THE FLATS – Georgia Tech baseball student-athletes continue to earn postseason recognition, having four Yellow Jackets named to the 2022 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Southeast All-Region teams.
Kevin Parada, Andrew Jenkins and Chandler Simpson were named to the region’s first team, while Tim Borden II was named to the second team. It marks just the fifth time in program history that Tech has had four or more Yellow Jackets named All-Region and is the first since 2019. It’s the fourth time Tech has had three first-teamers.
A 2022 first-team All-American already, Parada had an excellent sophomore campaign in which he was named first-team all-ACC, a finalist for the Buster Posey Award, Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy, was named District 4 Co-Player of the Year and earned National Player of the Week honors three times.
The Pasadena, Calif. native ranked among the nation’s best all year, finishing the regular season ranking sixth with a school-record 26 home runs, second in total bases (174), third in RBI (85), fifth in runs (74) and 35th in hits (85). In the Atlantic Coast Conference, Parada led in runs and RBI, ranked third in home runs, fourth in hits and was the fourth-toughest hitter to strikeout in the league.
Also a 2022 All-American already, Jenkins closed the season continuing to showcase himself as one of the greatest threats out of the ACC at the plate en route to first-team All-ACC honors. Jenkins led the ACC in hits (96), was second in batting average (.381), third in doubles (22), fifth in total bases (171), and eighth in RBI (70). Where he was extremely impressive was in conference action. Just against league opponents this season, Jenkins hit .404 (third) and slugged .765 (second), while leading the ACC in hits (55) and runs (40) and ranking seventh in home runs (12).
As successful in the classroom as he was on the field, the Atlanta native was also named CoSIDA Academic All-America this year, earning a 3.79 grade-point average in the business administration program at Georgia Tech.
The nation’s batting average leader, Simpson hit a blistering .433, becoming the first Yellow Jacket to hit .400 since Mark Teixeira in 2000 and just a thousandth of a percentage point shy of tying Jay Payton’s school record of .434 (min. 200 at-bats) in 1994. Simpson also led the country in hits per game at 1.87 per contest. Renowned for his speed and his eye at the plate, the Atlanta native stole a team-best 27 bases on the year (good for third in the ACC), was the toughest hitter to strikeout in the ACC at 12.7 at-bats per strikeout and led the league with a gaudy .506 on-base percentage (ninth nationally). He also scored 1.36 runs per game, which was good for third in the country.
Named to the second team as a designated hitter, Borden was a versatile Yellow Jacket in the order, playing second base and shortstop throughout the year in addition to DH duties. The Sellersburg, Ind. hit a red-hot .335 on the season, racking up 69 hits, 13 doubles, 20 home runs (second on the team) and 63 RBI. Not afraid to stay in the batter’s box, Borden set the school record this year with 25 hit by pitches, passing Derek Dietrich and Tristin English on the leaderboard, and ranking sixth nationally.
ABCA/Rawlings All-Region First Team selections are nominated for ABCA/Rawlings All-America honors. The ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Div. I All-America Teams will be announced the morning of Friday, June 17 prior to the start of the 2022 NCAA Div. I College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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