Golden Spikes Award

College Football has the Heisman Trophy.

College Baseball has the Golden Spikes Award.

Both trophies recognize the best amateur player in the country every year.

Here’s what you need to know about the most prestigious award in college baseball.

What is the Golden Spikes Award?

Every year since 1978, USA Baseball has given the best amateur baseball player in the country the Golden Spikes Award.

Who Won The First Golden Spikes Award?

Arizona State star Bob Horner won the first Golden Spikes Award in 1978. The Atlanta Braves then selected Horner No. 1 overall in the MLB Draft. Horner was promoted him straight to the Major Leagues without playing any games in the minor leagues.

Who Is eligible to Win The Golden Spikes Award?

Every amateur baseball player is eligible — high school or college, though no high school player has won the award yet. Almost always, a Division I player wins the award, but Bryce Harper won it in 2010. Harper was just 17 years old and playing for Southern Nevada, a junior college near his hometown in Las Vegas. Harper is the youngest player to win the Golden Spikes Award.

Can A Pitcher Win The Golden Spikes Award?

Yes. The trophy recognizes the best amateur player in the country, regardless of position. The most recent pitcher to win the Golden Spikes Award was Arkansas’ Kevin Kopps in 2021. LSU ace Paul Skenes had a strong case to win in 2023 and was named a finalist. Teammate Dylan Crews won the award.

Notable pitchers who won the GSA include eventual Cy Young Award winners Trevor Bauer, David Price and Tim Lincecum, and All-Star Stephen Strasburg.

Who Votes for The Golden Spikes Award?

There are multiple steps in the process. Each preseason, USA Baseball builds a list of 150 or so players to watch. Other players may be added. In February, USA Baseball and the Golden Spikes Award board reveal a list of 55 Golden Spikes candidates. They trim that to 45 in mid-May and then select a group of semifinalists.

Once the semifinalists are set, that list is sent to an established group of voters composed of former Spikes Award winners, select national media, professional baseball personnel and USA Baseball staff. There are more than 100 voters. They then select a group that will become the finalists. Once the finalists are established, those same voters will vote again on a winner. Unlike Heisman ballots, which allow voters to pick 3 players, Spikes Award voters only vote for a winner. Their votes account for 95% of the total. Fans also are allowed to vote, and their total accounts for the remaining 5%.

USA Baseball announces the Golden Spikes Award winner in late June. Vote totals are not released.

Do Golden Spikes Award Winners Become Major League Stars?

Sometimes, yes. Unlike the Heisman Trophy, which has somewhat of a cursed legacy in terms of winners attaining NFL stardom, Golden Spikes Award winners tend to enjoy Major League success as well.

Entering the 2025 season, 19 former Golden Spikes Award winners have become MLB All-Stars. That list includes winners such as Bryce Harper, Buster Posey, Kris Bryant, Jason Varitek, Will Clark, etc. The most recent GSA winner to become an All-Star is Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman, who won the award in 2019 for Oregon State.

According to USA Baseball, 39 GSA winners have been taken in the first round of the MLB Draft.

How Many Golden Spikes Award Winners Became No. 1 Overall Draft Picks?

Entering the 2025 season, 8 GSA winners were selected No. 1 overall in that same summer’s MLB Draft.

• 2019: Adley Rutschman
• 2010: Bryce Harper
• 2009: Stephen Strasburg
• 2007: David Price
• 1998: Pat Burrell
• 1992: Phil Nevin
• 1989: Ben McDonald
• 1978: Bob Horner

How Many Golden Spikes Award Winners Are in the Baseball Hall of Fame?

None yet, but that soon will change.

Buster Posey (2008 GSA winner) will make his debut on the 2027 Hall of Fame ballot and has a strong case for induction that year. Posey was a 7-time All-Star and NL MVP who led the San Francisco Giants to World Series championships in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

Harper clearly is on a first-ballot Hall of Fame track.

Chris Wright

Managing Editor

A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.