On Wednesday afternoon, Perfect Game listed Indiana baseball sophomore Devin Taylor among the top-10 prospects for the 2025 MLB Draft. Less than 24 hours later, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year was chosen for Perfect Game’s preseason All-American second team. Only two Big Ten players made the three total squads.
Indiana’s last Perfect Game preseason All-American was Grant Richardson in 2021. Three seasons later, another Hoosier outfielder is on the outlet’s lists. In Taylor’s rookie season, he set the program’s freshman RBI record with 59, hit 16 home runs, and batted .315 to become only the program’s third-ever freshman to be named to the All-Big Ten First Team.
Taylor’s 16 home runs were second-best among Indiana freshmen all time. Had he started more games in the opening weeks of last season and gotten more at bats, he may have eclipsed teammate Carter Mathison’s record of 19 homers set in 2022. Once Taylor began to frequent the everyday lineup — totaling 55 starts — he typically batted third.
Taylor is among five core returning position players for the upcoming season, which starts Feb. 16 at Myrtle Beach. The Hoosiers will play Duke, Coastal Carolina, and George Mason that weekend.
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