BOCA RATON, Fla. – Florida Atlantic first baseman Nolan Schanuel has been named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List, USA Baseball announced on Wednedsay. The award honors the top amateur baseball player in the nation and is given each year to the player who best exhibits exceptional on-field ability and exemplary sportsmanship.
Named as the C-USA Preseason Player of the Year as well as a Preseason All-American by numerous outlets, Schanuel has lived up to the hype and then some through the first month and a half of the season. He leads Conference USA in six offensive categories including average (.455), slugging (.899) and runs scored (38). Schanuel is second in all of Division I in on-base percentage (.604).
The Park Vista HS product carries a 25-game reached base streak into this week’s series with FIU. He’s currently 11th in program history in home runs (38) and 12th in RBI (147).
The Golden Spikes award is one of the most prestigious honors in amateur baseball. Previous winners include current major leaguers Stephen Strasburg (2009), Bryce Harper (2010), and Kris Bryant (2013).
The 45-player Midseason Watch List will be narrowed down on May 22 and finalists will then be announced on June 7. For more information about the award visit https://www.usabaseball.com/golden-spikes-award/about.
