year. The shoulder injury hurt Slayden's chances for becoming one of the best draft-eligible hitters last June, and he enters the 2005 season hoping to re-establish himself.

Not only is Slayden a polished hitter, but he is also a good defender in the outfield. It remains to be seen if his surgically repaired throwing shoulder will lose any of its strength, as he profiled as a prototypical right fielder before the injury given his bat and his throwing arm. If he has lost strength in his throwing arm, Slayden likely will be considered a left-fielder at the professional level, as his bat will allow him to play anywhere on the field.

With his left-handed bat and skills in the outfield, Slayden is a similar player to Boston's Trot Nixon. Similar to Nixon, Slayden must put several, nagging injuries behind him and prove that he can be a steady, consistent run producer.

Tyler Greene

Tyler Greene, like Neighborgall, is advised by Scott Boras, and was also highly thought of coming out of St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Plantation, Florida. The Atlanta Braves drafted Greene in the second round of the 2002 draft, but Greene reportedly turned down a seven-figure bonus to attend Georgia Tech.

Greene, like Slayden and Neighborgall, had a very nice start to his career, hitting .316 with 18 extra base hits and 19 stolen bases in 23 attempts during his freshman season. However, his defense was shaky at best, as he committed 31 errors in 61 games. Greene's productivity at the plate continued over the summer after his freshman season, as he hit .431 for Team USA.

Greene's defense improved during his sophomore season, committing only 11 errors over the course of the season, but his productivity at the plate dipped. He hit .273 during the 2004 season, but he did improve his power numbers by adding 26 extra-base hits. Greene also continued to flash his speed by swiping 16 bases in 21 attempts. He bounced back nicely on the Cape the summer after his sophomore season by batting .296 with 11 extra-base hits using a wood bat, which led to him being named the league's number two prospect according to Baseball America. However, once again as his bat improved his defense slipped, committing 16 errors in 32 games.

Overall Greene has the complete package, and profiles as a five-tool athlete at the shortstop position. He can hit, hit for power, he runs well, he plays good defense when he's focused and he has a strong arm. At Georgia Tech he wears the same number five that Nomar Garciaparra wore as a Yellow Jacket, and Greene could profile as a similar type of player. He broke his jaw over the holiday break just before the beginning of the New Year, but he only missed the first three games of the season. So far this year through six games, Greene is batting .393 with six extra-base hits. He has committed two errors on the season, but if he continues to hit he stands to be drafted in the first round this June.

Wes Hodges

Hodges, from Baylor High School in Ooltewah, Tennessee, was also well known coming out of high school. A good overall athlete, Hodges bat really developed for him during his senior year. Unfortunately he suffered an injury that caused him to fall to the 13^th round of the 2003 draft, and he decided to honor his commitment to Georgia Tech.

While Hodges isn't draft eligible until the 2006 season, he certainly is making a strong, early impression. He started his career at Georgia Tech by hitting .304 in 46 games.

Hodges is off to a fast start this season, and is coming off a weekend series against Rutgers that included a two-home run game and a five hit performance. Overall through nine games Hodges is hitting .474 with six home runs. Given his bat and polish on the field at third base, Hodges stands to be an early pick for the 2006 draft.

Matt Wieters

Wieters is yet another talented overall athlete that was a highly ranked prospect coming out of high school. He starred on the mound, at the plate and behind the plate for Stratford High School in Goose Creek, South Carolina. At 6'4", 205 pounds, Wieters offers an intimidating presence. He has power from both sides of the plate as a switch-hitter, and he can dial his fastball up into the low to mid-90s off the mound.

So far during his freshman season at Georgia Tech, Wieters is splitting time behind the plate and is closing games for the Yellow Jackets. Over eight games he is hitting only .214, but he has walked 11 times in that time, striking out only twice. He has also mastered the strike zone as a pitcher so far in his young career, striking out eight batters and walking none in 8.1 innings of work, and he has yet to give up an earned run.

Wieters really put his name on the scouting map at the WWBA World Wood Bat Championship in Jupiter, Florida in 2003. He excelled both at the plate and on the mound, and his size made him look like a man among boys. Wieters had the talent to be drafted in the first round in the 2004 draft, but his strong college commitment to Georgia Tech caused him to go undrafted. He stands as one of the top players available for the 2007 draft, and while his athleticism and power potential makes him an exciting power hitting catching prospect, his prowess on the mound will make him one of the best two-way players in college over the next three seasons.

2006 Class

Georgia Tech has already secured two of the most intriguing young high school players in the nation in outfielder Austin Jackson and left-handed pitcher David Duncan. Not only is Jackson one of the most athletic overall prospects available for the 2005 draft, he also is a very talented point guard in basketball, and could excel as a two-sport star for the Yellow Jackets. The two-sport commitment along with his intent to attend Georgia Tech likely will make Jackson a tough sign unless selected very early.

Duncan at 6'9" is an extremely exciting young left-handed pitcher for his size alone. With endless potential and projectability, Duncan is currently ranked the number one prospect in the state of Ohio according to Perfect Game USA, starring at New Richmond High School.

Luke Murton adds one more intriguing name to the list, being the younger brother of former Yellow Jacket and current Chicago Cubs farmhand Matt Murton. Luke is a big, strong power-hitting first baseman.