Top 5 college baseball players who never won the Dick Howser Trophy

Even with college baseball's illustrious Dick Howser Trophy, the award process isn't perfect. The Howser Trophy, awarded annually since 1987 to the nation's top college baseball player, can't always get it right.

While most of recipients of the Trophy were deserving winners, sometimes even better players were passed over. Here are five great players who somehow missed the Howser Trophy.

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Top five college baseball players who never won the Dick Howser Trophy

Now a broadcaster, picher Ben McDonald was dominant in 1989. .

#5 Ben McDonald

In 1989, LSU's Ben McDonald was the best pitcher in the nation. With a 14-4 record, a 3.49 ERA and 202 strikeouts in 152 1/3 innings pitched, McDonald was absolutely dominant. He had already won a gold medal with the 1988 US Olympic team, but the Howser Trophy went to Texas outfielder Scott Bryant.

For his efforts in 1989, McDonald went with the first pick in that year's MLB Draft and won the Golden Spikes Award. He had a solid MLB career, but injuries left him with just a 78-70 career record and a 3.91 career ERA.

#4 John Olerud

Robin Ventura won the 1988 Howser Trophy and was an entirely deserving candidate. But between getting beaten out by Ventura and missing most of the 1989 season with a brain aneurysm, Olerud wasn't appropriately honored.

In 1988, Olerud batted .464 with 23 home runs and 81 RBIs, which alone would have justified the Howser Trophy. He also went 15-0 on the mound with a 2.49 ERA.

After the aneursym drastically shortened his 1989 season, Olerud was drafted by Toronto. He was a .295 hitter with 255 homers in his MLB career. He was twice an All-Star and twice a World Series champion.

#3 Phil Nevin

In 1992, Brooks Kieschnick won the first of back-to-back Howser Trophies, but Cal State Fullerton's Phil Nevin was also a deserving selection.

The slugging Nevin batted .402 with 22 homers and 86 RBIs. Even when Nevin's team didn;t win in Omaha, he was voted the Most Outstanding Player after going 10-for-19 with a pair of home runs and 11 RBIs in Omaha.

Nevin was chosen first by the Astros in the 1992 MLB Draft. He hit .270 with 208 home runs in the big leagues and was chosen as an All-Star in 2001.

#2 Dylan Crews

Texas's Ivan Melendez won the Howser Trophy in 2022, with LSU's Paul Skenes winning in 2023. Dylan Crew was deserving in both years. In 2022, the LSU star hit .349 with 22 homers and 72 RBIs. A year later, he was back hitting .426 with 18 homers and 70 RBIs.

Crews went second to the Washington Nationals in the 2023 Draft. He's now playing at Class AA but hopes to continue advancing through the minors.

#1 Bryce Harper

Yes, Harper quit high school early, got his GED, and played in JUCO at age 17. Admittedly, the optics of choosing a player from College of Southern Nevada as the Howser Trophy winner would have been surprising. But there's some precedent - Miami-Dade Community College's Alex Fernandez won in 1990.

Harper hit .443 with 31 home runs. In the National Junior College World Series, he was even better. In one three-game span over two days, Harper went 14 for 18. After college, Harper has hit .281 with 316 home runs.

Twice chosen NL MVP and a seven-time All-Star, Bryce Harper won the Golden Spikes award back in college but was robbed of the award again.

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